Page 143 of Unmasked

“Can you not see I’m busy? What about him? You’re here telling me about him, so he obviously didn’t get in.”

“Yes, but⁠—”

At George appearing at the door, I waved Dominique away. “Later. I’m busy. Leave me. George, come in.”

The man shifted, nodding as he turned and headed away. I waved George to the desk faster.

“I want to hear everything. Tell me about The Order. About what you’ve heard about Penelope. All of it.”

There was a hesitation in his step which had me immediately snarling.

“You’ve been gone all day. You have to have learned something more.”

“Actually, I haven’t, Sire. They’re on to me. I spent the majority of the time trying to lose them so I could report back to you. They’re good. Too damn good. And there’s a lot of them. They have tactical teams. It’s like nothing I’ve ever seen. Not here, anyway.”

“What are you saying?”

George paused before he shrugged.

“If I go back, they’ll catch me. They’ll kill me, and then you really won’t have answers. I can’t go back to where I believe the entrances are. It’s too risky.”

Power. Control. I was losing more by the minute.

“Hold on.”

I hit The Sultan’s number, not able to stop from pacing as it began to ring. On the fourth one, he finally answered.

“Well, well… You’re Highness.”

I rolled my eyes at his annoying title for me. As if I wasn’t king, or worthy enough to be one.

“I can’t get ahold of Penelope or Vaughn. I know you have insight. Is she alive?”

A deep sound registered that I couldn’t quite read. Anger? Amusement?

“Why should I tell you anything? You’ve made a mess for yourself.”

“Things are better now. I talked to Vaughn. I know they’re busy and can’t update me, so I just want to know if she’s okay.”

Seconds drug out.

“She’s alive. She’s passed the first two trials but not easily. The Judic wasn’t entirely in favor of her last answer. They had her lashed five more times. One for each of them. It made a mess of her back. She passed out. They’re stitching her up now.”

Horror mingled with lust, twisting my insides with butterflies and bludgeonings. To see her bleed… to make her bleed.

So long as it was me doing it. I didn’t like the thought of them hurting her. It had to be me. Only me.

“Clearly, they’ll postpone the rest of the trials for another day until she heals.”

The Sultan laughed. “Absolutely not. She will continue once they finish. She fights next.”

A curse left me as I reached up, gripping my hair.

“You’re watching. Do you have video? I want to watch, too.”

“This is Council business. You’re lucky I’m telling you anything at all.”

Control.