My temper snarled.The moment the rest of the board members are dead, we’ll go straight to your lab, alright?
Rook stumbled on the last step, but the guard helped her find her balance.
I would have to kill him. Just for having the audacity to touch her.
Deal. We can call Sovereign Retrieval again. They can take us straight to Snowflake Corp.
The squeak of boots echoed in the foyer as the guards guidedus past the living room, snug, and kitchen to the opulent dining room of last night.
Neither of us spoke as the guards pushed us toward the twin dentist looking chairs, bound our ankles with the leather straps, then cut the zip-ties off our wrists and buckled matching restraints into place.
My instincts snarled at letting them imprison me yet again, but this morning wasn’t like last night. The fire had returned. I wasn’t under any illusion that I was healed for good. I knew whatever synergy Rook and I had shared would fade soon enough, and we had to be far away from here when that happened, but...for now, we had a hidden weapon.
All we had to do was wait for our enemies to gather so we could wield it.
Chapter Twenty-Three
I PLAYED BY LUCIEN’S RULES and pretended to be weak and miserable.
I slumped in the chair, didn’t react when one of the guards ran his hand up my leg as he fastened the cuff around my ankle, and did my best to stop the ice from taking over and protecting me.
I would follow Lucien’s lead, but I couldn’t guarantee I’d be able to stop myself if they tried to bleed us again. It wasn’t the thought of being harvested again that repulsed me—it was the blunt reminder of what flowed in our veins.
I had a feeling the ice kept forsaking me because it knew I wasn’t strong enough to wield it anymore. It knew that each time we ‘healed’ in that dreamscape, we were only killing ourselves faster because we were harnessing power that would ultimately be our undoing.
Roy Swift appeared in the doorway, looking no worse for wear from last night.
Pity.
“Ah.” He clapped his hands as if meeting us for a leisurely breakfast. “You’re already here...perfect.” Narrowing his eyes on Lucien, he glided over the thick carpet. “I heard you didn’t eat anything.” Clucking his tongue, he came toward me. “How can you stay strong if you don’t eat?” Patting my head like I was a labrador, he added, “You mean so much to me, and I intend to look after you well. So...if you refuse to eat again, I’ll just have to make you.”
“Get your motherfucking hands off her,” Lucien growled.
Removing his hand from my hair, Roy backed away. “Seeing as we’ll be living together for a while, Lucien, you really need to work on your temper.”
“Fuck you.”
“My, my, you really are a grouch. I’m guessing you’re just hungry. Don’t worry, the moment we’ve finished here, I’ll hook you up to a nice drip full of delicious vitamins and minerals. Can’t have you sick for surgery.”
Lucien laughed coldly. “So your promise of no vitalsync core is just as worthless as you.”
“Yes well, that’s your fault.” Roy sniffed. “You killed my daughter. I can’t exactly have you killing anyone else now, can I?”
“I’ll kill all of you before I’m through.” Lucien smiled, never looking away. The temperature in the room went dangerously hot.
Don’t give yourself away. Wasn’t that your plan?I raised an eyebrow.
His jaw worked as he reined in the fire and the air cooled back to normal.
Roy held Lucien’s stare for a moment before striding to the wall. He smiled politely as the five other men from last night filed into the room. A few still looked a little green but all of them were standing.
Yet another pity.
Crossing his arms and leaning against the wall, Roy waited until the men had found a spot.
“You brought us back here, Swift. What now?” a youngish looking guy muttered. “If you think I’m drinking their rotten blood again, you’re having a laugh.”
An older guy with a pot belly scowled. “What the hell did you do to it?” Glowering at Lucien, he added, “First you destroy your own company and now you’ve destroyed your own blood. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you were suicidal.”
