The Rise of Fortune and Fury (Chronicles of the Stone Veil #5) - Sawyer Bennett Page 0,86

it is answers, he merely says, “At my condo… ASAP.”

He then disconnects. I assume whoever he just ordered will, in fact, be at his condo as soon as possible. Such was the command in his voice that I knew whoever was on the other line would not disobey.

Carrick chooses not to use the valet service at The Prestige, instead parking himself in the underground lot on the north side of the building. It would be too weird to explain me limping and bloodied from being shot and Blain bruised and unconscious. I refuse to let Carrick carry me, but I do allow him to support my weight as I limp to the private elevator that is for Carrick’s penthouse. Boral once again hefts Blain over his shoulder to carry him up.

The ride up is silent and tense. Zora chews at her nail, casting glances between Carrick and me. She can sense the rift, but since she doesn’t really understand relationships, I think she’s uneasy as to what this means for me. I don’t have time to reassure her, though, as the elevator doors slide open when we reach the top.

We’re met by Zaid and Maddox.

Maddox’s gaze moves over me quickly, assessing for damage. When he sees I’m upright and intact, he gives me a wink as if to say, I’m impressed you did that on your own.

Zaid, however, is not amused.

He, too, gives me a once over, but it’s done with his arms crossed over his chest and a glare so vicious that I actually shrink back a little.

Carrick isn’t about to let me punk out, though, and he forces me out of the elevator with his arm still around my waist for support.

Without looking at his brother, Carrick instructs, “Help Boral get Blain situated in a guest room. Remove whatever spell or drug has him comatose as I don’t know what was done to him, but then put him under something safe until Finley can be there. He needs to see her when he wakes up.”

“On it,” Maddox says. He leads Boral off to the south side of the condo where there’s an extra room near Maddox’s.

“She needs to be patched up,” Carrick says to Zaid as he moves me over to one of the couches. Zora follows quietly behind. “If you can handle cleaning the cut on her arm, Deandra will be here soon to heal the rest of her injuries.”

“Deandra,” I exclaim as he deposits me down onto a cushion. I try to pop back up again in protest that I have to deal with her, but Carrick’s hand on my shoulder pushes me back down.

Zaid turns and heads off to grab some medical supplies, and Zora sits on the couch beside me. She doesn’t touch me. Doesn’t say a thing. But I know she heard the distress in my voice, and she’s sitting next to me in a show of solidarity.

Carrick’s expression remains flat and resolute.

So I ask again, “Deandra? Really?”

“Really,” he replies. “Her powers of healing far surpass that of Stan, and I don’t have time to go track him down.”

“Surely you can heal me,” I sputter.

“Yeah, I can,” Carrick snaps, anger suffusing his face. “But not as well as Deandra. Besides that, I need to talk with her about joining our cause so her trip here serves two purposes.”

“We don’t need her—”

“We do fucking need her,” Carrick snarls, and I shrink back against the fury in his voice. I’ve never seen him this mad before. “While you were off almost getting yourself killed like an idiot, I was getting my ass handed to me by Kymaris and the Blood Stone. We need every fucking soul that’s willing to help us at the ritual or else Earth is going to get decimated.”

I can actually feel my skin pale. It tingles with chills, and something uneasy skitters down my spine. I put aside the fact he called me an idiot, as we can argue about that later, and I know we will as that’s the main source of his anger.

“What happened in Hungary?” I ask him softly, just as Zaid returns to the living room.

He shakes his head, eyes heavy with disappointment. “I’m too angry at you right now to even look at you.”

“Carrick,” I exclaim softly, shocked he’d shut me out over something like this.

Ignoring my plaintive cry for understanding, he turns his attention to Zaid. “Once Deandra gets here, have her heal the remainder of Finley’s injuries and then send her down to the