Read Online Marked: An Urban Fantasy Novel (The Thrice Cursed Mage Book 2) by J. A. Cipriano - Free Book Online Page B

a lot better, you know baring the whole duct tape and stapled arm thing. Maybe I had really been about to combust. Apparently that was a thing. Good to know.
    “Sadly, you are not the least fun naked man I’ve been around,” Sera deadpanned as she stepped into the room and set her bag on the small counter.
    “Do you need me to hold him down?” Ricky asked, tossing a predatory glance at Sera that made me think she might enjoy drowning me in ice cubes. “Because I’m totally up for that.”
    “Mac, do you need Ricky to hold you down, or are you man enough for me to stitch up your arm without freaking out?” Sera asked me and there was only a faint trace of humor in her voice.
    “I think I can manage,” I said, looking away from the two women as they exchanged a mental conversation I couldn’t follow.
    “I’ll be in the other room then. Try not to scream too much, Mac. Kung Fu Panda just doesn’t sound the same when there’s screaming in the background,” Ricky said before walking out of the room. A moment later, I heard the television come on, but before I could determine what was actually playing, Sera shut the door.
    “Hey, Mac. How are things?” she asked, moving over to the counter and rummaging around inside her bag. “Seems like you’ve been busy. I heard you blew up a helicopter with your fist.”
    “Yeah, well, bullets are overrated.” I tried to smile at her, but it hurt too much, and her back was to me so it wouldn’t have mattered.
    She laughed, and the sound could have summoned small woodland creatures to her aid. She turned back around and came toward me with a large syringe filled with yellowish fluid. “Well, next time, try to do it when your arm isn’t sliced open to the bone. When you’re like that, your magic can short circuit and fry you from the inside out.”
    “Like a puppy in a microwave?” I asked and immediately wished I hadn’t because the look on her face made me feel pretty horrible. Still, what she said worried me. I didn’t know my magic could pop me like a fuse. I’d have to be a lot more careful in the future to avoid slicing open my demon arm. While the amount I knew about my demonic arm could have filled a shot glass, it would be nice to know the things that would cause it to kill me. Where was an owner’s manual when you needed one?
    “Yeah… you need to work on the filter between your brain and your mouth,” she said and sat down on the toilet seat. She put the still capped syringe down on the top of the toilet’s tank and looked at me for a moment. “Can you put your arm up on the side here?” She patted the side of the tub.
    I complied even though doing so felt slightly less pleasant than flossing my teeth with barbed wire. Apparently, she wasn’t super thrilled with Ricky’s first aid job because she clucked in annoyance. “Seriously, Staples and duct tape? That girl needs to get away from the other werewolves for a bit.”
    “I’m just glad she didn’t pee on the wound,” I said, smiling at her as best I could.
    Sera didn’t reply which was disconcerting. Had Ricky peed on my arm? I half-leaned in to check before deciding against it. If she had peed on my arm, I didn’t want to know.
    A moment later, Sera had the duct tape cut away and had injected my arm with what felt like concentrated snake venom mixed with a dash of harpy fury in several places along the length of the cut. It sort of reminded me of going to the dentist, although I could talk because Sera’s hands weren’t all up in my grill.
    “Let’s give it a minute to numb up, tough guy,” she said, pulling a pair of what looked like needle-nose pliers out of her black bag. “Then I’ll pull out the staples and sew you up.” She put her hands in her pink scrub clad lap. “Okay?”
    “Why did you come to help me?” I asked before I could stop myself. “You should be staying as far away from me as humanly possible.”
    “I’m a nurse. My job is putting Humpty Dumptys back