Blackbird Broken (The Witch King's Crown #2) - Keri Arthur Page 0,30
that didn’t mean there weren’t unobvious ones.
The girl made another odd noise—it almost sounded like the mewling of a kitten—and seemed to shrink in on herself. Fear shone from her eyes, and her battered lips were quivering. “It’s okay,” I said softly. “You’re okay. I promise.”
Her gaze swept my face and then moved to the dead woman. I flicked the blanket over the remains but not fast enough to prevent the child seeing what had been done. She didn’t react. Not in any normal way. But her little fingers clutched mine more tightly and there was an almost unnatural strength in her grip.
Footsteps echoed on the stairs—Luc and a medic, from the sound of their conversation.
“The girl’s awake,” I called out softly. “Don’t make any sudden moves, or you’ll scare her.”
Luc stepped aside, and a stranger appeared. The latter’s build was long and thin, and he had dark skin and eyes. He could almost have been a De Montfort, although we tended not to be that tall. His facial structure was more Chen though and, skin color aside, he could almost have been Tris’s twin.
As he turned toward us, the girl made another odd sound and leapt into my arms. I wrapped them around her wiry frame, aware of her trembling and breathing in her fear.
The medic hesitated, then got down and shuffled the remaining distance on his knees. The girl eyed him fiercely, but otherwise remained still. Only the trembling gave away her fear.
He stopped next to us and sat back on his haunches. “My name is Mark,” he said, his voice soft and oh-so soothing. “I’m here to fix your nose—that’s really sore, isn’t it?”
She didn’t respond. It made me wonder if she was in some way mute—it would certainly explain the odd sounds she kept making.
Unless, of course, the only language she knew was dark elf or demon …
“May I touch your hand?” he continued. “You’ll feel a warm, tingly sensation, but that’s just me checking your injuries. I promise it won’t hurt you.”
Meaning there was De Montfort in his bloodline somewhere.
The little girl continued to eye him fiercely, but, after a moment, held out one hand. She understood us even if she couldn’t speak.
Mark lightly gripped her fingers, and his energy warmed the air as it flowed through his hand and up the little girl’s arms. She shivered but otherwise didn’t move. The bruising on her cheek rapidly faded, her lip healed, and her nose reverted to a more normal shape.
The energy retreated, and Mark gave a soft grunt of satisfaction. “She hasn’t got any internal injuries, although we should still take her to hospital so she can be monitored—”
The girl made a garbled, distressed sound and flung her arms around my neck. “I’m thinking that means she doesn’t want to go.”
He frowned. “She’s a kid. I hardly think she has any understanding—”
“I wouldn’t be so sure of that,” I cut in. “And we have no idea what other trauma she’s seen or suffered.”
“Yes, but that doesn’t negate the fact that hospital—our hospital—is the safest place for her.”
She made another mewling sound, and her arms tightened. She wasn’t choking me by any means, but she didn’t really have to to cause me pain—not with the bruising and the cuts already there.
I glanced past Mark to Luc. “We can’t risk it. Not after what happened to Henry.”
He frowned. “She’ll be safer there than anywhere else—”
“We thought that about Henry, too.”
He studied me for a second and then swept a hand through his thick hair. “Fine. But in that case, we need to get her out of here before Darkside realizes things haven’t gone as they planned.”
I nodded and glanced down at the little girl. “I’m going to stand up and take you away from this house and get you somewhere safe—okay?”
She nodded. I tightened my grip on her, then, with one hand braced against the wall for support, pushed upright. The room immediately spun, and it was all I could do to remain upright.
Mark half reached out, as if to grab me. “I’m thinking you’re the one that needs to be in hospital rather than the girl.”
“What’s wrong with me will be fixed by a decent meal and a good night’s sleep.”
“But your eyes—”
“Are just the result of overusing elemental magic. I’m good. Really.”
He hesitated, then slung his pack off his shoulder and opened it up. “In that case, take these with you.” He handed me two bottles of tablets. Both were Panadol, but one was for