Chapter 16

 

Straightening up, she took one look at me and started to come at me again. I braced myself. I made brief eye contact with Chase. “Does she heal?” I more or less snarled at him.

Chase just grinned at me and nodded.

When she was close enough, I waited for her swing and blocked it with the wand. Lunging down to one knee, I hit her in the stomach with my shoulder and sent her onto her back. Dropping down I held her there with one knee on her chest and the wand across her throat, my raptor was already in my other hand and resting against her cheek before she could blink.

I looked into grey eyes that were wishing me dead. “I don’t know what the fuck that was about, lady, but you ever come at me like that again you better hope to hell you take me out with one move.” I took a ragged breath. “I may not have been here very long, but I sure as hell know that when your King speaks to you, you damn well better listen.”

Hands reached under my arms and lifted me off her. Victor came over and pulled Shelby to her feet. “Doing my job for me?” He was actually smirking.

“Just helping where I can.” Huffing out a breath, I dropped the wand and let Chase guide me away from them. Troy and Quinton were heading towards Shelby. Three of the others were having what looked like some serious words with Welsley. Stopping by the door, Chase turned me so my back was to everyone else in the room.

Leaning down, he lifted up my chin and looked at my cheek. “Jesus, kitten, that’s got to be burning like a bitch.”

“Only when I move,” I added drily, “Who the hell was that?” I let him lift my left arm and look at it. I knew it was red from blocking so many hits without even looking down at it.

“Troy had a thing with her once, a long time ago.” He muttered as he lifted my hair to look at my cheek again.

“I don’t think she knows it’s over.”

He grunted. “She seems to think he’ll come around, although you’d think after fifty years she’d give up.”

I shook my head and then squinted and lowered it. “Yeah.”

“Quinton is going to take one look at this bruised up mug of yours and demand justice.” His hazel eyes were filled with almost as much pain as I was feeling.

“Well, I don’t have presto healing like you guys so I’ll have to suffer through it.”

Reaching down he pulled my raptor out of my hand, I hadn’t even realized I still held. Leaning around me he put it back in the sheath and then dropped down onto one knee in front of me. His face was almost level with mine. “I can help you heal.” His hazel eyes searched mine.

“What do you have the healing touch or something?”

He grinned. “No.” He touched just below the throb in my cheek. “My blood, any of my brothers’ blood would heal you.”

“As in drink it?” I would have scrunched up my face but it hurt too much to move.

Giving me a nonchalant shrug, he nodded.

“Uck.”

Grinning, he touched my jaw so I had to look at him. “It wouldn’t be that bad.”

Biting my lip, I wondered if I could do something like that. A pain shot into my eye as I looked at him. “Would it do anything else to me?”

“Like grow horns and a tail? No that’s later on.”

I smiled and then winced when it sent a lightning pain through my jaw.

“The small amount you’d need won’t do anything else, you have my word.”

Before I could answer, he stood up and looked over my head. I turned slowly to see Quinton, Troy and Rafael coming quickly towards us. “Crap.” I muttered.

“Brace yourself for a lot of coddling.” He gently held my shoulder and turned me to face them.

When all three of them stopped in their tracks, I wondered just how bad my face looked. Quinton stomped over and placed a shaking hand under my chin and tilted my head up. Turning, he shoved through the other two men and broke out into a run going to the door on the other side.

“Shit.” Troy stopped and looked at my face and then to the door that was banging shut after Quinton’s fast exit. “Take Daxx to her room, Chase.” He turned and jogged in the direction his brother had gone.

Rafael stood there looking at my face, with pain in his eyes.

“Go help Troy wrangle Quint.” Chase said.

Rafael nodded and ran after him.

“Come on, kitten let’s get you to your room.”