Page 185 of After the Burn

His knife hit the dirt, and Nash screamed.

I dragged my blade across his cheek, and a crimson bloom blossomed in its wake. “That’s for Lila, you son of a bitch.”

I hit him again. He went down, and I followed. Nash scrambled backward through the dirt, clutching his ruined wrist. Terror finally replaced the arrogance in his eyes.

I raised the knife. “And this one’s for Beck, for being such a shit dad.”

A hand closed around my wrist before I could bring it down. I looked up, and one of the men who had been egging Nash on earlier stood over me.

He smiled. “We enjoyed the show, but that’s enough.”

I drove my free fist into his throat, but his head barely moved.

Shit.

He was laughing when he yanked me off Nash and threw me sideways. I hit the dirt and rolled.

Wren was already moving. She jumped onto the second man before he reached me, knife flashing. He caught her arm, and she bit him.

He shouted, “Holy hell!”

“There’s more where that came from!” My crazy friend yelled.

The first enhanced man came at me again, and I met him head-on. My knife flashed across his forearm, my knee into his ribs. I threw elbows and used my teeth. Whatever worked.

But another man joined him, then another.

Nash stayed on the ground, bleeding, watching me with hate in his eyes and a smile on his face.

That piece of shit was happy to see me beaten, even if men stronger than him had to do it.

Caesar came fast.

Two guards followed him around the corner of the warehouse, and Nash began talking before he had even fully reached us.

“I told you the bitch was trouble.” He was still on the ground, one hand clamped around his wrist while blood rand down the side of his face.

Caesar stared at him. “What the fuck happened to you?”

Nash’s eyes found mine. “She happened.”

Caesar looked at the blood covering Nash, then back and forth between us, before a slow smile bloomed on his face. “Your son’s woman did that?”

Nash’s face darkened. “She caught me by surprise.”

One of Caesar's men chuckled. “You got your ass handed to you by a girl.”

Nash snapped his head toward him. “Fuck off, Stuart.”

I smiled because I couldn’t help myself.

Caesar caught it. “You think this is funny?”

I knew I shouldn’t do it, but what’s one more fuck-up among the several I’d made tonight? “A little.”

I heard Wren sigh.

His gaze hardened, but before he could say anything, a man came running from the direction of the garage.