It was so dark it was hard to make sense of the situation, but Mr. Skinny was nowhere in sight. I kicked toward Anton’s bad leg and felt a moment’s hope when he groaned in pain.
But it wasn’t enough. He grabbed ahold of my sweatshirt and pulled me closer and we both went down on the cold, slimy stone.
“Fucking bitch!” He climbed on top of me and got a vicious punch to my face.
I saw stars like some kind of cartoon character as I lashed out with the bottle still in my hand. I had no real sense of where I was pointing the thing, but I felt it make contact with something, felt the drag of it through something meaty and wet, felt the spray of hot blood on my face and chest.
Antone sputtered, clutching at his neck.
I dropped the bottle, gasping as the blood rained down on my nose and mouth, trying to push Anton off me, gagging at the metallic taste of his blood in my mouth.
I retched, panic blooming like an invasive species in my body.
And then, all at once, Anton’s weight disappeared and another figure, huge and menacing, with an elongated snout and horns, loomed over me like a beastly specter.
I rolled onto my stomach and belly-crawled away from the monster, sobs tearing from my throat.
“Maeve, Maeve, Maeve!”
I fought, kicking and thrashing as a viselike grip encircled my arm.
“It’s me! It’s me!”
I froze. I knew that voice.
“Bram?” The bone mask was suddenly more familiar than terrifying.
He lifted me into his arms. “It’s okay.” He held me close. “It’s okay, I’ve got you.”
I’d been found, but not byamonster.
By mine.
17
MAEVE
I shook so hardI thought I was dying.
And then…
The interior of a car.
A castle on fire, surrounded by snowy fields, growing smaller through the car’s rear window.
Murmured voices, the rhythm of the car, the interior hushed.
Bram’s arms around me, carrying me over asphalt, shielding me from biting wind as planes roared overhead.
The inside of a plane, soft leather seats, a pile of thick blankets.
Remy holding my hand, his thumb rubbing my skin.
Poe gently rubbing face with a warm cloth.
Bram next to me every time I opened my eyes, a promise in his searing gaze.
Darkness.
