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Her arms tightened, and she lay over me like she was trying to shield me with her body.
“Stop it!” she screamed.
Mikey kneeled in front of me, his hand going straight through Sloane like she wasn’t there. Neither of them noticed the other. I said a silent thanks for that small miracle.
Mikey grasped my jaw between his thumb and pointer finger, wrenching my face up so I had to look at him. “You will tell me, Lincoln. So help me, you will.”
I glared at him but didn’t say a word.
He shoved my face away and then bitch-slapped me. He got to his feet and started to pace. “I’ll stick you back in the water again. I’ll let you pass out next time.”
I let my head fall back to the floor and closed my eyes. I pushed Sloane away. She didn’t need to see this.
She clutched me tighter, her nails biting into my skin. “Lincoln?”
I reached out to her with my mind. It’s okay, sweetheart. I’ll be okay.
My promises sounded weak even to my own ears.
Her teary eyes met mine, and she shook her head. “Please don’t push me out. Lincoln, I…”
She dissipated, leaving me alone with Mikey as I pushed her farther out of my mind.
Mikey paced in front of me, running a hand through his dark hair. “I’ll give you credit for being tougher than I thought you’d be.” He turned back toward me. “But I will break you, Lincoln.”
I squeezed my hands into tight fists to keep them from trembling. It was freezing in here, and having my head dunked into ice water wasn’t helping.
There wasn’t much that scared me. I’d already lived through one nightmare when I was a kid. If I could survive watching my mother and sister get murdered, I could survive the abuse Mikey had planned.
I had to protect Sloane and Sawyer. My mates. Keeping them safe was the only thing that mattered, even if it meant my destruction.
Mikey stooped down next to me. “Dad left your punishment to me. He’s going to go after that bitch soon. You know, I think I might ask Dad to spare her life. She’s feisty.” He clapped his hands together and grinned. “The kind of woman I would enjoy breaking in.”
My throat vibrated as a growl ripped its way through me before I could stop it.
Mikey threw his head back and laughed. “I’ll take her in front of you, too. Make you watch. Maybe you’ll tell me about your secrets for her.”
I bit the inside of my cheek. Don’t react. You’ve already given him too much. He can’t know what Sloane means to you.
Mikey patted my cheek. “What do you think, big brother?”
I flicked my gaze to Mikey’s face. There was still a nasty mark where she’d got him just before our escape. Dad had forbidden him from shifting to heal it since he’d let two women get past him.
“I think you better watch your back,” I told him. “She’s already bested you once. It’d be embarrassing if she did it again.”
Mikey’s eyes and hand shifted. His pawed claw landed on my chest, and he dug his nails into my skin, raking them down my chest.
I gritted my teeth, wincing as he tore into my flesh. Blood beaded on my skin and dribbled down my torso.
He pointed to his face. “She will pay for this.”
Not if Sawyer and I had any say in it. “We’ll see.”
Mikey dug his nails deeper and wiggled his paw back and forth. I clenched my jaw so I wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of crying out. My body trembled, and I exhaled through my nose, trying to keep my breathing even.
He leaned in so our noses were almost touching. “I’d be more worried about your current predicament if I were you.” He retracted his nails and rocked back on his heels. “Why don’t we try again? Where is your laptop? We’ve been through your room. It’s not there.”
I flopped onto my back and stared up at the barn ceiling. I blinked as I focused on the rafters and the way they connected at the top. There was a giant spiderweb up there. A large brown spider was in the middle, and some unfortunate bugs were caught on the right side.
