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I wanted to protest, but Ezra’s earlier looks warned me not to. The guys’ protective actions told me defending myself wasn’t smart. I wasn’t one to stand idle while others spoke ill of me, but these weren’t normal people.
I’d grown too comfortable with the guys and underestimated the threat the trio posed.
After hearing their indifference to my death in a foreign environment, I knew they had no qualms about killing me.
I needed to remain silent.
Cyn’s lip curled. “I knew you weren’t truthful. I knew you weren’t mine.” His hand closed around my throat, his eyes flashing black for a split second before he said in the softest voice, “I would never feel this way toward my mate. You’re not real.” His other hand caught the cord at my neck and yanked hard enough to snap it.
My breath caught, and I tried to reach for the hand he held away from me. Mom’s necklace dangled in the air for all to see.
Rinlora gasped. “Is that a Zhyfri crystal?”
“It is,” Cyn said, disdain in his tone. “She claims her mother gave it to her. I knew it was bullshit.”
“Cyn, please,” I begged, unable to hide what his actions did to me. Tears rolled down my cheeks as my breath came in short, quick bursts. “Please give it back.” I gripped the front of his shirt, staring up into his burning eyes, willing him to see something more than a human he hated. “I need it. I can’t—please.”
He glanced away, tightening his hand on my throat and pushing the necklace out of my reach when I went for it a second time.
“P-please… Cyn,” I pleaded, coughing against his grip.
His expression faltered when his eyes met mine again.
“Give me that,” Roandra snapped, stepping forward to take the necklace and break Cyn’s focus on me.
With a shriek, I pushed against Cyn, ignoring my constricted throat, only for him to press me back against the counter’s edge, pinning me with his hips.
“Get the fuck off me!” I brought my fist down on his chest, sobbing. “Give me back my necklace!” I ducked under his arm and tried to slip out at his side, but his arms banded around me, locking my arms so I couldn’t strike him again.
He looked over his shoulder as I struggled, panic clear over losing my last connection to Mom. I couldn’t see his face, but Zeke’s expression crumpled.
“You see the way she behaves after losing the tool she needs to control you, Young Masters,” Ranthus said, motioning to Cyn. “Prince Brakeal has saved you all from a terrible fate.”
“Fuck you! I don’t care about any of this! I want my necklace!” I drove my knee into Cyn’s groin, forcing him to release his grip, then rushed Roandra. I was going to get to punch her in the mouth, after all—and then some. “Give it back!”
Before I could reach the surprised woman, my body seized mid-stride, frozen by a force I couldn’t see.
“Master instructed us not to harm you to allow for a proper trial. We hoped not to use force, but you have left us no choice,” Ranthus said, stepping forward. His crimson eyes glowed, making my heart pound, even as I remained frozen. The sheer panic dried my grief-filled tears. “Now that the theatrics are over, it is time to return home, Young Masters. It is obvious she has no intention of explaining herself. Do you, human?”
My gaze slid to where the guys stood together at the end of the counter. Seeing the distrust, confusion, sadness, and hatred in their eyes deepened my sorrow, but I couldn’t speak.
It wasn’t that I didn’t want to say anything—I couldn’t. The cruel infernal not only incapacitated me, but he silenced me by paralyzing my vocal cords.
“Let us return home,” Roandra said, pocketing Mom’s necklace.
Ranthus remained in front of me as the guys approached. “I fear this home is under a ward that prevents tracing, which is likely why we couldn't find you before now. We only caught a flicker of your whereabouts, and I suspect you weren’t here when it happened. We believe the human has an accomplice from Elyrdin who made it possible, but we are unsure what binding magic was used or where the ward is located. To avoid interference, we should teleport outside these walls.”
Ezra’s gaze met mine. I couldn’t read anything behind his ice-blue eyes. “It doesn’t matter anymore, Ranthus. Father will take care of any remaining wards,” he said, words as cold and vacant as his stare. He continued past me through the backdoor behind Rinlora and Roandra.
Zeke stopped in front of me. “Why?” His eyes sparkled. “Was any of it real?”
Yes!
I wanted to scream it but couldn’t.
Zeke trusted me. But these people had known him longer, and they could make him doubt himself before he ever doubted me. I knew it. I’d seen how quickly he folded to authority with the guys. Not because he was a coward, but because he wanted stability and safety. From what Ash explained in the elevator, I suspected defiance came with punishment.
Cyn grabbed Zeke’s arms and pulled him away. “Don’t waste your breath on her. She lied to us,” he sneered. “Even with the truth out in the open, she still won’t say anything. She’s pathetic.”
