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The slap came next. Out of nowhere.
One second, he was staring at his fingertip, and the next, his palm came flashing through the air until it cracked against my already sore cheekbone. Pain exploded in my skull. A bright light flashed in my eyes. And then Everett was pointing severely at my nose. “Cry in my presence again, and I’ll cut out your eyes. Got it?”
Yep. That command was crystal clear. I totally got it.
Muffling out a sound of outrage through the gag, I slid my gaze past him, unable to focus on him a moment longer. He had a common countenance, with an average, middle-aged body and a face that was just beginning to show some wear. He seemed to be in good shape for his age. But it was his eyes that haunted me.
They were the same shade of blue as Indigo’s. The only difference was how they lacked that mischievous, cheerful spark of life Indy’s eyes had. So looking into this man’s face was like staring at a dead version of my true love, and I couldn’t handle it.
But staring past him made me focus on that thing.
Following my gaze, Everett grinned. “I see you’ve noticed my invention.” Stepping to the side so I could see it fully, he splayed out a hand as if to introduce us, though I had a bad feeling I’d get a much more up-close-and-personal taste of it sooner than I liked.
“I call it the extractor,” Everett announced, the pride in his voice thick and obvious. “It’s going to help you tell me exactly where all your other living Graykey kin are.”
I muffled out a response, something I hoped he translated as, you can go fuck yourself with it, is what you can do.
Chuckling as if he understood, he set a hand to his ear. “What’s that? I can’t make out what you’re saying with that rag in your mouth.”
I sent him a glare. Fuck…you…I elocuted as clearly as I could.
His eyebrows shot up. Yeah, he’d definitely heard that one.
“Not very ladylike, are you?” he reprimanded with a tsk, and shook his head only to sigh. “Then again, what could one expect, coming from a Graykey?”
My hands might be shackled, but my fingers weren’t. So I flipped him off with both middle fingers.
Too bad the gesture was only considered rude on Earth. He had no idea how much fouler I’d just been to him.
Oh, well. I knew.
Smirking behind my gag, because giving him the bird made me feel better inside, I brightened enough to breathe easier. I mean, it wasn’t as nice as I’d feel unchained from the wall and out of this damn torture room, but sometimes you had to take your amusement wherever you could get it.
I’d learned that from Indigo.
I had thought he was insane at first when he’d been sitting on that damn zebra, looking like a fool with his hands bound together as our prisoner, and all he’d done in response was smile and hum “Singin’ in the Rain” as if everything was grand.
But now I had to admire him for it. Because even though the situation hadn’t been magnificent, he’d somehow made the best of it. He could weather a storm with humor and cheer like no one I’d ever met before.
I had a bad feeling that might be the only way I was going to survive this storm. By not losing my mind and falling victim to the darkness.
Because looking at Everett’s extractor kind of made me want to hyperventilate until I went mad with fear and fell straight into a vat of mindless terror.
“That’s okay,” Everett was saying, forcing me to focus on him. “Your vulgarity will only help me treat you more like the vile piece of scum you are. Help remind me what you did to my son.” Stepping closer, he caught my chin and forced me to look up at him, the wicked intent in his gaze making me shudder. “And you will suffer for that.”
His gaze ran over my face and down to my chest, and his lashes lowered with lust. “Prepare to suffer in every way imaginable, whore.”
Bile rose in my throat as his hand released its grip on my chin, and one of his fingers began to trail down the side of my neck.
With my protests muffled behind the cloth, I could only thrash against his touch, unable to avoid him as his fingers moved over my collar. I squeezed my eyes shut and swallowed convulsively, not able to avoid the feel of him.
Just as he reached the top of my bodice, the door to the chamber flew open, banging against the wall.
“What the hell?” Everett whirled around as the room filled with armed palace guards. “You can’t just burst in here like that,” he shouted, waving his hands dramatically to get them to go. “Who the hell do you think you are? This is my private workroom. Get out!”
“Kneel in the presence of your king,” one of the men ordered, his stern command causing Everett to curse under his breath just before the doorway filled with a tall, broad-shouldered silhouette that wore a sharp, jutting crown and a fluttering cape.
Everett instantly fell to one knee and bowed his head. “Your Majesty,” his gruff voice worked out the greeting. “I was not expecting—”
