“Would you?”
Kid nodded.
“Don't be shy. I need a yes or a no.”
“Yes.” His voice rose uneasily.
“Don't you fucking do it!”
Craetis pressed his fingers tighter together.
“What if,” Vera went on, “instead of taking his life, I agreed to take yours, however I choose.”
“Don't be stupid, Kid.”
Kid's gaze drifted to the floor. Could he give up his life for this immortal that he'd known for such a short time? Was he willing to sacrifice himself when he didn't even know how Treycore felt about him? What if Treycore didn't even love him? What if Treycore couldn’t have cared less about him?His thoughts spiraled through a labyrinth of doubt and confusion, but despite all the doubt, Kid couldn't stop himself from muttering, “Yes.”
“No!”
“Treycore,” Vera said. “I don't see what your issue is. I asked him, and he agreed. That's how deals are made. And in the end, he's sparing your life, so I would think you would be wise to listen to your own advice and not be stupid.”
CLICK CLICK!
She walked behind the desk and sat in her leather, swivel chair. She pulled one of the desk drawers open.
“Take a seat.”
***
Kinzer watched in horror as the tentacle around Dedrus tossed him against the side of the building adjacent to the garage. Feathers exploded like a grenade as he hit the wall wing-first.
“Ah!”
Kinzer looked up the one-story-tall creature, fixing his focus on its eye-slit.
How the fuck am I gonna get up there?
He didn’t know, but he had to hurry before it ripped Dedrus apart.
A ladder rose up the side of the neighboring building. He sprinted to it, and scaled it. Dedrus crawled to his feet. His wounded wing trembled before tearing off the bone and collapsing onto the ground. A tentacle wrapped around his ankle and yanked him across the asphalt.
“Fuck!” he cried as the flesh on his arm peeled off. The asphalt dug into his muscles, leaving a blood trail behind him.
As Kinzer stepped onto a rung at the monster’s height, he looked back. Hoddy was several yards away.
I can’t make that.
He hadn’t even considered that, without his wings, he wasn’t going to be able to get over to the Morarke.
Shit.
He eyed a window ledge a few feet from him.Grabbing onto the side of the ladder, he swung over to it and crouched down. With the hilt of his sword, he smashed a hole in the window and climbed inside.
***
Dedrus’s arms were restrained in Hoddy’s tentacle as it pulled him toward its razor-wire mouth. The Morarke shoved his remaining wing inside. Blood and black feathers showered across his face. Dedrus shouted, his cry bouncing across the sides of the buildings, echoing through the alley. A window by the creature’s head exploded into shards. Kinzer, his arms over his face, his hands grasping his sword, soared through the air.
***
