Page 81 of The Puppeteer and the Poisoned Pawn

“Shh—shhhe’s—coming back.”

Despite the heat, a painful chill races up my neck and over my scalp.

“She?”

“Yes.She.”

I don’t have to turn around to recognize the annoying softness of Skylenna’s voice. The soothing, syrupy sweet tone that makes me want to retch.

“Suseas has always favored the scalding bath treatment. She theorized that if a patient had to suffer longer from the visible burns and welts, it would be twice as effective as any other treatment.” There’s a pause, a brief moment I can feel her eyes digging in the back of my head. “Do you think this form oftreatmentwill reform her? Curb those psychopathic tendencies to torture defenseless patients?”

She waits for me to answer. But I know this is a losing battle, especially if Patient Thirteen isn’t far behind.

“I saved you for last, Meridei. I thought it would be, in a way, poetic.”

I force out a patronizing laugh. “You mean Patient Thirteen saved me for—”

Turning around to face her, I physically choke on my words. My entire body locks up, mouth hanging open, eyes burning from not blinking.

Skylenna’s five-foot-seven frame blocks the doorway. I don’t know what to look at first—the wet, stringy hair? The darkened, bloodshot eyes? Or maybe it’s the deep, rich-red color staining her hands, splattered across her white gown and calm face.

The room holds its breath, and all I can hear is the lightdrip, drip, dripfrom the blood falling to the floor from her fingertips, one drop at a time.

She looks like she’s been thrown around a natural disaster or walked through a butcher house. No, it’s quite more sinister than that. It’s as if she was an unwilling human sacrifice at a witch’s altar, then rose after being possessed.

That’s who I’m looking at right now.

A demon from hell, conquering the body of a once shy girl.

“God help us all,” I mutter, unable to tear my eyes away from the ferocious look in her green eyes.

“He’s forsaken this place,” she says slowly, eyes glazing over in thought. “Why else would He let His people suffer this long?”

I scan the room for anything I can form into a makeshift weapon. But it’s without a single object. Only Suseas and this bathtub bolted to the floor and wall.

“Will you try to run? Or fight?”

I slam my hands against the wet floor. “You’re telling me you did all of this? Hung the orderlies? Tortured the council members?”

A hint of a smile plays on her lips. “So now it’s torture? I thought it was treatment.”

Fury sears the bottom of my stomach.

“Is this your sick effort to win him back?” I taunt. “Become a monster just like him, and maybe he’ll want to be with you again?” I know getting a rise out of her might be insane, but all I can hope is that getting her blind with anger will force her to make a mistake, and I can make a run for the nearest exit.

“He is not coming back.” Her face is unreadable. “Nothing I do can change that.”

I look down, shaking my brain for a way to stall whatever she has planned.

“Maybe you can. He’s the one that wanted to hurt me, right? Wouldn’t you rather please him by leaving me to suffer his wrath?”

She looks at me for a long moment, completely still, except for her thin fingers starting to curl.

“Another move and I will rip that arm off with my teeth.”

My head perks up at her threat. It sounds disturbingly familiar.

“The day you whipped me and made Dessin watch,” Skylenna explains. “That’s what he said when he threatened you, isn’t it?”

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