Nic growled low in his throat. “Gypsy, please.”
“There’s no way I’m…” The words faded. She knew the two men standing a few feet away. They were the same ones that had beaten her before the fire. Then the man in the middle pushed his hood back. Shock sent the words into hiding. “You’re alive,” she gasped.
Bones sneered at her. The burnt flesh that clung to his face in black patches made him look more monstrous than he ever had before. Huge, gaping wounds covered his neck, and his hands were blackened and misshapen. Bile raced up her throat.
He leaned heavily on his cane and when he breathed, the wheezing noise sent chills through her body.
“No thanks to you, girl,” he snarled. “And you,” he pointed a blackened finger at Nic, “you stole from me, boy. You know the punishment for stealing, don’t ya?”
“I’m not afraid of you anymore,” Nic spat.
Bones took a step forward and laughed. “You’ll pay for your treachery, boy. I know what you did—turned on me to work with the Thief Taker. I’ve been watching you all this time. Did you think I was stupid, boy? I knew it was just a matter of time before I’d get you alone. Didn’t expect I’d have the chance to take care of that one too, though. Shoulda put you both down when you were young. More trouble than you both were worth.”
Arista watched the two men draw closer. She had her knife out and ready, as did Nic. The men split off, and came at them from opposite sides. Arista lunged for the same man who had driven his fists into her stomach over and over on the night of the fire.
He twisted, moving far more gracefully than she’d expected for someone of his size, and knocked her wrist with the thick piece of wood she had missed. It immediately went numb and the knife fell into the dirt at her feet. He kicked it away and she heard a splash. From behind her she heard grunts and the sound of fists hitting flesh.
“Tell me where those papers are, and I’ll let you go,” Bones wheezed.
“Never,” Nic gasped. Blood dripped from one cut on his lip and another over his eye. Already the blows on his jaw were making his face swell, and she saw the way he winced every time he took a breath in.
“Very well then.” Bones nodded and the man holding Nic yanked his arms behind his back so hard that Nic groaned. Then the other man started pounding his fists into Nic’s stomach.
“Stop!” Her pleas fell on deaf ears. The man continued to pummel Nic. Nic’s eyes were now fluttering open and closed.
“All right!” Arista shouted. “Here.” She thrust the rolled-up papers at Bones and he took them from her. The man stopped his assault and Nic hung limp between them.
“Let him go,” Bones said. His smile turned malicious as his gaze moved to the river.
“No!” Arista started beating her fists against the closest man’s arm, but he backhanded her as if she were nothing but an annoying insect. She caught herself before her face hit the ground and stayed there for several seconds, fighting back the wave of sickness that washed over her.
It was the splash that brought clarity to her fuzzy mind. They had thrown Nic in the river. In his current state, he would surely drown—she had to save him—
But she couldn’t swim.
Without thinking, Arista pushed off the ground and launched herself at Bones. His lackeys were at the river’s edge, so it gave her time to push Bones to the ground and plant her boot in his gut over and over. He curled in on himself and grunted each time her boot made contact.
She knew there were only precious seconds before the two men saw her, so she grabbed the papers out of Bones’s hand and threw them as far as she could toward the warehouse. Stumbling toward the river, she screamed for help, and heard an answering shout in the distance. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the lackeys take off.
Nic had floated too far for her to reach from the end of the small dock. She ran to the riverbank and waded into the water, but it was up to her waist before she could reach him.
“Help me.” She splashed out farther and the cold water rose over her chest; she couldn’t breathe through the panic clouding her head. Tears streamed down her face and her voice grew hoarse. The water lapped at her chin, and the acrid taste of the river coated her tongue every time she shouted. The current tugged at her feet, making it nearly impossible to stand up. If she didn’t go back, she would be swept deeper into the river.
But she had to save Nic.
One summer, Nic had been determined to teach Arista how to swim. He’d showed her over and over again how to kick with her legs and paddle with her arms, and it had done no good. She’d never learned. But now she had no choice.