Page 110 of No One’s Daughter

Denise’s attention snapped back to me then, her entire demeanour shifting in an instant. Her lips curved into something softer. “Always in such a rush, Leon,” she said, stepping closer than necessary. “You could stay. I wouldn’t mind the company.”

I didn’t move.

Didn’t react.

Her hand brushed lightly against my arm, lingering just a second too long.

I pulled away.

“Not interested,” I said bluntly.

It wasn’t subtle, but subtly was wasted here.

Denise pouted slightly, though there was no real emotion behind it. “Shame,” she muttered. “You’re missing out.”

Unlikely.

I’d built a reputation, I knew that—but not here.

Never here, no thank you.

The Ninth had a way of turning everything into a transaction, and I had no interest in becoming part of that particular currency.

“Right, well I’m off,” I said, turning for the door, pausing before unlocking it. “Try not to be too harsh with this one, alright? The boss’s orders.” It wasn’t. But his word had more weight than mine and I really didn’t want her being rougher than I knew she’d already be.

Part of me didn’t want to go, the other part of me reminded myself that this wasn’t my business. But something was at play here, and I’d been pulled right into the centre of it.

CHAPTER THIRTY NINE

Davien

I WAS WALKING into certain death, I was sure of it, and yet there was a strange, hollow calm that had settled over me, as though my mind had already accepted the inevitable and was simply waiting for my body to catch up. At best, I might be able to cause enough distraction to allow Ailsa to escape with her life. The odds were stacked against us, but I had to try. I owed it to Ailsa to at least try. So that was the plan.

​That’s if I ever even got to set eyes on her again.

I figured they’d use me as a pawn, a bargaining chip to use against Ailsa, possibly even Cathal if they were feeling particularly strategic. It had to be the only reason I was still breathing.

​The faces of men and women who had once looked up to me now looked at me with disdain and disgust. I guess they had broadcast my betrayal then. My cover was without a doubt blown. The only question that remained now was how long they’d keep me alive for. Even Cathal’s position in the court wouldn’t protect me now.

​I had failed, and I’d face death for it.

​I was fine with that.

​I just hoped that somehow, against all the odds, that Ailsa would rise above them all.

I had been ushered into a small lounge on the eleventh floor after they’d washed and dressed me. Every fibre in my being had wanted to fight them, quite literally bite the hands that touched me, but if there was even the smallest sliver of hope that I’d get to see her again, I put up with it. I hadn’t felt anything from her in over two days and I was worried sick.

They wouldn’t have killed her, would they? I wouldn’t put anything past Valerius. But I feared he had much bigger plans for her.

The room itself was deceptively elegant—soft cream walls adorned with gilded frames, a low glass table set before an overly plush settee that swallowed me whole when I sat, and floor-to-ceiling windows that revealed nothing but the glittering expanse of the city below. Designed to lull its guests into a false sense of security, to make them forget they were in danger.

It didn’t work on me.

My knee bounced up and down where I sat on the too soft settee, waiting. Waiting for what felt like a lifetime. What was my purpose here? Would they actually allow me to see her? Would they use me against her? Use me to make her suffer?

I ground my teeth as I thought over every possible way this day could play out. Each scenario more brutal than the last, calculating outcomes, of every possible way I could try to get her out.

Did I have any allies left?