I raised an eyebrow. “Oh, you forbid it? Who put you in charge of me?”
“I put myself in charge,” he replied, sharp with defiance as he leaned closer, his breath caressing my lips. “And if you so much asthinkabout running away from me again, I’ll cane your ass until you can’t sit, stand, walk, or evenbreathewithout feeling my displeasure. Understand?”
I gulped, even as heat bloomed between my legs. I nodded.
“Good girl.” He kissed my cheek and moved back. “Now that we’re bonded, Pain thinks our magic combined should be able to get the collar off you.”
“And if it can’t…?”
“Not to worry, my lioness,” Madde said brightly. “I brought tools.”
When he held up a dagger and a pair of pliers, I felt the blood drain from my face.
CHAPTER 8
CAT
The second we all laid our fingertips on the metal that had fused with my skin and bone, her voice spread through my mind like an infection.
I wondered when I’d hear from you again, Kitty.
I flinched so hard, I severed the contact with the choker. “Did you… did you hear that?”
The grim set of Death’s mouth told me they did.
“It could be a simple deterrent,” Miz suggested, his expression hard, mouth flattened into a line. “To scare you away from removing it.”
“But you said she could use this to find me.” A chill trickled down the back of my neck. “If she can do that, she can use it to speak to me and get into my head and—”
Miz took my face in both hands, soothing me with a kiss. “I know how terrifying it is.” Shit, of course he did. Nightmare had manipulated him for years. “But this feels different to whenshecontrolled me. Like a reflection, rather than Cruelty herself. Do you trust me?”
I swallowed. “You know I do.”
“Let’s try again. Shut out her words as much as you can. Madde, be ready to melt the damn thing as soon as we have a hold of it.”
My breath shook when I inhaled, but we’d got out of Darkmore Manor; if we could do that, I could handle hearing her voice again. I wasn’t sure I could handlehisvoice, but as much as Cruelty scared me, she made me just as angry. When I thought of Violence, only icy, frozen fear spiked my chest and stripped all my power.
“Okay,” I breathed, psyching myself up, pretending my chest wasn’t cinched tight with anxiety. I brushed my fingers to the warm metal roses. I couldn’t stop my flinch at the first touch, but I steeled my spine and kept my fingers in place as my husbands reached out for the choker.
Best friends forever means forever, Kitty. There’s nowhere you can go that I won’t find you.
“Ignore her,” Pain grunted. “Together, we have more power than she does. Cat, feel for where we’re all connected and keep your fingers on the choker. And deep breath, darling woe, this is going to hurt.”
Some silent cue was exchanged, because magic pulsed through my chest—theirmagic—and the choker began to shift beneath my skin. Tears stung my eyes, and I took sharp, shallow breaths as it ground against my bone, moving, scraping, borrowing deeper like it was a conscious being. Itresisted.
“Hold on, Cat,” Death urged, the calm of his soul giving me enough strength to grit my teeth and pant through the pain. It was nowhere as bad as that room where Violence—
You can’t hide forever, Kitty. We’re best friends, remember? Best friends are there for each other and support each otherno matter what. Best friends love to laugh and sing and play together. I have one last game to play. Don’t you want to know about it…?
“No,” Miz snarled for me, his voice guttural, twisted. “She doesn’t.”
Theywrenchedon the collar, the stab of pain making tears roll down my cheeks. I dragged my bottom lip between my teeth and bit down as the metal shifted, gouged, and tore my chest apart. The thorns curved, biting into me as my husbands fought to free me.
“Is it working?” I dared to whisper.
“Yes, my brave girl,” Death replied. “It’s working.”
One last game, Kitty—what do you say? Choose your game pieces. I’ve already chosen mine.
