It doesn’t even sound human. Her whole body trembles, shaking so hard the metal cuffs on my wrists rattle with the movement of the mattress. Tears streak down her face, but she doesn’t seem to notice. She keeps shaking her head, over and over, as if she can shake the memory out of existence.
“I didn’t say it,” she sobs. Her voice breaks like splintering glass. “I didn’t say it, I didn’t say it, I didn’t say it.”
My chest clamps painfully.
“Nat, stop, it’s okay, it’s okay, no one’s mad, no one’s—”
She screams again.
High, sharp, a raw scream, the kind that makes glass shatter.
My blood turns to ice.
She stops, she’s out of breath and looks like she’s grounding herself back into reality. Her eyes snap to mine, wild, unfocused, terrified, but then I hear footsteps, slow and heavy, coming down the hall.
Nat’s mouth snaps shut.
Instant obedience, instant stillness. Like someone pulled the strings attached to her spine tight. Her breathing evens out in one impossible second. Her tears stop, her face smooths, blank and lifeless. She sits on the bed beside me, eyes fixed on the door.
“He’s here,” she whispers but not scared, more worshipful. Then that scary smile appears on her face once more.
My heart stops when I hear the lock unlatching, the handle turns and Lucien steps inside.
The whole room startles and folds inward with his presence and Natalya smiles like her favorite crush just stepped in.
His straight blond hair is styled with a bit of hair product. His face looks like it was carved from stone, sharp features, blue eyes so light it’s almost mesmerizing. Coldness is pouring out from him, together with something really dark lingering around him. He’s wearing some basic T-shirt and pants, entirely different from the ball I met him at. Suddenly too casual.
He walks toward us, my breath stuck in my chest, not moving.
“Angel, bring some water for Kiara, okay?” he mumbles like he just rolled out of bed.
Natalya nods and jumps up from the bed, leaving the room, leaving me here alone, with this blonde smug face.
I finally gulp and force my lungs to work, when my body automatically tries to pull away from him.
He sits down on the bed and rests his elbows on his knees, staring at me, looking pretty bored and tired.
“How are you feeling? You metabolized the drug quite quickly.” His voice is cold, not that deep, but somehow terrifying.
I frown at him as I’m trying to calm the hyperventilating. Then I realize I’m wearing the torn dress, I can feel them being still damp from the river. The grey sheet under my legs has drops of blood on it. Probably because I cut my feet and knees on the sharp river rocks, when they took me.
I remember the last sight of Kasien trying to get up, Adrien motionless beside him. My eyes burn and tears instantly start to slide down my face, pooling on my lips.
“Don’t cry, you’re dehydrated,” he says calmly.
“Where is Kasien.” My voice breaks at the end and the tears trailing over my lips get into my mouth, leaving a salty taste on my tongue.
Lucien presses his lips together and exhales.
“I’m actually not sure, but I hope he’s going to make it. I need him and Adrien to find you. I hope it won’t take them long for your own sake,” he breathes out a tiny laugh.
They are alive. They must be.
“Why am I here, Lucien? Why didn’t you kill me?” I whisper, the tears melting on my lips as I talk.
He inhales as if he’s bored, then drops his head to one palm, resting it there and looking at me lazily.
He clicks his tongue, “I need your guys to do me a favor.”
