Return (Lady of Toryn trilogy) by Charity Santiago Page B

their dispute secret. "I didn't even want to stick around. For eight frigging years I've been perfectly fine on my own, but then you -" She tossed a glare of what she hoped was absolute contempt over her shoulder at Vargo and Skye, " - show up and all of a sudden I can't exist without somebody hovering over my shoulder.
     
    “As if that's not enough, now I've gotta defend myself for talking to one of my kinsmen. I suppose I should be mad that Drake is hanging out with Trace, then, huh? 'Cause last time I checked she was so on my enemy list! I suppose she's more trustworthy than me, right? I guess you trust a Spartan more than your own friend!"
     
    "No, I don't," Skye said. He sounded tired. "But I do want to get this straightened out."
     
    Lysato lunged forward suddenly, plowing into Ashlyn and sending them both tumbling to the ground. Ashlyn let out a yip as their tangled limbs added momentum to her forward motion.
     
    "STOP!" she shrieked, seeing the rapidly approaching drop-off. She half-flipped and dug her heels into the landing in front of the stairs that led to the weapons shop, but they gained no purchase on the slick ground, scrabbling uselessly against the sandy rock.
     
    Almost before she could comprehend what was happening, Ashlyn skidded off the edge of the landing and plummeted towards the ground below.
     
    This was not good. In the space of a heartbeat, she'd already considered all possible methods of landing. If she took the fall on her shoulder, she might put too much of the weight on her neck and injure herself. If she landed on her feet, her inherently weak ankles probably wouldn't be able to take the strain and would collapse.
     
    And if she landed on her back . . . well, she didn't want to consider that option. Too often Suki had thrown her off and Ashlyn had been left sprawled face-up, bruised, battered and hardly able to move.
     
    She didn't have time to decide which method would hurt less, so Ashlyn did what came naturally - she was falling headfirst, so she held out her hands, fingertips splayed. When she saw the scratchy dirt coming up to meet her, she kicked her legs back and started a somersault in mid-air. Her fingers barely brushed the dirt as she flipped, but her shoulders and upper back struck painfully as Ashlyn spun onto the ground, rolling over and over and over again in an attempt to lessen the force of impact.
     
    She could feel the gritty sand biting into her skin and winced, picturing skinned elbows and knees and bruises and lacerations everywhere.
     
    At last she collided with the mud wall of the gigantic dwelling, and Ashlyn's crazed rolling came to a crashing halt. One leg slammed hard against the wall and she screamed, hearing a crack, thinking that little jerk Lysato, if I ever walk again I'm gonna -
     
    "OW!" she yelped, suddenly aware of the intense pain in her lower leg as she shifted her weight.
     
    Aaron appeared beside her, his stubbly face showing concern. "Are ya hurt?" he asked, out of breath from dashing down the stairs.
     
    "YES," she yelled in his face, before belatedly realizing his close proximity and lowering her voice. "Yes, dammit. When I get my hands on that creep Lysato, I'm going to tear his frigging - OW! Watch it, that hurts!" She swatted away his hand, and struggled to a sitting position. "Man, is he gonna get his ass kicked."
     
    "Looks like ya may have done somethin' to it, kid. This ain't good."
     
    She glanced down at her legs, noting no particular change in their appearance. "No, I think it's okay, no thanks to Skye and company." Frowning, she rotated her foot at the ankle, keeping her face carefully blank as a jolt of pain shot through her lower leg.
     
    "Hey," Vargo exclaimed, coming up behind her, "are you okay?" Breathless, he crouched beside her, surveying her leg with a worried expression on his face.
     
    "Beat it, jackass," Ashlyn snapped.
     
    The redhead cocked an eyebrow. "Glad to see we're back on normal terms again." He moved