Page 78 of Shai

The anger I’d been waiting for gradually seeped into him, the muscles in his shoulders going rigid and his eyes turning to chips of blue ice. “You wouldn’t let me go. If you decided you’d had enough of me, you’d kill me instead.”

I met his gaze head-on. “But one way or another, we’re agreed then that I control your lifespan? Just as the original Shai did. So whether I am a reincarnation or not, you have to admit that there are remarkable similarities between myself and him.”

Elijah let out a snort, deliberately flipping the book back over and continuing to read.

“Why were you in my mother’s room?”

He didn’t lift his head to answer. “I just was.”

“Were you reliving it, that moment when you chose to take a poor,

defenseless old woman’s life, and there was absolutely nothing she could do to stop you?” I smiled as the hand Elijah had resting on his knee curled into a fist. “Did you stand in there and stroke your cock while you thought about it? Did you come on her bed in the exact same spot where you placed your hands around her neck and squeezed the life out of her?”

“Fuck you.”

We lapsed back into silence, but I could tell that Elijah was no longer

reading. I’d come to a decision about him, one that hadn’t been taken lightly and would have huge repercussions for the future. It didn’t need to be put into action today, but there was something buzzing under my skin, something that said today was the day.

I moved forward on the sofa, resting my elbows on my knees as I turned

my head his way. “Kneel for me, Elijah.”

His head shot up, his eyes going wide, the book slipping from his lap to

fall to the floor. He couldn’t have looked more shocked if I’d asked him to pick up a knife and stab himself in the chest. An array of emotions played across his face, each one chased away by a new one. I knew how resistant he’d been to kneeling for McIntyre, so I knew exactly what I was asking of him, and what his instincts would tell him to do. The question was whether he would fight through that. The decision was far more important than he knew.

The rapid rise and fall of Elijah’s chest as he struggled with the concept

was more akin to someone running a marathon than someone reclining on a seat. It was fascinating to watch, but then, he always was. Finally, he swung his legs over the side of the seat until his feet met the floor, his movements jerky and uncoordinated. I stayed silent as he rose to his feet. There were two actions he could take. He could leave the room, or he could do as I’d asked. Both actions would have consequences, and Elijah was fully aware of that.

He needed to pass me in order to leave the room, so it was impossible to

read his intention as he took his first few steps in my direction. Knowing Elijah the way I did, it was entirely possible he wasn’t sure himself. He came to a stop in front of me, his gaze fixed on the floor as he dropped to his knees in a way that made it look as if the action had taken great physical effort rather than the more likely mental one.

I made no effort to hold back my smile at his capitulation. “Look at me.”

He lifted his head so slowly that I could have sworn a full minute passed before his stormy blue gaze eventually met mine. It was the perfect heady combination of rebellion and submission.

I reached out, running my fingers down Elijah’s cheek, the twitch beneath my fingertips demonstrating that he wanted to pull away, that it was taking a supreme effort to stay still. It was an effort I appreciated. “I know how difficult this is for you, so thank you, Elijah.”

The look in his eyes turned positively venomous, words pushed out through gritted teeth. “If you know how difficult it is for me, then why ask? Why make me do it?”

It was a fair question and I gave it the consideration it deserved, my fingers drifting to his neck, Elijah’s pulse beating erratically beneath my touch. “Because I wanted to give you one last test.”

Muscles turned to rock beneath my hand. “Last?”

Reluctantly letting go of him, I sat back on the sofa. “I have… I suppose you would call it an offer of sorts.”

“What offer?”

“It can be somewhat solitary, you might even use the word lonely, for a man in my position…” The twitch of Elijah’s lips said that he was tempted to laugh. Either he didn’t believe a word of it, or he found such a concept amusing. I didn’t stop to ask. “Are you loyal to me, Elijah? I mean unmistakably loyal to the point where you would never dream of betraying me?”

“I’m kneeling for you, aren’t I? Even though I swore I would never do that for anyone.”

I enjoyed the sight of him on his knees for a few extra seconds before fastening my hand around his biceps and tugging him onto the sofa next to me. “Happier now?”

He nodded.