Page 25

Without waiting for a reply, the witch clenched her fist around thin air and yanked hard. A clump of Lucy’s hair wrenched her from the cage and onto the dirt floor as violently as if she had been thrown.

Please… Blair forced his eyes closed and prayed, pounding his fists against his head. Lucy’s sobs echoed through the chamber, compounded by the bone-chilling sound of something ripping apart like pages from the binding of a book.

Blair didn’t have to open his eyes to know what was happening. It was a sound he would be forced to hear over and over again for the rest of his days.

“No…no!”

Blair shot upright in bed. His breath was ragged, and his hands ached where they clenched the blankets. He stared around wildly in the dark, momentarily forgetting where he was. A wave of dizziness overcame him, and he clutched a hand to his chest.

As his memory resurfaced, he experienced the sensation of a drowning man being dragged to shore, the promise of safety momentarily quelling waves of dread.

Blair wiped the sweat from his forehead. His head throbbed, and his throat was very dry.

Untangling himself from his sheets, he felt his way over to the door.

Iris awoke with a start, unsure what had interrupted her sleep. She checked her phone; it was barely three in the morning. Sliding her sweaty hair off her forehead, Iris slid out from beneath her comforter and padded into the kitchen, the floorboards cold beneath her bare feet.

Footsteps descended the stairs. Gabriel’s dark eyes were wary as they met hers in the dim glow of the nightlight. Before Iris could ask what was going on, a muffled sound came from the living room. Gabriel put a hand on Iris’ shoulder in an attempt to hold her back, but she ignored him, leading the way out of the kitchen.

Blair was seated on the edge of the couch, head bent and forehead clenched. His breath was labored, his hands balled into fists at his side.

Iris reached down to touch his arm, and Blair’s head rose so suddenly that she recoiled. For a split second, his expression was sharp, almost dangerous. Then shame passed over his features like a shadow. “I’m sorry,” he choked. “I⁠—”

Without warning, Blair shot off the couch.

Before Iris could comprehend what was happening, Gabriel had snatched up Blair’s copy of Jane Eyre from the coffee table and was holding it up like a shield. Blair stilled, his mouth open in shock. He tried to move, but it was as though he had been immobilized.

Gabriel’s entire body went rigid, his muscles wound tight as a live wire. His fingers remained clenched around the book, but his voice was clear and steady. “Blair, we’re going to need answers. If you refuse to confide in us, I’m going to have to ask you to leave.”

“Gabriel—”

“Stay out of this, Iris.” His attention didn’t waver from Blair.

Iris remained rooted to the spot, mind reeling. Blair’s behavior was alarming enough, but Gabriel’s stance, his sudden ability to freeze another man in place—that might have been even more unsettling.

When Blair still refused to speak, Gabriel lowered the book back to the table. His next words sounded closer to a growl. “Get out.”

“What?” Blair’s eyes widened in panic.

“You heard me.”

“Gabriel, no.” Iris stood between them, her hands outstretched as if in a peace offering. “Please don’t overreact like this.”

“You don’t get to decide everything on your own.” Gabriel took a step closer to her, and Iris could see the hurt beneath the hostility in his gaze. “We’re supposed to be partners.”

“We are.”

“Then let me have my say.”

Iris expelled a shaky breath, suddenly feeling as though she might unravel. With Gabriel pulling at one side of the string and Blair tugging the other, it was only a matter of time before the tension between them would force her to let go.

But while she hated to compare herself to her father, there was one way in which they were similar. Her father had been tenacious. He’d never given up on anyone. And neither would she.

“Blair,” she said, her eyes locked on Gabriel’s. “Give us a minute, please.”

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Blair hesitate before moving toward the front door.

“Please don’t leave the house,” Iris clarified. She watched Gabriel’s chest heave with suppressed anger, but she didn’t relent. Iris listened to the sound of Blair’s footsteps as he retreated into a back room.