Page 56 of Silk and Sirens

I leaned in closer, dipping my head until our faces were inches apart. “You really think I give a shit about you?” My voice dropped to a dangerous whisper.

Sliding one hand up her throat, I pressed my thumb just hard enough against her racing pulse to make her gasp.

“I own you,” I murmured, the words rough with possession. “You sealed your fate the moment you decided to use me as a pawn. Now you’re mine to ruin.”

“Fuck you,” she hissed.

I laughed softly, the sound cold and hungry. “Careful … Keep talking like that and I might just take you up on it. I’ll shove you to your knees and silence that fucking tongue of yours with my cock.”

Her lips parted on a sharp inhale. Defiance warred with heat in her stormy gaze. “Is that why you’re here?”

Yes.

“No. I’m here for the information you promised.”

“You had to break in for this?” she sneered, insolence still burning in her voice.

“Just wanted to show you how easily I can get to you,” I murmured, my breath hot against her skin while my fingers flexed possessively around her neck. “That if you try to run, I’ll chase you down and have you beg at my feet.”

I tightened my grip on her throat just enough to cut her sneer short, feeling her pulse flutter wildly beneath my thumb. Her breath hitched, sharp and involuntary.

“Trust me, Tempest … I’m going to make you regret blackmailing me.”

Chapter 25

Caden

My mask sat uncomfortably on my face as I stared at the man slumped in the metal chair, wrists bound behind him, blood tracing a slow, lazy path from the gash at his temple.

“Need anything else?” Raj asked, voice flat with monotony.

Removing my watch, I set it gently down on the table. “You’re dismissed.”

Raj gave a single nod as the rest of my men followed him out without a word, the heavy door thudding shut behind them to leave me alone with Detective William Kane.

Kane barely reacted when I fisted a hand in his sweat-soaked hair and wrenched his head back. His eyes rolled, unfocused, pupils blown wide with pain and fear.

I leaned in close, letting him feel the weight of my presence, the promise of violence wrapped in calm control. “You alright there, mate?” Reaching for the tape across his face, I pulled it off in one, painful swipe.

A low, broken groan slipped from his split lips. The glue taking off several layers of skin.

“Wake up, Detective,” I murmured, patting his cheek with a detached voice. “We’re just getting started.”

“I didn’t … I didn’t know,” Kane managed to mutter, his eyes darting around the cold, concrete room. “I didn’t know he was your father. I wouldn’t⁠—”

My fist slammed into the side of his face with brutal precision. The crack of bone and cartilage echoed as his head whipped sideways, but before he could even draw a breath, I pinched his chin and wrenched his bloody face back to mine.

“What’s she got on you?” I asked, keeping my tone so cold it bordered on boredom. As though his pain, fear, and pathetic whimpering were nothing more than a minor waste of my time.

Kane’s brows drew together in genuine confusion, blood and sweat streaking down his rapidly swelling face. “What?”

“Aeris Merrin,” I said flatly. “She’s the one that gave you the information, right?” At his jerky, reluctant nod, I leaned closer. “So, tell me … What has she got on you?”

A panicked moan tore from his throat. “Oh, come on. She’s⁠—”

I punched him again, this time in the stomach, so hard his eyes bulged as he lurched forward as much as the bonds allowed. As he bowed forward, I hit him in the nose.

If it wasn’t broken before, it definitely was now.