My Ex From Hell (The Blooming Goddess Trilogy, #1)

It takes two to tangle (Part 4)

In a burst of inhuman speed, Kai grabbed Theo by the neck in a chokehold. "Just one little snap. Humans break so easily. Can't imagine why you'd want to become one."

Theo wedged one hand between his neck and Kai's arm to keep an airway. With the other, he reached down and snapped off the chain holding his wallet to his pants. Immediately it began to glow with a hot white light as it doubled in length.

My eyes widened as Theo whipped the chain around Kai's arm and spun himself free, retracting the chain with a snap. I could smell the burning flesh. Theo took several steps back, faced Kai and wrapped one end of the chain around his fist for a better grip.

"That had to hurt," Hannah whispered.

Kai didn't even look at his burned arm. He narrowed his eyes at the chain and then smiled like he was pleased to see it. Whatever turned his crank.

Theo shot him a cocky grin. "Just because I'm human doesn't make me stupid." He snapped the chain at Kai. "Come closer if you want, but she's a nasty bit of business. Forged by order of Zeus himself. The master at inflicting pain."

"It's the chain that was used to bind him to the rock," Hannah gasped.

"Quit it. Both of—" I tried to interject but had to grab Hannah and scramble out of the way as Kai blasted Theo with a black light that somehow seemed to come to a point. Like a really nasty sword that wouldn't just play nice and pierce you to death. The light seemed to have depth and a very creepy, well, wriggliness to it.

Theo deflected it with the chain like it was a solid object and Kai's light struck Ms. Keeper's desk.

The spot in which Hannah had been seated seconds ago was instantly incinerated into a pile of smoking ash.

It looked toxic. I gingerly reached out a toe to poke at it—

"Sophie!" Theo snapped.

Guess it was toxic. I pulled my foot back.

"He can't do that!" Hannah sputtered, swiveling her head between the Hazmat waste on the floor and the boys fighting with impossible weapons.

"Which one?" I asked.

"Either!"

Apparently, this had all just been foreplay for the boys because that's when their fight began in earnest. Hannah and I were trapped across the room from the door, taking refuge behind a filing cabinet.

Until Theo split it in two with his chain like slicing a giant pat of butter.

We jumped behind the sofa. That didn't last long either as Theo jumped on it for a better angle to attack Kai and Kai blasted him. Theo survived. The sofa didn't.

As the debris flew, Hannah and I sprinted to our last refuge; the bookcase. We frantically pulled it far enough away from the wall so that we could squeeze ourselves in behind it.

"Can't you do anything?" Hannah asked.

"Oh, yeah! I can."

Hannah glared at me.

"Don't be all huffy. I'm still getting used to it." I stepped out from behind the bookcase, taking care to avoid all ash piles.

It was no holds barred between Theo and Kai. Both were bleeding, not from hits but from blasted furniture fallout.

For a human, Theo was amazing. But Kai was a blur, his speed and strength giving him the edge. He was a fighting machine, seemingly completely relaxed and yet not missing a single step. The way his eyes were glinting made me think he was getting off on this.

I kept from dwelling on how hot he was by reminding myself that the last thing Kai needed was another groupie. I hated him. My ex. I'd never had an ex but I was glad it was him because—

Kai spun and I tilted my head to get a better look at his very fine butt.

"Sophie!" Hannah nudged me sharply with an elbow.

"Right." I had a job to do. Not that that kept me from looking twice.

I aimed one hand at each of the guys and shot out ribbons of light to wrap around their ankles. I lifted them up and dangled them in mid-air. That stopped them.

"Light really shouldn't behave like that," Hannah said.

"I know, right?" It was way cool. Back to the boys. "Now that I have your attention," I began.

Theo apparently didn't care that he was hanging upside down. He snapped his chain at Kai. I panicked and managed to drop my hold on Kai, sending him crashing to the ground.

Theo's chain missed him entirely and smashed into a window. Oddly, no glass rained down on us.

"That was unexpected." I lowered Theo to the ground and pointed to the row of three windows.

In the centre one, where there should have been a gaping hole to the outside, was a perfect square of blue light.

I put my hand up to it.

Kai snatched me back before I made contact. "Do you touch hot stoves, too?"

"It's a window frame," I said.

"That could have some kind of trigger around it. You're lucky your hand wasn't cut off. Or worse."

"He's right," Theo agreed. "That was fairly daft." Holding tight to one end, Theo flung his chain toward the square of blue.

We all watched as Theo's chain crashed and rebounded off an invisible barrier right at the window frame.

For a second, nothing more happened, then suddenly there was a loud WHUMP noise and a flurry of motion as a bevy of arrows shot across from right side of the frame to embed themselves in the left.

I waited for Kai to gloat.

"Too easy," he said.

"Like your standards, dating Bethany?" I murmured.

"Jealous, are we?"

Please. As. If. He and I were so ancient history. "Whatever."

Theo peered at the window frame. "It's warded," he said.

I groaned. "Great. We'll never get through."

Kai slanted a look my way. "Why not?"

"Intention to harm? We'll never bypass it."

"You really forgot everything, didn't you?"

I crossed my arms, disliking his tone. "Enlighten me."

Kai crossed his arms and shot me a "why should I?" look.

I re-crossed my arms right back at him and shot him a "because you need me" smile.