Oath Bound
Page 116
When I said nothing, Julia pressed the button on her radio/remote again and said, “Again, Lincoln. Somewhere else this time.”
“Wait!” I shouted, but Julia didn’t wait. Neither did Lincoln. He pulled his fist back, and Kenley braced herself for the blow, and I hated myself for the fact that she had to do that. But I hated Julia more.
Lincoln punched my sister in the gut and she hunched over in agony, as far as her bindings would allow. For one long moment, her mouth hung open, silent, because she couldn’t suck in enough air to scream. So I shouted for her.
“You cold-hearted sadistic bitch! She can’t defend herself. She can’t even move. She can’t even fucking see! What the hell is wrong with you?”
“There’s nothing wrong with me. In fact, like my late brother, I am blissfully unencumbered by traits like sympathy and pity, which keep people like you from doing what needs to be done. The only reason I haven’t killed you is that I need to know what Sera’s capable of. The only reason I haven’t killed Kenley is that I need her until I finish transferring the bindings. But I don’t need her unbruised. I don’t even need her conscious. And I certainly don’t need her...untouched.”
I could feel the blood drain from my face. “Don’t.”
“Name Sera’s second Skill, or I’ll tell Lincoln he can do whatever he wants with your sister, as long as her heart keeps beating.”
“Why?” This couldn’t be happening. It couldn’t. “Why would you do that to another woman?”
Julia frowned, as though my logic confused her. “You seem to be under the impression that my ovaries came with a lifetime supply of empathy and compassion. I assure you that is not the case. Start talking.”
“Sera’s your niece.” Time was the only resource I had, distraction my only weapon. I had to keep her talking, even if that meant pissing her off. So long as she only took that anger out on me. “She shares your blood, and you tried to have her killed. You had her whole family slaughtered. And her baby... What kind of psychotic bitch has a baby murdered in its mother’s stomach?”
Julia stood, and I’d never seen her more pissed off. “Flattery won’t work, mostly because you’re giving me way too much credit.” She stalked closer, until she towered over me, staring straight into my eyes from inches away, and I itched to take her down. To put my hands around her throat and squeeze until her skin turned purple and her eyes popped out of her skull. “I had nothing to do with what happened to her family, but I can’t say I’m sad about the dead fetus. That’s one less Tower in line for my inheritance.”
“Would you call that irony when a truth-reader lies through her teeth? I know you had them killed. Sera knows you had them killed. And even if you pulled out a gun and shot me through the forehead in the next thirty seconds, I’d die satisfied with the knowledge that when she finds you, Sera is going to rip your heart right out of your chest. And if she’s not fast enough, Kori and Ian will fight her for the honor.”
“Dramatic. Nice imagery. You have the heart of a poet.” She crossed both arms over her suit jacket, the small remote secure in her right hand, and stared calmly into my eyes. “But none of that changes the fact that your sister is in a very small room with a very big man, about to suffer what is no doubt her worst nightmare. Start talking, or I swear on the entire Tower syndicate that I will give the order and we’ll both listen to her scream.”
“The resemblance to your brother is beyond creepy,” a new voice said, and though it was familiar, I couldn’t place the owner, and I didn’t even try. Julia turned, surprised, and all I could think about was that whatever this distraction was, it had bought me time. She’d pocketed the remote, and Kenley was still tied to her chair, her clothing intact.
Then I saw Mitch standing behind Julia with one hand on the doorknob, the other holding his shoes. His shirt was on backward, his pants were unbuttoned and his socks were mismatched.
“That was fast.” Julia’s heels clicked on the concrete as she crossed the warehouse toward him, and I had to divide my attention between what they were saying, and what I was planning—some way out of this mess, for both me and Kenley. “Well?”
“They bought it.” Mitch’s grin was obscene, in size alone. “I have to say, my acting was superb, but the real clincher was your text. They wouldn’t have believed I had legitimate information for them if I hadn’t had yours to point out as false.”
“That’s why I do the thinking, and you do what you’re told.”
Mitch’s grin faltered, but then he rallied with a more intimate smile and reached for her waist. “I’m already half-dressed. Why don’t you tell me to do something else?”
Nausea churned in my stomach at the thought of them together. Of Julia intimately involved with anyone. I preferred to think of her as asexual. Which went along with the fact that she was also amoral.
She slapped his hand away. “If you ever touch me without permission again, I’ll have you skinned alive and rolled in salt.”
Mitch looked hurt for a moment, not by her threat, but by her rejection, and with sudden insight, I understood why he’d come back—he didn’t know how to be free. He’d tried to warn us. He’d tried everything he could think of to remain in Sera’s employ, and when she’d turned him down—when I’d run him off—he’d obviously come back to Julia. But...
“Wait!” I shouted, but Julia didn’t wait. Neither did Lincoln. He pulled his fist back, and Kenley braced herself for the blow, and I hated myself for the fact that she had to do that. But I hated Julia more.
Lincoln punched my sister in the gut and she hunched over in agony, as far as her bindings would allow. For one long moment, her mouth hung open, silent, because she couldn’t suck in enough air to scream. So I shouted for her.
“You cold-hearted sadistic bitch! She can’t defend herself. She can’t even move. She can’t even fucking see! What the hell is wrong with you?”
“There’s nothing wrong with me. In fact, like my late brother, I am blissfully unencumbered by traits like sympathy and pity, which keep people like you from doing what needs to be done. The only reason I haven’t killed you is that I need to know what Sera’s capable of. The only reason I haven’t killed Kenley is that I need her until I finish transferring the bindings. But I don’t need her unbruised. I don’t even need her conscious. And I certainly don’t need her...untouched.”
I could feel the blood drain from my face. “Don’t.”
“Name Sera’s second Skill, or I’ll tell Lincoln he can do whatever he wants with your sister, as long as her heart keeps beating.”
“Why?” This couldn’t be happening. It couldn’t. “Why would you do that to another woman?”
Julia frowned, as though my logic confused her. “You seem to be under the impression that my ovaries came with a lifetime supply of empathy and compassion. I assure you that is not the case. Start talking.”
“Sera’s your niece.” Time was the only resource I had, distraction my only weapon. I had to keep her talking, even if that meant pissing her off. So long as she only took that anger out on me. “She shares your blood, and you tried to have her killed. You had her whole family slaughtered. And her baby... What kind of psychotic bitch has a baby murdered in its mother’s stomach?”
Julia stood, and I’d never seen her more pissed off. “Flattery won’t work, mostly because you’re giving me way too much credit.” She stalked closer, until she towered over me, staring straight into my eyes from inches away, and I itched to take her down. To put my hands around her throat and squeeze until her skin turned purple and her eyes popped out of her skull. “I had nothing to do with what happened to her family, but I can’t say I’m sad about the dead fetus. That’s one less Tower in line for my inheritance.”
“Would you call that irony when a truth-reader lies through her teeth? I know you had them killed. Sera knows you had them killed. And even if you pulled out a gun and shot me through the forehead in the next thirty seconds, I’d die satisfied with the knowledge that when she finds you, Sera is going to rip your heart right out of your chest. And if she’s not fast enough, Kori and Ian will fight her for the honor.”
“Dramatic. Nice imagery. You have the heart of a poet.” She crossed both arms over her suit jacket, the small remote secure in her right hand, and stared calmly into my eyes. “But none of that changes the fact that your sister is in a very small room with a very big man, about to suffer what is no doubt her worst nightmare. Start talking, or I swear on the entire Tower syndicate that I will give the order and we’ll both listen to her scream.”
“The resemblance to your brother is beyond creepy,” a new voice said, and though it was familiar, I couldn’t place the owner, and I didn’t even try. Julia turned, surprised, and all I could think about was that whatever this distraction was, it had bought me time. She’d pocketed the remote, and Kenley was still tied to her chair, her clothing intact.
Then I saw Mitch standing behind Julia with one hand on the doorknob, the other holding his shoes. His shirt was on backward, his pants were unbuttoned and his socks were mismatched.
“That was fast.” Julia’s heels clicked on the concrete as she crossed the warehouse toward him, and I had to divide my attention between what they were saying, and what I was planning—some way out of this mess, for both me and Kenley. “Well?”
“They bought it.” Mitch’s grin was obscene, in size alone. “I have to say, my acting was superb, but the real clincher was your text. They wouldn’t have believed I had legitimate information for them if I hadn’t had yours to point out as false.”
“That’s why I do the thinking, and you do what you’re told.”
Mitch’s grin faltered, but then he rallied with a more intimate smile and reached for her waist. “I’m already half-dressed. Why don’t you tell me to do something else?”
Nausea churned in my stomach at the thought of them together. Of Julia intimately involved with anyone. I preferred to think of her as asexual. Which went along with the fact that she was also amoral.
She slapped his hand away. “If you ever touch me without permission again, I’ll have you skinned alive and rolled in salt.”
Mitch looked hurt for a moment, not by her threat, but by her rejection, and with sudden insight, I understood why he’d come back—he didn’t know how to be free. He’d tried to warn us. He’d tried everything he could think of to remain in Sera’s employ, and when she’d turned him down—when I’d run him off—he’d obviously come back to Julia. But...
