“If I may, I know I’m new here—first day,” the brunette announced, flashing a smile to her colleague, who was toting an armful of bags out of the back room, “but I think the skirt needs to behemmed.”
I stared down, not really understanding why since it didn’t touch thefloor.
“Let me pin it up, and then both of you can decide.” She probably said this in the hopes to allay the deep furrows collected on Muriel’s brow. “I left my pins inside.” The salesgirl gestured toward the changing room, her movement slightly twitchy. Was she nervous because this was her firstday?
I trailed her in, frowning when she pulled the curtain closed. How short was she going to pin the dress that she needed to screen usoff?
She crouched, then before I could even blink, she sprang to her feet, squashed her palm against my mouth, and pressed a sharp blade to myneck.
“You whore, this is for my father.” She slit mythroat.
Blood spurted over her pretty face, coated her enormous diamond ring. I tried to speak, to yelp, but all that came out of my mouth was a wetgurgle.
She banded her arm around my waist and eased me quietly to the floor. The world began to tarnish around the edges like the labels on Jarod’s wine bottles, and rushing filled myears.
The girl cleaned herself with one of the dresses. Did she expect to walk out of the cabin and survive the wrath of my bodyguards? OfTristan?
Even though my brain felt as though it were bobbing inside my skull, I managed to keep my eyes open. Only a smear of blood remained on the shell of her ear, which would be swallowed up by her hair if she untuckedit.
What would be her next move? Attacking my guardsor—
Muriel!What if she went afterher?
I tried to scream again, but the gushing wound snatched Muriel’s name from my gapinglips.
“Everything all right in there?” Tristan asked, and I begged him to be his usual intrusive self and part thecurtains.
I wouldn’t die, but theymight.
Gritting my teeth, I crawled toward the drape, but the woman smashed her boot into my cheek, sending me toppling over. Unfortunately, the carpet absorbed the sound of myimpact.
“Just fine. Almost done,” the woman said, a hitch in hertone.
Please, please pick up on it,Tristan.
She dropped the knife coated in my blood back inside her boot, and I almost sighed with relief, because that meant she wasn’t planning on attacking anyoneelse.
Tossing the soiled dress she’d used as a towel on top of me, the woman, who’d just earned herself an astronomical sinner score, squeezed past the curtains, pulling them tight behind her. “She’ll be out in a minute.” Her voice was muffled by the thick fabric. “I’m going to find her a pair of heels to showcase the skirt. I’ll be rightback.”
My silk top became saturated with blood and stuck to my slow-pumping chest. If I hadn’t had wings, a Malakim would’ve already arrived to harvest mysoul.
“Can I come in,ma chérie?” Murielasked.
Never in my life had I experienced such pain. How could humans do this to each other? Be sovicious?
Dying was a necessary part of a soul’s cycle, but this type of death was inhumane. No wonder the Malakim erased a soul’s memory. Trauma like the one I was experiencing would scar someone for severallifetimes.
“Leigh?” Muriel calledout.
At some point, impatience would win her over, and she’d discover my gory body. I tried to use the fabric the saleslady had tossed on me to clean off the blood, but my hands shook too hard, and my fingers wouldn’t even close. Muriel would be terrified, and there was nothing I could do aboutit.
The curtain finally swishedopen.
A scream rent the air, and then footfalls pounded the store’s granite floor, thudding right into my skull. Muriel’s face blurred in front of me and then sharpened before blurring again. Blots of silver and blue hung behind her. When my eyesight cleared again, I noticed the blots were Tristan. His skin, usually tanned and bright, was ghost-like.
“Don’t just stand there!” Muriel screamed. “Call for help and find thegirl!”
Tristan backed away, pale eyes wide withfear.
