Blackbird Broken (The Witch King's Crown #2) - Keri Arthur Page 0,47
couldn’t break the damn man’s determination soon, I might have to take matters into my own hands—especially if we shared another kiss as mind-blowing as this morning’s effort.
Mia chuckled. “So where is the delicious man?”
“He ran away,” Mo said.
“What did you do to him, Gwen?”
I snorted and licked some icing from my fingertips. “I threatened his equilibrium.”
“What?”
“She kissed him,” Mo said blandly. “It was apparently so hot and passionate he had to run to Winchester to cool down.”
“Seriously?”
“No, of course not.” I screwed up my paper bag and tossed it at Mo’s head. “He’s gone there to uncover more information about the sword.”
“The one stuck in the stone?”
“Not anymore—the next Witch King has claimed it.”
Mia shot Mo an incredulous look. “When?”
“A couple of days ago. And no, we have no idea who that person is as yet.”
“There can’t be a huge number of suspects, surely, given heirs were being killed left, right, and center.”
“There isn’t.”
Mia raised an eyebrow, her expression amused. “I take it that means you won’t confirm until you’re sure.”
“Exactly.”
“She’s frustrating like that,” I commented.
Mia snorted again and swung onto the M6. We were an hour and a half into the drive when the golden sphere finally began to pulse.
“We’re closing in.” Mo straightened a little in her seat. “Turn right at the next roundabout and then left.”
“Crooklands?” Mia said. “What the hell is at Crooklands—aside from our runaways, that is.”
“Probably not a whole lot, and that may be the point,” Mo said.
“It’s generally easier to get lost in a big town than it is a country one,” I said. “Country folk tend not to miss a whole lot—especially when it comes to strangers in their midst.”
“Unless the town is used to strangers.” She pointed to a sign that said Lancaster Canal Leisure Park. “She’s in there.”
Mia drove through the gates and then slowed down. There was a currently closed reception area to our immediate left and, to our right, a rainbow-colored collection of wooden holiday lodges that followed the sweeping curve of the road. There were only three cars visible, so maybe the park didn’t have that many bookings thanks to the fact it was winter.
I undid my seat belt and leaned forward. “Which one is she in?”
“The last one on the left.”
Which was pastel yellow in color with a metal roof and no car out front. “It looks unoccupied.”
“Well, if I was on the run, I sure as hell wouldn’t be advertising my presence by sitting the car out the front of it,” Mia said. “Do we know what type of car she drives? It could be one of the visible three.”
“Or it’s simply out of sight,” I said. “I can’t imagine she’d want to be too far from quick means of escape if she was attacked.”
Mia nodded and glanced at Mo. “What do you want to do?”
“Investigate, of course.” She grimaced. “But I’m not liking the feel of this.”
“You think it’s a trap?”
“Maybe not one specifically aimed at us, but yes. Park here.”
Mia immediately halted in front of a lavender-colored cabin. I studied the others, but couldn’t sense anything untoward. There certainly weren’t any visible signs of magic or spells, but that was to be expected. It’d hardly be worthwhile setting a trap if you advertised its existence with visible threads.
“How are we going to do this?” I asked.
Mo pursed her lips. “I’ll take the front door, you take the rear—”
“Is there a rear door in these things?” I asked.
“It’s a safety requirement to have a fire exit,” Mo said. “Mia, you’re on watch. If you see anything odd or suspicious—and I mean anything—toot the horn.”
She nodded. “And if you get into trouble, I’ll come running.”
I frowned. “Mia—”
“Don’t ‘Mia’ me,” she bit back. “I’m fully capable of protecting myself—and not just with magic.”
“Meaning?”
Her grin flashed. “I’ve been doing bo staff training with Jonny.”
I blinked—more at the fact she’d been doing more with Jonny than simply fucking him. “What the hell is a bo staff?”
“Basically, it’s an Asian form of the quarter staff, which is more thrust focused. The bo is all about the swing.”
“It’s also a discussion that can be had later,” Mo said. “Gwen, let’s go.”
I grabbed the backpack, climbed out of the car, and drew in a deep breath. The air was crisp and held the faint promise of rain. It was utterly free from the taint of halflings and magic, but that didn’t mean they weren’t here. Didn’t mean we weren’t going to get caught in a fire blast …