“But it’snotfucking safe,” Kharon argued.
Augustus glared at him. “We didn’t see anything.”
Warmth filled my chest.
Deeds, not words.
Kharon tipped his head back and closed his eyes. “Fine.”
“Let’s move on to thepurposeof this meeting.” Augustusstraightened and pulled a familiar vial of blood out of his pocket. “They want you tomurderus—wife?”
Lightning flashed again and shadows flickered through the dark dining room, as Patro and Achilles struggled in their chairs.
Augustus held the vial up—blood sloshed back and forth.My blood.
Kharon pointed his knife at me, looking betrayed.
“So it’s come to this,” Augustus said, his words clipped as he glared at my mentors. “They want you to use your power to free yourself from the marriage bond …from us.”
I opened my mouth to deny it, to explain that I was never going to do it, then clicked my jaw shut.How dare they act like I’m the one at fault.It was Patro and Achilles’s plan, not mine.
I was done apologizing to men.
They could beg for my forgiveness or go fuck themselves.
Kharon smiled cruelly as he stepped back from the table—Hell and Hound left my side and sauntered over to Kharon, flanking him—crimson filled his glowing eyes.
His protectors’ turquoise gazes also changed—their flame eyes flickered a vibrant red.
Kharon straightened, his face unnaturally slack—he opened his mouth, and so did his beasts.
“Iammy hellhounds.” His words echoed strangely around the room as all three of them spoke at the same time in a growling cadence. “What they see—I see.”
Ringing increased in my left ear.
His stalking was even worse than I’d thought.
Kharon bared his teeth and nodded, so did his hounds; a puppet master and his puppets.
“I heard your discussion with Patro,” Kharon’s garbled deep voice projected eerily around the room. “I saw yourlongingfor what they were offering—wife.”
Fluffy Jr. growled next to me.
The blood slowly receded from Kharon’s eyes and hishellhounds looked back and forth between the two of us like they didn’t know who to choose—after a long moment, they slunk away and lay in the corner of the room.
Kharon lazily twirled his hunting knife, waiting for my reaction.
Dark emotions churned in my gut, but I wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction of showing that I was afraid.
“So … are you going tokillme?” I asked softly.
Augustus’s smile was sinister. “Oh no—wife. You’ve got itallwrong.” He turned, revealing a drink cart. He picked up two empty whiskey glasses and placed them gently on the table.
Kharon held my gaze and he stuck out his tongue.
Wait.
He brought the sharp edge of the hunting knife up to his open mouth.
