Chapter 36
CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX
MONTY
O f all the inconvenient and unwelcome distractions. The woman I love just confessed her affection for me. The last faces I want to see interrupting our moment are those of Cane and Meathands. Yet here they are, gracing us with their unwanted presence.
Meathands smirks, his face illuminated by the green glow of the mushrooms nearest the mouth of the alley. I can’t make out the pattern on today’s scarf, but I’m a bit envious of how snug and dry he must be between that and his bowler hat.
Already I can feel the cold seeping into my bones while the cloudy feeling that precedes a fever is settling in. As a fire fae, heat can stave off my opposing element’s ill effects, and not just physical heat. It can be the heat of anger or passion. The latter of which I was just starting to tap into when these blokes ruined everything.
Cane scrunches his nose, eying me with what he probably thinks is a threatening glare. “Almost lost your scent in the rain, you slimy prick.”
“Who are they?” Daphne asks, panic flashing over her face.
“Assholes,” I mutter back. “Harmless, mostly, but incredibly annoying.” I shift to the side, placing myself between them and Daphne. To Cane and Meathands, I say, “What the fuck do you want? I did my part tonight. I lost like I was supposed to. I put up as little defense as I could.”
“There were two minutes left,” Cane says. “You got knocked out too early.”
“I got knocked out in the final round, just like I agreed.”
“We said to stay until the end,” says Meathands.
“I didn’t agree to wait until the last possible second.”
Meathands and Cane exchange a look. Cane takes a step forward, swinging his walking stick up to prop it on his shoulder. “Still, it’s a bit unfair you escaped the full extent of your punishment, so we’re here to amend that. We’ll finish the round between us gents.”
“Plus,” Meathands says, “we got a few emerald rounds from Grave Danger in exchange for roughing you up a bit.”
“Grave Danger,” Daphne echoes from behind me. She witnessed my fight with that scaly fae bastard, so of course she recognizes the name.
The thugs’ eyes flash to her, so I take another step toward them to reclaim their attention. “What’s Grave Danger’s grudge?”
“He’s a bit miffed the two o’ ya never got a fair fight,” Cane says.
My mouth falls open. “A fair fight? He’s the one who goaded me into getting disqualified. He would have won if he hadn’t gotten himself disqualified too. And now he’s paying the two of you to rough me up? How unhinged can he be?”
“He’s a bored little snakey with too much of daddy’s money,” says Meathands with a roll of his eyes.
“If you’re so keen to accept his daddy’s money,” I say, “then you must be more strapped for cash than I thought. I suppose that’s what happens when you work for a goblin who gets off on outing his client’s secrets rather than collecting their loan sums. How’s your side business going, by the way? Sell any scarves lately?”
With a sneer, he steps closer and unwraps his scarf from around his neck with surprisingly tender motions. The mushrooms illuminate the pattern—little yellow ducks on a pale blue background. If he wasn’t such a prick, I’d be impressed with his handiwork. He folds it with care and sets it on a dry patch of ground, away from the drops of rain that continue to sprinkle between the gaps from the overhead walkways. Then he slams a fist into his palm. “Let’s finish yer round.”
“Shit,” I say under my breath. While it’s true what I said to Daphne about these assholes being mostly harmless, I’m not in the best condition to fight them, what with the rain and chilly air weakening my strength. At least my anger serves to keep me on my feet.
“Two minutes on the clock,” Cane says, sauntering closer, twirling the cane still propped on his shoulder, “then we’ll let you go. Since this ain’t boss’ orders, we’ve got no rules to follow.”
“No rules?” I say. “Then I can fight back.”
Daphne clings to the back of my shirt. “You’re not really going to fight them, are you?” she says in a furious whisper.
“It’s all right,” I say. “It will be over quickly. They’re unskilled fighters. Sloppy.”
It’s true. They’ve done their darndest to rough me up before, which might as well have been a tickle to the ribs. Pleasant, even. Of course, that was under the boss’ rules, meant more to scare than to injure. Now…
Well, it’s not like I have much of a choice. The alley ends in solid brick where the two buildings are connected. Cane and Meathands will intercept me if I run forward. Besides, I’ve never run from a fight. Two minutes will be easy, so I’m not worried about myself.
There’s only one person on my mind.
“Shift,” I say, stepping back as the two cronies slowly close in. “Shift into unseelie form and either climb or dart away. They won’t go after you. I’ll come find you as soon as this is over.”
“I’m not leaving,” she bites out.
“You can fight back,” Cane says as he halts, legs spread wide. One hand is tucked in his pocket while the other gives his cane another twirl on his shoulder. Then his grip tightens, knuckles going white. “But it won’t be much of a fight with two on one.”
Meathands chuckles, flexing his fingers as he takes up a fighting stance.
I pivot my feet, a slight bend to my knees, and raise my arms. My muscles scream in protest, fatigued after the lengthy bout in the ring paired with the additional strain caused by the rain. “Shift, Daph,” I say, voice low. “I’ll come find?—”
“Just one?” she says, striding up beside me with her hands on her hips. “Two on one ? Am I invisible?”
“What are you doing?” I mutter, not daring to take my eyes off my opponents.
Daphne ignores me, and Cane and Meathands exchange an amused glance.
Meathands waves a dismissive hand. “Don’t worry your pretty head, sweetheart. This has nothin’ to do with you.”
Rage sparks in my blood, a welcome sensation to clear my mind. I’ve never had much of an opinion about Meathands. He’s just a dummy doing his job like the rest of us, but hearing him call her sweetheart…
I’d like to rip his tongue from his mouth.
She emits a low growl. “I think it does.”
Cane laughs. Actually laughs at my feral little love. “Fine, it’ll be one on one, then.” He nods to his companion. “Hold her back. She can watch her loverboy bleed.”
With that, the two charge forward, so much faster than I expect. In a flash, Cane is before me, swinging his weapon straight for my face. My mind is on Daphne’s safety, but all I can do is react to my first threat. I dodge to the side and intercept the strike of the cane with my palm. Pain radiates across my hand, through my wrist, and up my arm. My vision nearly goes black, but I focus on my anger, gritting my teeth as I close my fingers around the lacquered wood and pull with all my might.
My reaction catches Cane off guard, and his weapon slips from his fingers. I shift it to my non-dominant hand—the one that isn’t obliterated with pain—and swing it into the side of his stunned face. His head whips to the side as it makes contact, and he falls to his back at once. I pivot to the side, my eyes seeking Meathands.
He looks just as shocked as Cane was, but I spare him only a meager glance. My attention shifts to Daphne, whom he clutches to his chest. One arm is pressed across her shoulders while the other covers her mouth. She squirms in his grip, snarling against his palm.
I lift the cane and point it at him. “Get your fucking hands off her.”
His expression flashes with uncertainty, then darkens as I hear Cane rise clumsily to his feet behind me. “Our two minutes ain’t over,” Meathands says.
“Bastard,” Cane mutters under his breath. He stumbles into my periphery, cradling the side of his face. “That’s gonna leave a bruise.”
“Let her go, you cunty prick,” I growl through my teeth, “or I’ll ram this through your eye socket.”
Meathands snorts a laugh. “Such big words, but I’m bigger. Let’s see how you fare against me. You take the girl.” He thrusts Daphne to the side toward Cane, his gaze locked on me.
Cane extends a hand, ready to pull her to him…
But Daphne clings to Meathands’ palm.
With both fists encircling his wide wrist, she opens her mouth…
And clamps down hard below his thumb.
Meathands cries out as she sinks her teeth into his palm, then makes a strangled sound as she tears her mouth away, ripping a chunk of flesh with it. Cane goes still, his beady eyes bulging at Daphne as she darts away with graceful ease. Meathands’ mouth gapes wider as he stares down at his ruined hand.
“She bit me,” he says, voice panicked. “She bit my fucking hand off. She…she really bit me.”
My muscles are coiled like a spring, my fist tightening around the cane as I anticipate Meathands’ retaliation. One move and I’ll shove this stick straight through his?—
With a sob, he falls to his knees, weeping as he cradles his hand.
I’m so shocked, my mind goes blank. All I can do is stare as his tough demeanor shrinks.
“No, no, no. Not my hand.” He stares up at us with tear-filled eyes. “I have two hundred snowman scarves to knit by winter solstice. Two hundred. This was supposed to be my big break!”
Daphne spits a chunk of mangled flesh at the ground before him. “You’re fae,” she says, her voice firm. “You’ll heal. Maybe stop beating people in alleyways in the meantime.”
“I was following orders.”
“No,” Daphne says, “you were following spare change, from what it sounds like.”
“You didn’t have to bite my hand. I was going to be gentle with him. Just a few punches, is all.”
She shrugs. “You said there were no rules. Now stop taking odd jobs and leave Monty the fuck alone.”
Cane takes a step to the side, but at Daphne’s growl, he freezes. Slowly, he holds up his hands and tilts his head to something nearby. She gives him a nod, and he retrieves Meathands’ scarf. Then, crouching beside him, he gives a gentle pat to his comrade’s shoulder and hands over the scarf. “For your wound.”
Meathands cries even harder as he presses the scarf to his palm. “Not the duckies. This one was my favorite.”
“Come on, big boy,” Cane says, helping his friend to his feet. To us he says, “Uh, our two minutes are up. We’ll take our leave.”
“Wait,” Daphne says, halting their retreat. “Are we good here? You’re not going to do this again, are you?”
“No, we’ll stick to our jobs,” Cane says and Meathands gives a rapid nod in agreement.
“Promise me,” Daphne demands, and they utter promises—binding ones, since they’re both fae—that they’ll keep all further contact with Monty non-violent. All the while, they take backwards steps toward the mouth of the alley, eager to flee.
My stupefied mind sharpens, pulling me from my shock at seeing Meathands’ pathetic reaction. I clear my throat and take a step forward. “Wait.”
They freeze as I close the distance between us. Cane pales as I make a beeline for him, his eyes darting from my face to his walking stick and back again. “P-please,” he stammers, “I meant my promise?—”
I hold the cane out for him. “Here.”
“You’re giving it back?” He hesitates before inching his hand toward the stick. As soon as his fingers close around it, I give it a tug, pulling him a step closer.
“To remember our dance by,” I say with a wink, my free hand coming to the side of his face where I struck him. I give his cheek a gentle slap, eliciting a wince, and then release the cane.
The two fae take off at once.
I stare after them, catching my breath. My pulse beats at a rapid pace, vertigo tearing through my head at my relief.
Fuck, that could have gone terribly. But it didn’t. They’re gone, and neither Daphne nor I sustained any injury, save for the hand I caught the cane in. I whirl to Daph and find her staring at nothing, eyes unfocused, as if she too is reflecting on the events we just lived through.
My mind fills with a vision of her biting Meathands’ palm, then spitting his flesh back at him, snarling down at him like she isn’t half his size.
Blazing hell, she…
She’s even more incredible than I ever knew.
So fierce and terrifying in the best kind of way.
The most stunning creature alive.
My relief and adoration merge into one, culminating in a rupture of sound that bursts from my chest. The bark of laughter echoes through the alley, and another strain escapes my lips before I manage to pull myself together. My eyes meet Daphne’s and I expect to find her laughing with me.
But she isn’t laughing at all.