Torn (A Wicked Saga, #2)(38)

She shrieked as she went down, and I jumped to my feet. Val was only down for a second. She rose and rushed me like a damn linebacker, shoving me backward. We slammed into an air unit and the ancient thing rattled.

I lifted my leg, going for her very active lady parts, but she anticipated my move, and I caught her in the side, which earned me a nice sucker punch in the stomach. I doubled over with a grunt as I stumbled away from the unit.

Val grabbed me from behind, wrapping one arm around my neck. “This is getting really old. Why don’t you chill the f*ck out and—”

Twisting in her grasp, I used her weight against her as I grabbed her arm. I flipped her over my shoulder, and she hit the floor with a satisfying yelp. Breathing hard, I stood over her. “I can’t believe you, Val. You know I can’t just let you walk away from here.”

“What are you going to do?” she asked from her prone position. “I know you’re not going to kill me. You don’t have it in you. So you’re going to try to take me in, and yeah, I’m not into that. I just need to delay this.”

“For what—?”

Val leaped to her feet like a damn ninja and coldcocked me. Blood leaked out of my nose as the pain exploded. I spun, kicking out with my legs. Val darted and then lurched forward, grabbing huge handfuls of my hair. I shrieked as fire spread across my scalp.

“You’re going to pull my hair?” I gritted out, grabbing her arm. “That is low, Val.”

“That’s the lowest thing you think I’ve done?”

“Oh, I know there’s more.” Digging my fingers into her wrist, I put the pressure on her until she yelped and let go. Springing backward, I spun and kicked out again. Val tried to dodge my legs, but they caught her in the hip. She went down on one knee. “You’re pretty much wallowing in—”

An icy wind whipped across the roof, stinging the sore spots on my face. Val stiffened and then slowly pushed to her feet. She stepped back, giving me a wide berth. I opened my mouth, but a large, winged bird landed on the ledge of the roof.

It was a raven.

The thing was huge and glossy black, and totally not a normal bird.

My heartbeat stuttered, and all I could think was, not again as the air rippled around the raven, and a second later the prince was crouched in its place.





Chapter Thirteen


The prince was still for a moment, and sort of reminded me of the statues perched on rooftops, made of marble and consisting of no warmth or life. Only his midnight-colored hair moved in the breeze, playing across his chiseled features.

Instinct forced me to take a step back, and it was in that moment when I realized I had no weapons in my hands. I’d been fighting Val, and not once had I pulled a weapon. Her earlier taunts rang true. I couldn’t kill her.

But right now that wasn’t the most pressing issue to focus on.

The prince was back, and something else Val said had surfaced. I just need to delay this. She knew he’d come. “Bitch,” I hissed.

“I knew he’d come,” she confirmed in a low voice.

Anger bubbled up like lava. “I want to punch you again.”

“Girls,” the prince murmured as he straightened to his full, impressive height. “What do humans say? Why fight when you can make love?”

“That is incredibly cliché,” I said, widening my stance.

A smirk formed on the prince’s near-perfect lips as he stepped off the ledge. He was dressed much like yesterday. Wind tousled his shirt, pushing it back against his hard stomach and chest. “And your hair is still obnoxiously bright, even at night.”

I stared at him, brows raised.

He drifted a few feet closer, and his chin rose, nostrils flaring. “I smell your blood.”

“This just keeps getting better and better,” I muttered.

The prince cocked his head to the side. “I can think of many ways to make this evening so much better.”

Ew.

Val moved closer to the prince, and I stiffened. “Don’t get near him,” I warned.

She raised a brow. “Babe, I’ve already been near him. Like, really near him if you get my drift.”

I totally got her drift.

And I totally wanted to barf.

I also totally didn’t get why I was trying to protect her at this point.

“Why are you bleeding?” the prince asked. When I didn’t answer, he looked at Val. “Explain.”

“We were fighting,” she immediately answered, her tone timid. I’d never heard her like that before. Val was the opposite of a quiet, little mouse. “She attacked me. I had to defend myself.”

The prince raised an eyebrow. “You were to bring her to me. Not beat her.”

“I wouldn’t say she ‘beat’ me,” I muttered.

They both ignored me, and there was no mistaking the nervousness in the way Val fidgeted with her fingers. “I wasn’t planning for her to see me tonight. You know what I was doing in the Quarter. It was what you asked.”

“What were you doing in the Quarter?” I asked, and was ignored, yet again.

The prince angled his body toward Val, which worked to my benefit. I slowly kneeled and reached under my pant leg.

Val shifted her weight from one foot to another. “I told you we needed to give her time, but I promised—”