10 – Alyss
Isquint at the woman in front of me as my body tilts to the side.
Harsh hands grab me before I hit the floor, pulling me upright as I feign weakness, shaking my head. “I…,”
“Don’t be an idiot.” Her words are cold, as cold as the rest of her. “You think you can lie to my face?”
She’s beautiful, but she reminds me of a viper. Pretty to look at - but linger too long and you’ll feel fangs in your throat. Deep red hair flows down her back almost to her hips, kohl-lined emerald-green eyes set in a tanned face that watches me without blinking.
She could be my age, or twenty years older. I can’t tell.
I drop the act, my face hardening. “You must be Red.”
She walks around me slowly, the silken folds of her gown dragging over my legs as I kneel. “You’re not one of our patrons. Who invited you here?”
I say nothing as she watches me.
Her next words are curt. “You should at least curtsey while you’re thinking what to say - it saves time.”
As if she’s a fuckingqueen.
As I stare at her, she waves a hand. “Search her.”
Beside me, Hatter shifts as those hands grab me again, more invasive this time. Efficiently, they strip me of the cash I carried in my bra. The man who dosed me steps forward, handing her my phone. “Broken. We’ll need to extract the data.”
I loosen a breath; thankful I decided not to bring any identification with me.
Red turns my phone over in her hands, staring down at the shattered screen. Red’s mouth tightens infinitesimally, the movement so small that it’s easily missed. But I’m watching her. She looks down at me, her green gaze narrowing. “Tell me your name, girl.”
I hold her eyes. “Tell me yours, first. It sure as hell isn’t Red.”
The smile curls up her lips, her words a mocking drawl. “I want to know how she got into my fucking club, Knave. Find out for me.”
The first kick lands directly in my kidneys. Agony radiates through my side as I fly forward and hands tangle in my hair, dragging me back.
Knave leans down to mutter in my ear. “Tell her how you got in.”
I twist and spit in his face. “Go fuck yourself.”
He lifts me, my scalp screaming in fiery pain as I struggle against him. “I can do this all fucking day.”
And enjoy it.
There’s shouting around me.Roaring, as Hatter launches himself toward me. But there are more ofthem, holding him down as Knave drops me and pulls out a knife.
And then Hatter is shouting over the ruckus, his face pale as he bellows at Red, twisting to get out from the men pinning him down. “I invited her!”
She holds up one hand, and everyone pauses. Panting, I wrap an arm around my aching kidneys as Hatter struggles to pull himself out from the men holding him. “Ifucking invited her. Imet her last night, and I invited her. She’s not hiding anything – she doesn’tknowanything. She’s nobody, Red. Just a girl I met.”
“Just a girl you met,” Red repeats slowly. “Lastnight.”
My eyes dart to Buck. He sags beneath his own captors, dark eyes meeting mine.
There’s a warning there. And it feels, impossibly, as if the tension ratchets up tenfold as Red considers Hatter’s words.
As if it changes something.
“Get them up.” Red strolls back to her throne as we’re all pulled to our feet. I stumble, my side radiating with pain as she settles into the gaudy golden seat, her eyes landing on me.
