My attacker wrenched his gun around, aiming it right at my face—and then his head jerked to the side with a gush of hot blood all over me.
I gasped and gagged, whipping my head away even as the metallic taste seeped into my mouth. The man slumped over me. The ragged end of a broken plywood board dug halfway through his neck, practically decapitating him. What the—
My gaze focused on the figure standing over us. Rowan was breathing hard, his mouth set in a grim smile. As I watched, he jabbed the board even deeper into the guy’s neck. Any lingering struggle went out of the body as it collapsed completely. On me.
Wylder yanked at the guy’s arm, and I scrambled out from under the body. The Noble heir gave the scene a softly approving whistle and nodded at Rowan. “Make use of whatever you can get your hands on. Very creative. I like it.”
A glint of triumph lit in Rowan’s eyes for just a second before they caught mine. His gaze darted away, his expression turning suddenly uncomfortable.
I swiped at my face with my hands. My fingers were already sticky with blood. My shirt wasn’t going to be much help either, since it was practically drenched with the stuff. I restrained a shudder.
“You okay?” Rowan asked, his voice oddly stiff.
“Yeah. Just… bloody.” I pulled my soaked shirt away from my torso and grimaced. “At least none of it’s mine.”
We looked down at the two bodies sprawled in the alley.
“We can’t leave this mess behind,” Wylder said. “We’ll drag them to the dumpster and get them out of the way until my contacts can dispose of them completely.”
He clapped Rowan on the shoulder. “Nice work. I’ve always been able to count on you to do whatever it takes.” Wylder shot a grin at me. “You should have seen him when a bunch of assholes thought they’d get one over on me back in high school. Finlay here practically tore them apart, didn’t stop even when they’d nearly gutted him. That’s why I took him on.”
“You know I’ve got your back,” Rowan said, but he was still avoiding my gaze. This obviously wasn’t the time to find out what was bothering him, though. We had a couple of dead jerks to take care of.
I bent down and grabbed the thinner one’s wrists. “Let’s get moving before anyone else shows up to join the party.”