“Celia. She leads them.” With a shudder, she rubbed her throat. “Hurts. Tea?”
Shit. She shouldn’t have to ask. Not for anything. Caitlin should have stayed. She’d know what to do. How to take care of Sameen. “Let me make you a fresh cup. We have more food. Tierney bought enough to feed half of Scotland. Or I can go out and get you something. McDonald’s? Glasgow’s only twenty minutes away.”
“Don’t go!” She grabbed his arm, holding on like her life depended on him staying by her side. God, he was an idiot. She hadn’t wanted him to leave theroom. And here he’d suggested leaving the house?
Softening his voice, he rested his hand over hers. “I won’t go anywhere unless you ask me to. I promise.” The relief spreading across her delicate features gave him hope that maybe she wouldn’t reject him when he finally worked up the courage to tell her they were mates. “I’ll just get that tea.”
* * *
Mara
She woke in the same position she’d fallen asleep in, her muscles stiff, her arms wrapped around her belly in the dim light. How long had she been here? Her baby kicked, the tiny impact against her palm bringing tears to her eyes. “I’m so sorry,” she whispered.
It wasn’t until she sat up that she realized how much bigger she was. Another week, at least. And so very hungry.
Footsteps scuffed against stone, and she hastily swiped at her tears. She wouldn’t let them see her cry.
The bars parted, and a woman dressed in a light purple robe set a tray down in front of her. “You have one hour to eat.”
“Wait,” Mara called as the woman returned to the corridor and the bars closed back up again. “I need more than that. Sunlight. Fresh air. Exercise. You want this baby to be healthy? You have to let me out of here.”
Pushing back her hood to reveal spiked blond hair and a face that couldn’t be older than twenty-five, the practitioner glared at Mara. “You do not get to make demands of us, elemental. You will obey. Or you will suffer.”
“My name is Mara, bitch. The least you could do is use it.”
“Eat.” Drawing the single word out, the woman pointed at the tray and her eyes glowed a lighter purple.
Mara fought not to pick up the spoon, but the mark on her side burned, and her fingers had a mind of their own. The practitioner didn’t move until half the stew was gone, and Mara thought she was going to be sick.
“Please,” she managed between bites of some of the most overcooked spinach she’d ever seen. “Let me stop.”
With a sigh, the woman blinked, and her eyes darkened again. The spoon clattered to the floor, and Mara sank back against the wall. “One hour, elemental. Then the lights go out.”
The cell around her started to spin, and her vision shrank down to a single pinprick of light. Her fire element had taken control, and it was pissed.
“Dammit. You can’t keep doing that without any warning!”Mara screamed silently from the small box her other half had forced her into.
“Yes. I can.”
“Oh, so we can talk now. Any bright ideas?”
Only silence answered her, and she had to watch herself finish the stew, slowly.
“If we can’t get out of here, they’re going to take our baby.”
The wordourseemed to have an impact, because the glass of milk wobbled in her hand.
“You’re obviously stronger than I am since you can take over at any time. Call fire to you. See if you can fight their magic.”
How long had it been? At least thirty minutes. Once the milk and water were gone, Mara’s hand lifted, and she could feel the power surge up inside of her. But then the mark flared, and she cried out, the pain making her double over. Her palm wasn’t even warm.
Nausea clawed its way up her throat, and she scrambled on hands and knees all the way to the toilet.
The baby needed that food. If she were advancing a week every time they forced her to sleep, her daughter would end up malnourished if she didn’t keep the food down. Unless…maybe that was it. They hadn’t told her not to throw up. They’d just commanded her to eat.
“Do it. Come on. If you’re any part of Katerina…if you came from her or if you are her, think like her. Stick your finger down your throat—my throat—and throw up. Everything they just made us eat.”
With a pained cry that sounded almost like a growl, Katerina—that was all Mara could think of to call this other part of her—jammed a finger down Mara’s throat.
