Page 12 of Cold Hearted
Reaching down, I snagged my sunstone dagger in my bound hands and flew toward the murderer,slamming the blunt end of my weapon against the masked fae’s head. He went down immediately, slumping against Zander, who shoved the body off him and sat up. Shaking his head, Zander ran a hand through the strands of his dark hair and then looked up at me. I could tell he was a little stunned by the incident and the dampener spell was still cast over him. I could see the sickly green glowing rune peeking out from under his shirt. Lucky for him, I was well versed in how to disable them.
With the attacker out cold, I re-sheathed my weapon as I knelt on the bed next to him. “Do you want to explain to me—?”
“Behind you,” Zander shouted, and I twisted, instinctually throwing my hands out in front of me and sending a bolt of sunlight magic at a fae who, from the looks of it, was just about to run me through with his sword.
My magic hit the fae square in the chest and the smell of burning flesh filled the room as he cried out in pain. The force of the hit sent him flying back into the wall behind him. His body slammed into it and then went straight through it to the adjoining room.
Zander popped out of bed as two more masked fae entered the room and rushed at us from what I could now see was a kicked-in door. Zander immediately engaged one of the attackers, which didn’t give me a chance to help shatter the dampener.
I pulled my dagger, but the fae who had now reached me kicked it from my grip in one quick stride.
Rage uncoiled within me as the blood furiously pumped through my veins, and bound hands or not, my years of training kicked in.I didn’t have a weapon right now, but I didn’t truly need one.Iwas the weapon.
Now that the other assailant was in range I twisted my body to deliver a side kick to his solar plexus. The hit didn’t put him down but made him stumble back a few steps and reassess me.
“Zander, my hands,” I yelled over to him before the masked fae rushed me again.
My magic was strong, I could finish these attackers in seconds if I were to fully unleash a concentrated sunlight beam on them, but I could also take them down without it. I’d already shown Zander too much. If he suspected I was from Faerie I wouldn’t survive the night, so I might as well save my powers for when I really needed them. Besides, I’d been itching for a real fight since the moment Zander slapped these cuffs on my wrists, and since smashing his pretty face in wasn’t an option, I could use the outlet for my rage and frustration. I might be a lady and a princess, but I’d always found a good fight to be cathartic.
Zander cursed from somewhere behind me then yelled back, “Give me a minute.”
Right. Like the masked fae was going to wait until my hands were unbound to attack.
Zander and I were going to have some words when this was all over. Who were these fools anyway? And why were they attacking us?
With a wicked smile, the fae in front of me pulled two daggers free from his thigh holsters and came at me again, swinging the blades in an arc. Waiting until the last moment, I ducked out of the way, dropping low and then swiping my leg out to hit the fae’s ankles and bring him to the ground.He hit the floor with a grunt, and I didn’t waste time kicking hard in his ribs and grinning at the satisfying crunch of bone. I followed it up with another kick to the head and the fae went limp, lights out.
Since it was clear he wasn’t going to get up, I looked for Zander, who was trading blows with the other fae across the room.
“The key,” I yelled to him just as he delivered an uppercut that snapped his opponent’s head back at an odd angle.
Ouch.
Reaching into his pocket, he grabbed the key and tossed it to me, taking a blow to the side of his head for his troubles.
The key arced through the air and I caught it with my clasped hands. I had to grab the end of it with my teeth and bring my hands to my face to insert the small piece of metal into the lock. I’d only just separated the cuffs when arms banded around my waist from behind.
Snapping my head upward, I smashed the back of my skull into my captor’s nose. Shouting in pain, his hold on me loosened and I broke free. I shoved the key into the side pocket of my fur-lined pants and then swung around, jamming the heel of my palm into his nose to ensure that it was well and truly broken.
The masked fae continued to come at me, but his movements were sloppy, and with my hands free I knew he didn’t have a chance. It was only seconds before I had him on the ground again, whaling on him with my fists as he tried to cover his head and face. Before I could put him down for good, I caught movement out of the corner of my eye. I turned my head just in time to see the fae I’d previously knocked out with my sunlight magic rushing past me and heading straight toward Zander,who couldn’t see the attack coming because his back was turned.
Reaching down to grasp the fae’s head in my hands that lay beneath me, I snapped his neck quickly and then shoved off of him. I swooped low and snatched my discarded dagger from the floor, and with a flick of my wrist launched it at the assailant headed toward Zander. The blade found purchase in the fae’s shoulder, and he howled in pain.
Zander’s head snapped up and he spun to meet the new threat before the fae could lay a hand on him, clotheslining him across the neck.
I started toward Zander, but the look on his face gave me pause. A menacing darkness came over his features as he grabbed one of his attackers and tossed them over his shoulder and into the dirty tub of water at the back of the room.
I sucked in a breath. That was an impressive feat for someone whose strength was hindered. I’d been hit with a dampener once in training and could hardly lift my sword afterward. He was a beast to still have that amount of strength and stamina. That really must be what magic he carried, strength magic. Impressive. And nothing the fae in my court carried.
When Zander’s gaze swung back to me, unnatural embers sparked in the depths of his blue eyes as his magic tried to break free from the dampener spell. I almost didn’t recognize him.
Do I look like that when I battle?I wondered.Crazed and bloodthirsty?
The open doorway to the hall suddenly filled with more masked fae. They rushed at Zander, making it three against one. Too bad I still needed the bastard to bring me before his lord.This would have been the perfect time to slip away.
I sighed. This was fun and all, but I was ready to shut it down.
Sprinting the short distance to where Zander battled the three remaining masked fae, I jumped on the back of one of them, hooking my legs around their waist and shifting my weight to bring us both down to the floor. The fae swiped at me with his blade, but he couldn’t get a good shot because I was still attached to his back. Slipping a hand over his eyes, I lit up my palm with sunlight magic and blinded him. He clawed at my hand, dropping his weapon. Untangling myself from him, I scooped up the blade and sank it deep into his neck before joining Zander.
