inch of my skin, though this time it seemed to be checking me for injury. Furious and pugnacious.
“Let’s go,” he grumbled.
I scrambled forward, the noises of battle sounding right on top of us. Swooping down, I got the two guns I had been relieved of. I stopped at Elek’s figure, crouching down, my hand reaching out to close the eyes of my old acquaintance.
Sorrow filled my heart like a tsunami. He was a good guy. He didn’t deserve to die like that. No matter what we were told about it being an honor to die for HDF, the reality was utter crap.
My hand brushed over his face, recalling the times Caden and I had hung out in his room with the rest of their class, getting drunk. He would find reasons to get close to me, flirt with me, but because of Caden, he never crossed the line or asked me out.
“Kovacs,” Warwick called to me, but I couldn’t tear myself away from Elek. One moment alive, now he was dead… because of me. I knew his mother and father. They would be devastated. Emotion swirled inside me, bursting at the seams, wanting to change his story.
Under my palm, a nerve twitched in his face, a spasm in his body, his lids fluttered.
“Kovacs, now.” Warwick grabbed my hand, yanking me back onto my feet, his nose flaring, his gaze darting between Elek and me, his brow crunching together.
Numb, yet alive, the vast emotions swirled inside, my brain not wanting to land on what I had been doing. What I might be capable of.
“We need to go.” He released me, stepping away.
I dipped my head in agreement and looked back at Birdie.
She watched us, her expression awed, her blue eyes wide.
“You’re fucking Warwick Farkas…” Her mouth parted. “The Wolf.”
He grunted, inching to the lip of the alley.
“He is, isn’t he?” She faced me. “Holy shit. He’s so… Is there even a word for him?”
“Asshole?” I replied, getting a glower from Warwick.
“No, seriously, this is really Warwick Farkas?” She said his name like he was a god.
“Birdie...”
“He’s real? The actual legend is standing in front of me? The guy who came back to life? And you knew and didn’t tell me?” She punched my arm.
“Ow.” I rubbed my shoulder.
“That’s for not telling me you were sleeping with a myth. Is the sex astronomical? Mythical status?”
“Yes,” he grunted.
“No,” I responded.
“I can’t believe you didn’t tell me earlier. I was totally going on about him… and you’re fucking him?” Birdie’s mouth dropped open.
“No. No, it’s not like that. W-we’re not… No… We aren’t.” I shook my head, unable to stop babbling. “He wasn’t talking about sex with me.”
Warwick grunted even louder, his irritation curling up the back of my neck.
“Can we focus here?” It was freezing outside, and my body was in pain.
“Right.” Birdie gripped both of her guns. “Kill first, talk later about how you are sooooo fucking him. And if you aren’t, you really should be. Or I volunteer.”
“She really thinks you should be, princess.” Warwick’s voice rumbled in my ear, his presence up close, while the real man stood a few feet away, his eyes on the battle on the street.
“No,” I growled under my breath, and I could see the real man smirk.
“Well, as you know, fucking me is a mythical experience. Most never recover.”
He switched to the other ear, the trace of his fingers sliding across my lower back.
“You mean it’s fictional?” I replied just to him.
The real Warwick let out a gruff laugh, his eyes darting back to me, making Birdie look between us again with skepticism.
“Sergeant Gabor, state your location. Markos is moving in.” A crackling voice rose from Elek’s walkie-talkie device, and fear compressed my lungs.
Markos. He was here. He rarely came to battles personally, dictating from the safety of HDF. But I was personal to him.
“Shit, how do we get out of here?” Birdie motioned around, the lanes filling with more and more soldiers.
“Distraction.” Warwick’s eyes slid to me, and a smile spread across my face because I knew exactly what he meant.
“Distraction?” Birdie peered up at him, then to me.
BOOOOOOOM!
An entire building across the street from the base exploded, shaking the ground. Clouds of debris and glass mushroomed out, raining down on us like hail.
All of us ducked, Warwick’s form looming over us like an umbrella until the worst of the blast was over.
He glanced at Birdie, one eyebrow lifting. “Distraction.”
Chapter 20
The air was thick and heavy, choking my lungs. I yanked my shirt