Scholar of Magic (Art of the Adept #3) - Michael G. Manning Page 0,35

“As you tried to do to me just a few seconds earlier.” Reaching, up he felt his face and was relieved to find his skin still seemed intact, but his eyebrows were definitely gone.

Something finally clicked in Laina’s mind and she snapped into motion, heading for her fallen friend. “Darla!” Will followed her over so he could examine the woman he had shot. A large pool of blood had formed around the bodyguard.

“If she dies, you’ll follow soon after,” threatened Laina coldly as she knelt by the other woman. “Darla, can you hear me? Say something.”

Will knelt on the other side of the warrior and began cutting away her trousers. From the placement of the arrow it might have struck a large vein. He didn’t think it was an artery, or Darla would probably already be dead. He could see that her eyes followed his movements, though her mouth opened and closed without making a sound.

“What are you doing?” demanded his half-sister. “This is your fault.”

“And I might be able to save her if you let me,” he responded without looking up. His sister fell silent as he continued to examine her friend. It’s a deep vein, and above the leg where I can’t use a tourniquet to stop the bleeding, he noted mentally. He couldn’t effectively apply pressure there either, which meant the woman would be dead in a short span of minutes. Will glanced up and caught Laina’s gaze on his face. Behind the anger he could see she was frightened. As she looked back down at her friend, tears began to well.

And she’ll be dead because of me. Because I thought she was an assassin rather than a guard—because I decided, in my infinite wisdom, to interfere where I wasn’t wanted. He summoned one of his remaining two regeneration potions from the limnthal and quickly unstopped the vial. He poured a few drops on the wound, then held the tiny bottle to her lips and tilted it up. Some spilled, and the woman choked, but enough got down her throat. It was potent stuff, as he knew from prior experience.

“What was that?” asked Laina, her voice thick with desperation.

“A regeneration potion,” he said simply.

“Will it work? She’s lost so much blood.” Her voice cracked near the end.

“It brought me back from the edge of death,” he told her calmly. “It just needs a minute to do the job. It will exhaust her, but after she rests, she’ll feel better than she did before it happened.” Even as he spoke, the color began to return to Darla’s cheeks.

Without warning, Laina shifted subjects. “You murdered that man without a moment’s hesitation.”

“I don’t know what he was, but he wasn’t human,” Will informed her. “And he was heading for you. You didn’t hesitate to try and do the same to me.”

His sister’s eyes never flinched. “You nearly killed Darla, and I warned you first. I didn’t want to do it.”

Will’s emotions were conflicted as he stared back at her. On one hand he admired the girl for her conviction, as well as her bravery in defending her friend, while on the other he was irritated by her obvious dislike for him. Added to the mix was the fact that he was guilty and embarrassed for nearly killing an innocent person. But I also saved Laina’s life, he reminded himself.

Just what was a person supposed to feel at such a complicated moment? He had no idea. As he struggled to find words, Laina spoke again. “You could have warned me. I thought you were attacking me.”

There hadn’t been time, but he asked anyway, “Would you have believed me?”

“Probably not,” she admitted. Then she gave him a serious look. “I have to call the constable. You killed someone.”

“Something,” he corrected.

“You can say it was self-defense. They’ll probably believe you, especially if I testify on your behalf.”

“I was defending you, not me,” he replied dryly, “so I don’t think it’s technically self-defense.”

“Either way, you won’t hang for it,” said Laina. “But you still have to answer for assaulting Darla.”

“She shot me first,” snapped Will, his patience thinning.