My mouth opened, but no sound came out. When I didn’t say anything, Nano spoke. “Fucker’s name is Michael. She met him at the Prancing Pussycat.”
I didn’t know where Michael was. Didn’t know if he was still in Rapid City or if he fled when I stole the money. Didn’t know if he was alive or dead. I had no way of contacting him.
“I asked you a fucking question,” Morpheus said, his voice deadly quiet now.
Behind him, the other officers had risen from their seats. They were forming a semicircle around me, closing in like wolves surrounding prey. Cerberus’ hand rested on the gun at his hip. Scythe’s fingers drummed against the hilt of his knife. And Nano... Nano was still holding my wrist, but his grip had loosened slightly. Like he was waiting to see what I would do. Waiting to see if I would cooperate.
“Tell him,” Nano said quietly, his voice close to my ear. “Tell him everything you know about Michael.”
I looked up at Morpheus. At the cold fury in his eyes, at the promise of violence written across every line of his face. And something inside me, something stubborn and defiant andstupid,reared its ugly head. “No,” I said before I could stop myself.
Morpheus’ eyes narrowed. “What the fuck did you just say?”
“I saidno,” I repeated, my voice stronger this time. “I’m not telling you shit.”
The room went completely silent. Even the distant sounds from the gathering room seemed to fade away, leaving nothingbut the sound of my own ragged breathing and the pounding of my heart.
Nano’s grip on my wrist tightened again. “Alexandra.”
“No,” I said again, yanking my wrist against his hold. “You want to know about Michael? You want to know where he is and what he’s done? Then you can go fuck yourself, because I’m not saying another goddamn word.”
I didn’t know where the defiance came from. Didn’t know why I was choosingnow, surrounded by men who could kill me without a second thought, to dig my heels in and refuse. Maybe it was because I had spent the last three days being broken down and rebuilt according to Nano’s design. Maybe it was because I submitted and surrendered and gave up every piece of myself until there was nothing left. Or maybe it was because I was so fucking tired of being controlled. Of being told what to do and when to do it, and how to feel about it.
Of beingowned.
Morpheus stared at me for a long moment. Then he laughed. A cold, humorless sound that made my skin crawl. “You think you have a fucking choice here, thief?” he asked, his voice soft. Dangerous. “You think you can just refuse to answer and walk out of this room?”
“I think,” I said, forcing myself to meet his eyes, “that you still need me more than I need you. Because I’m the only one who knows what Michael looks like. The only one who knows where he worked and who he talked to, and what connections he had.” I paused, my heart hammering. “So if you want that information, you’re going to have to do better than dragging me down here in the middle of the night and demanding answers like I’m some fucking suspect.”
The silence that followed was absolute. Cerberus made a sound that might have been a laugh or a growl. I couldn’t tellwhich. Carver’s eyebrows rose slightly, like he was impressed despite himself. Scythe’s hand tightened on his knife.
And Nano’s grip on my wrist had gone completely still.
Morpheus took a step closer until we were almost nose to nose. His breath was hot against my face. “You’ve got balls, bitch. I’ll give you that,” he said quietly. “But balls won’t keep you alive when I decide you’re more trouble than you’re worth.”
“Then kill me,” I snapped, my words coming out steadier than I felt. “Because I’m not talking. Not like this.”
For a moment, I thought he was going to do it. Thought he was going to pull the gun from his belt and put a bullet in my head right here in church.
But then he stepped back.
“Get her the fuck out of here,” he ordered, his voice flat. “Lock her in your room. We’ll deal with this cunt in the morning.”
Nano didn’t move. “Morpheus.”
“Now, Nano.”
The command in Morpheus’ voice left no room for argument. Nano’s hand tightened on my wrist one more time as he pulled me backward, away from the table, away from the officers who were still watching me with expressions that ranged from fury to fascination as he dragged me toward the door, and I didn’t resist. Didn’t fight. Because I’d made my point. I had drawn my line in the sand, and now I was going to find out exactly what that cost me.
The door slammed shut behind us, cutting off the view of the church and the officers inside. Nano didn’t say a word as he pulled me back through the gathering room, past the brothers who were still drinking and fucking like nothing had happened.
Back up the stairs. Back to his room, and when he finally released my wrist and stepped back, his expression was unreadable. “What the fuck was that?” he asked quietly.
I rubbed my wrist, feeling the bruises already forming. “That was me deciding I’m done being interrogated like a criminal.”
“You just refused a direct order from Morpheus,” Nano said, his voice dangerously calm. “Do you have any idea what that means?”
“It means,” I said, meeting his eyes, “that I’m not as broken as you thought I was.”
