Page 37 of Wicked Enemy
“Are you hurt?” she asked, casting a sideways glance at me.
I looked down at my body to check, since I hadn’t really been paying any attention to that. But I didn’t see any cuts, so all of the blood covering me appeared to belong to the now dead dark mages. “No.”
She nodded. “Good. Then put her to bed.”
Pushing up from my seat, I wobbled slightly and had to brace myself on the table before I could manage to stand without falling over. Then I took off my blood-soaked armor and hung it on the back of the chair.
Gemma just watched me as I reached into the bucket of water next to the table and picked up the small cloth hanging on the side of it. After dipping it into the water, I cleaned off the blood that had run down the back of Eve’s legs and down her face. Then I lifted her up and carried her into the bedroom.
My lookout was sleeping in the stable tonight, so there would be no one here to disturb Eve while she rested.
After gently placing her body on the mattress, I pulled up the covers over her and then brushed back a few locks of hair from her forehead. My chest constricted painfully, and I had to force myself to turn around quickly and walk back into the combined kitchen and living room.
Gemma was still sitting on the chair where I left her. Her brown eyes were serious as they found mine. “I wish you would reconsider.”
“We’ve already had this conversation, Gemma.”
“This is the whole reason why I’m here.” She nodded towards the bedroom door. “To do things like that. And I can’t do that if I’m hiding in a house halfway to Castlebourne.”
“I know.” I dragged a hand through my hair. “But we’ve never dealt with a worldwalker before. He knows where you live, and he can just appear in the middle of the room at any time. We can’t risk it. If he kidnaps you…”
She blew out a defeated sigh. “I know. I know. I just… hate it. Especially when Tyler and the others still aren’t… I just hate it.”
“The moment the worldwalker is out of the equation, I’ll send for you.”
“You’d better.”
“I swear it.”
She held my gaze for a few seconds. But just like most people in Malgrave, she knew that I always kept my promises, so in the end, she only nodded and then pushed to her feet.
Without another word, she walked over to where her bag was already packed, and hoisted it onto her shoulders. I followed her as she started towards the door.
Gray morning light painted the grass outside in bleak colors as Gemma stepped out and drew in a deep breath. For a few seconds, we just watched each other in silence.
“When I get back, you’d better still be alive,” she declared in her no-nonsense voice. “Because if I have to spend the rest of my life working for one of the other dark mages, or even worse, those fucking constables, I am going to get myself sent to hell on purpose just so that I can find you and kill you again myself. Got it?”
A surprised laugh tore from my chest. Then I gave her a nod. “Got it.”
“Good. And get my boy out of prison. He has been wanting to ask me out for the past three years and still hasn’t worked up the courage. I think we’ve wasted enough time now.”
“I will get Tyler out, I will get them all out, if it’s the last thing I do.”
“The last thing? Oh no, it won’t be the last thing.” She started towards the third horse that my lookout had already saddled for her. “Because you’re going to take over the entire south side so that we can finally stop fighting amongst ourselves and start living.” Swinging herself up into the saddle, she fixed me with a commanding stare and jerked her chin towards the door behind me. “Now, go get some sleep. I can feel your exhaustion from here.”
“Be safe, Gemma,” I said as she turned her horse around and took off towards the safe house I had set up for her far away from here.
Once she had disappeared from view, I closed the door and then moved towards the bathroom. After washing the blood off my skin and all of our clothes, I walked back to the bedroom.
Right outside, the floorboards let out a loud squeak as I stepped on a loose plank.
Eve shot upright in the bed. Panic flashed across her beautiful features as she slapped her hands together and summoned a water shield while trying to scramble out of bed. I hurried into the room.
“It’s alright,” I said, keeping my hands raised as I slowly moved towards her. “It’s alright, spitfire. Gemma healed you. You’re safe.”
Her eyes flicked wildly around the room for a few seconds. Then her gaze settled on mine. For a while, it looked as if she was trying to remember what had happened and whether I was a threat or not. Then realization flooded her features, and she let her magic fade out. I lowered my hands again as she collapsed back onto the cushions.
While watching her reaction, I carefully moved around the bed and then lay down on the other side. Tiredness crashed over me again, and I barely made it onto the mattress before my vision began to swim.