Page 5

No one said anything. As expected.

I stared at the door. “I really hope you’re not answering because you’re busy making us a Sunday roast.”

Dax groaned, his stomach grumbling loudly at just the thought of a decent meal. He called out a request of his own. “With gravy! The really thick kind, made with the fat that drips off the meat…”

Lynx punched his arm. “Stop. I’m drooling.” He raised his voice so the guards would hear through the doors. “I want roast potatoes. And they better be really fucking crispy. If they’re soggy, I’ll be throwing them at your—”

A noise came from the other side of the door.

I shushed Lynx and twisted my head to press my ear to it.

He and Dax followed, the three of us straining to hear whatever was happening on the other side.

We did this every time we heard anything out there. The guards never said anything interesting, it was always just pleasantries as they changed shifts, or a few curt words to inform the other that we had or hadn’t been fed. But it felt like the equivalent of your parents saying you could watch TV after depriving you of screentime all day. We listened at that door like the guards might put on a song-and-dance routine just for our entertainment.

Footsteps thundered on the stairs I remembered being dragged down after I’d been jumped on the street, the night I’d gone out to get Lynx and Nyah dinner. I hadn’t been able to see a thing, courtesy of the bag shoved over my head, and my heart had thumped loudly as I’d tried to fight them off to no avail.

Every day since, and even more so after Lynx had been tossed in here with me and Dax, I wondered if Nyah would be next. If the next time I heard a struggle on the stairs, it would be her dark eyes I saw when the door opened.

I had no idea whether I wanted her here with us or not. On one hand, of course I didn’t. On the other, fuck, I wanted her in my arms, where I could see for myself that she was okay.

I hated not knowing. The baby would be nearly due by now, surely.

And we’d left them both completely unprotected.

Every single day that had eaten away at my heart and my gut and my soul until it was all I could think about.

But all we could do was hope that the Slayers had her. I knew War would never kick her out, but I also knew our girl. And she was a spitfire. So I had no idea how long she would accept their charity before she tried to make it on her own.

She was strong and beautiful, but she had no idea what she was up against. If my father was willing to fake my death, lock us in here and throw away the key, he wouldn’t think twice about hurting Nyah in whatever way he chose.

The rat bastard hadn’t shown his face one time since I’d been brought down here.

If he was hurting her…

I squeezed my eyes shut, bile rolling in my stomach. I slammed the heel of my hand on the door, even though it was so solid it barely moved beneath my assault. “Is that my father out there? Did he finally grow enough balls to confront me face-to-face like a man? If you’ve fucking touched one hair on her head, old man, I swear to God—”

Lynx clapped his hand over my mouth and hissed in my ear. “Shut up! They’re talking.”

I shoved him off me, mostly because he really did stink but also because he was right and I wanted to hear whatever they were saying.

“…It doesn’t matter anymore. There’s a whole church full of people up there watching Nyah marry Carlos. As soon as the ceremony is over, we no longer need them. Kill them.”

If it were even possible for a silence to fall over an already soundless room, it happened. There was no noise except for the blood rushing in my ears. I didn’t breathe. I was sure my heart stopped.

It wasn’t even because I’d just heard someone had given an execution order that would end with me, Lynx, and Dax dead on a cold, stone floor.

I lost it. “Let us out, you piece of fucking shit! She’s not marrying him! Over my dead fucking body.”

“Exactly,” a guard called back with a laugh.

Of all the times for them to start talking to us…

I blinked, then started up again, Dax and Lynx beside me, both just staring at the door in horror. I smashed my hands against it, kicked, screamed. Blood appeared on my knuckles, welling and dripping down my clenched fists, until Lynx caught me, hauling me back from the door I was destroying myself on.

“Stop it.” His voice was deep. Calm and demanding.

For a second, I just wanted to walk him back against the wall, cover his body with mine, and press my lips on his. To kiss him until this entire fucking situation disintegrated and we were somewhere else, somewhere this nightmare didn’t exist.