He wasn’t letting go or slowing down. Determination etched across his face as he wove us through various corridors. My legs stumbled to keep pace while Bethie’s words clawed at the back of my mind.
“You’re a killer, Mazie.”
Then the applause came. Slow and mocking.
“Well done, Poppet.”
Felix.
His shirtless figure bled into the mirrors. More and more of him stepped in, until reflections of the ringmaster surrounded us. Each and every one seemed to catch a different angle of the sinister smirk on his face.
“You managed to leave her behind again.” He drawled. “Poor Bethie. Twice abandoned. Once for a boy, once for your own life. Tell me, Poppet…” his light eyes glittered as he tilted his head. “Does it sting less the second time?”
A pang of guilt tore through my heart while Austin spat out, “Fuck you.”
Felix’s chuckle seemingly came from everywhere. “Ah, come to rescue the damsel in distress, have you? How heroic. But are you really saving her, or are you saving her for yourself?”
What was that supposed to mean?
The look Austin gave in response made me wonder if Felix’s tone was mocking because he enjoyed tormenting us, or if there was some other meaning. Maybe Austin wasn’t the good guy he pretended to be? Everyone had secrets, right?
“Tell me, sir,” Felix continued. “What happens when the predator turns prey?”
I wasn’t so sure about his grip on my hand anymore. “Austin?”
“Ignore him, Mazie. He’s just messing with your head.”
Felix’s voice rippled through the mirrors, low and velvety. “Whose hand are you holding, Poppet? The hero, or the villain?”
“Ignore him, keep your eyes on me.” Austin hissed.
Keep my eyes on him? That was easier said than done. I wanted to ignore Felix, but the glass wouldn’t let me. He was everywhere. A thousand lean torsos gleamed in the sconce light while a thousand mouths whispered the same poison.
“You cling so desperately to your savior, Poppet. But what if he’s not your savior? What if he’s not there at all? What if it’s me you’re grasping for in the dark?”
A shiver raced down my spine. His voice was too intimate, too knowing. As if he’d already tasted that part of me I tried to hide. Could he sense the beast clawing inside? Did he hear it beg to be released?
Sometimes, I wanted to give in and forget for a moment. I wanted to go back to the time before my world fell apart. When all I felt was pleasure. No tears or dead eyes looked back at me. There was just freedom and ecstasy.
“He made you feel good, didn’t he, Poppet. Good enough to forget her.”
Bethie’s reflection flared in the corner of my eye, making me stumble.
“Ah, there it is,” Felix purred. “That dark part of your soul you try so hard to hide. It calls to me, Poppet. It tempts me with your desire and shame. You want to give it to me, don’t you? You want to be free of your shackles.”
His words sank into me like hooks. My pulse shuddered, and for a heartbeat, it felt like the floor tilted toward him. Toward the promise of punishment coated in pleasure.
I wanted to give in. Fighting was exhausting. It would be easier to fall into his reflection and forget.
But Austin wouldn’t let me.
“Come on, Mazie.” He tightened his grip on my wrist and yanked me forward. “Don’t listen.”
The path suddenly split into three, causing our images to multiply until I couldn’t tell which way was forward. Images seemed to stagger off in every direction. My powdered cheeks, wet with tear streaks, mingled with Austin’s frustrated scowl, and in the background, smiling back at us, stood Felix.
“All mazes end in parting, Poppet. Dolls crack, sisters drown, and friends stray.”
The corridor suddenly buckled, making me stumble back.
