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They were near the car park when she reached the and looked torn betorry and disapproval Mae hoped fervently that nobody would call the police Nick needed to get out of the city fast, and besides, she doubted herbail money
“Got the sword,” she called out
“Good,” Nick said between his teeth as they tried to e the ramps inside the car park, oily puddles harder to avoid now Under the flickering fluorescent lights, Nick’s footprints were vivid red
Mae tried to avoid walking in them
“Lucky they let us go,” she said, talking ht soothe Jamie “I mean—I didn’t expect them to play fair”
“Having us trapped in afair,” Alan observed
“No,” Mae said “I just meant that they kept by the rules of the duel You didn’t”
It wasn’t that she disapproved exactly, but seeing the flash of the gun as Alan tucked it away had caused an uneasy shift in her sto the double-crossing
“It’s true,” said Alan, and maneuvered his brother so Nick’s back hit their car Nick leaned against it and panted, long shuddering breaths like an ani afterisn’t an option, it doesn’t matter what you have to do to win”
He spoke in a distracted voice, as if he didn’t really care what he was saying Mae didn’t care either, though, not really Not when Nick looked as if he was about to collapse before their eyes
Alan rested his bad leg against the car for a second as well, then opened the door to the backseat and pushed Nick into it Nick went sprawling, head tipped back There was a sheen of sweat on his throat
Alan climbed into the car with him
“You were going to shoot that ician?” Nick asked, his voice a thread Mae could hardly follow
“If necessary,” Alan told him, voice calm and sweet His face told a different story, but that didn’t matter Nick’s eyes were closed
Alan reached out and pushed the sweaty hair back from Nick’s brow, and Nick turned his head restlessly away Alan withdrew his hand
“I had her number the whole time,” Nick murmured “You have so little faith”
“Well, faith’s hard,” said Alan, voice so soothing it was practically a melody “Especially when you’re such an idiot You realize this shirt is ruined”
He ripped the shirt apart with efficient hands, the buttons flying behind the headrests and into the front seat
Nick’s chest was heaving, slick with sweat and blood There was a thin line where the sword had skittered over his ribs, and then the deep, terrible wound on the right
Mae tried not to panic
“That’s going to need stitches,” Alan remarked “Mae, rab it for me?”
He threw the keys over his shoulder at her without looking and she caught the to do
“Don’t bother,” Nick rasped
Mae glanced at hiers wrap around Alan’s wrist, forcing Alan’s hand away
“Why mess around? All you have to do is drive me out of here and I can fix myself up”
“Oh,” said Alan, his voice entirely changed, gone flat “Of course Stupid of rab the first-aid kit anyway?”
“Sure,” said Mae, and went and grabbed it
When she got back, Alan was scra He flipped the box open and sorted through it, then ducked his head into the car
“Here,” he said, his whole air terribly casual “Here’s a pad Hold it to the wound as we’re traveling, would you? We don’t want you bleeding out before we cross the boundaries of the circle”
Nick took it, hissing as he pulled hi position
“I can take the back,” Mae volunteered
“No,” said Jamie “I will It’s fine”
He climbed in beside Nick a little tentatively, as if convinced that if Nick was even slightly jostled he would die on the spot
Mae figured the only thing she could do was get into the car so they could get out of there, so she did that as fast as possible Alan backed out of their space and went out of the car park driving just a little over the limit
She twisted around in her seat as they sped through the streets of Southwark, at the sa?”
“Someone drove a very sharp sword between my ribs,” Nick said evenly “How do you think?”
Jamie laid a hand on Nick’s arm “Well,” he said, a bit aardly “Th—”
“Don’t touch me,” Nick snarled
Jamie removed his hand as if scalded “Sorry,” he said, and tried to tuck himself into a corner of the car as far away from Nick as he could
Nick leaned his head back against the headrest, teeth gritted against the pain as they went over a speed buone so white he would have looked like stone if not for the sweatin the hollow of his throat
“I didn’tway,” he said abruptly
p>
They were near the car park when she reached the and looked torn betorry and disapproval Mae hoped fervently that nobody would call the police Nick needed to get out of the city fast, and besides, she doubted herbail money
“Got the sword,” she called out
“Good,” Nick said between his teeth as they tried to e the ramps inside the car park, oily puddles harder to avoid now Under the flickering fluorescent lights, Nick’s footprints were vivid red
Mae tried to avoid walking in them
“Lucky they let us go,” she said, talking ht soothe Jamie “I mean—I didn’t expect them to play fair”
“Having us trapped in afair,” Alan observed
“No,” Mae said “I just meant that they kept by the rules of the duel You didn’t”
It wasn’t that she disapproved exactly, but seeing the flash of the gun as Alan tucked it away had caused an uneasy shift in her sto the double-crossing
“It’s true,” said Alan, and maneuvered his brother so Nick’s back hit their car Nick leaned against it and panted, long shuddering breaths like an ani afterisn’t an option, it doesn’t matter what you have to do to win”
He spoke in a distracted voice, as if he didn’t really care what he was saying Mae didn’t care either, though, not really Not when Nick looked as if he was about to collapse before their eyes
Alan rested his bad leg against the car for a second as well, then opened the door to the backseat and pushed Nick into it Nick went sprawling, head tipped back There was a sheen of sweat on his throat
Alan climbed into the car with him
“You were going to shoot that ician?” Nick asked, his voice a thread Mae could hardly follow
“If necessary,” Alan told him, voice calm and sweet His face told a different story, but that didn’t matter Nick’s eyes were closed
Alan reached out and pushed the sweaty hair back from Nick’s brow, and Nick turned his head restlessly away Alan withdrew his hand
“I had her number the whole time,” Nick murmured “You have so little faith”
“Well, faith’s hard,” said Alan, voice so soothing it was practically a melody “Especially when you’re such an idiot You realize this shirt is ruined”
He ripped the shirt apart with efficient hands, the buttons flying behind the headrests and into the front seat
Nick’s chest was heaving, slick with sweat and blood There was a thin line where the sword had skittered over his ribs, and then the deep, terrible wound on the right
Mae tried not to panic
“That’s going to need stitches,” Alan remarked “Mae, rab it for me?”
He threw the keys over his shoulder at her without looking and she caught the to do