Page 35 of Ravenous Prophecy
“Stop!” When I yelled the word, the air around us seemed to warp.
Griffin was up, running toward Kane, his hand drawing back, and I recognized those knuckles, recognized the damage they would do. They were going to crush Kane’s helmet. I let myself relax.
Kane caught Griffin’s hand, the impact of the punch dissipating into nothingness. Griffin howled in pain, and I lurched toward him, but Elaine was faster, using a spell to bind Kane down.
With one hand, he waved the magic away, dissolving her dark blue magic into smoke. He grinned at Julian.
“Would you see what I will do with that sword you hold so precious? Be ready, sword whisperer. You will lose your blade the moment you raise it against me.” Then the mandibles extended, his mouth so wide I was sure he could consume us all.
I took three steps, grabbing the helmet as tight as Griffin had held my skull together only a few minutes ago, when the Hive had threatened to turn my brain into atoms. I could feel the threat in the voice, the consuming need.
Wrenching the helmet off Kane’s head, I stared into his horrible, insectoid face.
“Enough,” I said. “You have enough.”
The look faded from him, and he dropped Brigette. His eyes were wide and horribly human when he looked around at the carnage and said, “What happened here?”
Griffin took my arm and tugged me away. I grabbed hold of Elaine’s hand, and Brigette and Julian followed.When we were all packed in the car again, Brigette swore loud and colorfully.
“Are you fucking kidding me? TheHiveare real?” Brigette swore again, slamming her hand on the dashboard.
“Just get us out of here,” Griffin said. “We need to be gone before MEA or Williams show up.”
Julian drove.
CHAPTER 13
GRIFFIN
By some miracle,Julian actually managed to find a parking spot not too far from Bradley’s apartment. Fair enough that farther away could have been better—what if Williams’s people had followed us? What if they found us? But I was willing to let Julian’s rust heap take its chances. Probably for the best to take it off the road, anyway. Safer that way.
“Why are we hiding out in this decrepit shithole?” Brigette hissed. “Wasn’t there anywhere else?”
I chuckled nervously as I ushered her down the sidewalk and through the entrance. “Be nice now, Brigette. It’s not decrepit. It’s vintage. Or heritage. Something.”
“Hey,” Bradley said meekly. “We’ve all had a rough day. Do you have to poke fun at my place?”
“Beggars can’t be choosers, Brigette,” Elaine said crisply. “I know that fight took a lot out of us, but there’s no need to be uncivil about my brother’s lodgings, even if they do look liable to collapse at any moment.”
The elevator dinged. Bradley rolled his eyes as herummaged through his pockets for his keys. “Listen, I know this has been a traumatic experience for everyone, but?—”
His words caught in his throat as he pushed his apartment door open. Huh. Speaking of traumatic experiences.
Julian frowned at the chaos. “I mean this in the nicest way possible. What the fuck happened while we were gone?”
Bradley’s apartment had been ransacked.
“Oh my god.” Bradley clutched at his hair like he was going to rip it out, his glasses almost flying off his face. “My apartment! My research! My work!”
I followed him as he stormed into the apartment, intending to tell him to calm down, fully aware that doing so generally had the opposite effect. Instead I stood in the middle of the living room as Hurricane Bradley whirled around me, leaving the apartment in greater devastation than before.
Fucking JA Williams had sent his goons to practically turn the place inside out. I couldn’t decide whether this was meant to intimidate us or to retrieve the manuscript we’d stolen from the Vault. Probably both.
I scratched irritably at the back of my neck. As much of a pain in my ass as Nicoletta could be, she was absolutely right. Our actions had consequences. Wealthy men didn’t like it when people took their things.
“Listen, we can help you look,” I said limply, too soft for Bradley to hear, not at all convinced we’d find anything. The confidence had drained out through the soles of my feet. Whatever Williams’s goons had come for… considering the state of the apartment, they’d definitely found what they wanted. Kicking over Bradley’s stuff was just a fun bonus.
Brigette had found her way to the sofa, sitting on the edge of it with a blank, exhausted look on her face. The clatter of cupboards in the kitchen meant that Julian was looking for something hard to drink. I didn’t blame the guy. Elaine, however, was spinning in a slow circle as she dug through her pockets. Deep. Like, way too deep. So deep that she was definitely coming close to ripping something open. I frowned.
