Wicked Edge (Realm Enforcers, #2)(20)

Her voice plus the double entendre rippled through Daire to his groin. When all four men facing her discreetly adjusted their stances, his temper moved from simmer to bring it the f*ck on. A chuckle from a woman like her was a dangerous thing.

Bychkov’s gaze raked Daire’s bare chest. “Still slumming it, I see.”

Slumming it? Had the woman been with a witch before? Daire angled his body so he could cover her if anybody fired. “Would somebody tell me what is going on?” If he was going to fight, he wanted to know the reason, damn it.

Bychkov sighed, his gaze remaining squarely on Cee Cee. “We have an agreement, and you’re going to honor it.”

“Not a chance in hell,” Cee Cee spat, glancing up at the thick cloud cover.

What was she looking for? “Agreement?” Daire muttered under his breath.

Bychkov crossed his arms. “We were betrothed decades ago, and you ran away.” He shuffled his feet. “We could’ve worked things out.”

She stretched her neck, her body one tense line. “I’m not property to be bargained with, Ivan. There’s no betrothal.” Her boot made no sound as she took a step forward. “You should’ve let go, and you will pay for what you’ve done. In ways you can’t even imagine with your tiny mind. I will see you dead.”

He smiled. “There are four of us against two of you.”

She chuckled again. “Oh, I didn’t mean today. You get to live a while . . . first.” So much threat lived in the words that the hair on the back of Daire’s neck stood up.

Bychkov frowned. “You’ve forgotten how well I know you. Everything about you.”

Her chin snapped up. “I haven’t forgotten.”

“Then you know you can’t beat me. Can’t come close, in fact.” He finally turned his focus to Daire. “You know she’s damaged, right?”

Daire was more interested in the woman’s preoccupation with the clouds. “What are you doing?” he whispered, the sound slight.

“Time. Can’t see sun,” she whispered back.

The sun? Why did she need time? But Daire could go along for a moment. “Damaged? If you ask me, she’s pretty f*cking perfect.”

Cee Cee smiled at him.

Bychkov growled, demon low. “Then she hasn’t told you, Enforcer.” A tickle, one of pain and death, vibrated through the air toward Daire’s frontal lobe.

Daire smiled and threw up a mental shield. His expertise for the last three centuries had been in learning to shield against demon mind attacks, because the Coven Nine had always expected war with the demon nation. “That all you got?”

Bychkov’s eyes turned beady. “No. But it’s more than she’s got.”

Daire kept any reaction from showing. Was Cee Cee incapable of demon mind attacks? Was that even possible? “Regardless, you asked for the lady’s hand, she apparently said no, and it’s over. Tuck your tail between your legs and go home.”

Bychkov shook his head, his face contorting. Emotion, deep and dark, charged the atmosphere. “We have a contract, struck by families, and she’s mine. The Coven Nine will not interfere in such matters, and you know it. You go home, Dunne.”

True. The Coven Nine wouldn’t even think of interfering in another nation’s matters, including betrothals and all that crap. “I guess I’ll just have to interfere on my own, then.” He kept the mental shield in place, although even he wasn’t delusional enough to think he could protect his brain from the attacks of all four soldiers. They weren’t going anywhere, and the matter was about to escalate, so it was time for action. He molded the fire still burning across his hands into smaller projectiles.

“Wait a second,” Cee Cee said. “Give me just a few more minutes, I think.”

“For what?” Daire asked.

She lifted her head. “I like the enforcer. I owe him and have brought enough trouble to his doorstep. You have one chance here, Ivan. Forget the contract and walk away. I’ll do the same.”

Bychkov studied her, the heavy wind blowing his hair around his classic face. “No.”

She exhaled, her breath misting in the cold air. “I’m glad you said that. To be honest, I’m not sure I could’ve walked away.”

He took an involuntary step toward her and then stopped. “I didn’t think so. You’ve wondered about us.”

“No.” She shook her head.

“Yes, you have. I was your first kiss.” Triumph lifted his pale lips.

She wrinkled her nose. “That was decades upon decades ago, and I have to tell you, there was way too much teeth.”

Daire bit back a grin at the sarcasm, even as his muscles tensed for the fight. The crumbling building shielded the soldiers from the gentling storm, and they’d make a move soon.

The ground pitched. Air paused, and the atmosphere held its breath. A rumble echoed, the entire tundra rocked, and an explosion rippled through the storm. The icy ground cracked. Fire billowed into the air, even through the storm, shooting sparks and debris into the air a couple of miles away.

One of the soldiers slipped and fell on his face.

“What did you do?” Bychkov yelled, spittle flying from his mouth.

Daire bunched and threw both fire balls, impacting the crumbling building at its stress points. Sheet metal flew out, sharp and jagged. The building toppled. The soldiers ran in different directions, sliding on the unsteady ground, trying to avoid the piercing metal.