Page 150 of The Masks She Wore

?We started dancing to the beat of the music while I fed Viv alcohol from the waiter who was doing his best to keep the crowd satisfied while also trying not to spill the drinks as people grinded against him.

?It didn’t take any time at all for her to find some guy to have fun with.

?When this was over, I’d be able to ask her anything I wanted without worrying about her going out and telling anyone in the morning.

?That’s all I cared about. Getting information without having anyone find out that I had broken through their programming.

?I let the music move me while keeping an eye on her. It did feel nice to be dancing with her again, but honestly, this had never been my scene before this year. Crowded rooms were good for only one thing; lose the person tracking you.

?I couldn’t help but wonder how they had managed to erase who I was so completely. I was strong, confident in who I was as a person, which had transferred over to my civilian life, but other than that? The Rae Bennett I had been, most of her had been what they had created.

?I still loved adventurous, rough sex. I loved how clothes fit my body. I loved the way I looked and how I walked. Everything else had all been a lie.

?Why did my father do this to me?

?What had happened to make him completely turn on his own daughter? I understood his hatred for mom. The affair, the secrets she had found out, betrayals in our world were a death sentence, but me? What had I done to him to make him hate me so much?

?I felt a pair of hands suddenly hover over my waist, and Idecided to embrace it. I hated the feeling of hands that weren’t Jack’s, but knowing I needed to keep up appearances for Viv’s sake. I needed her to think everything was fine, and if that meant letting a man get too handsy, so be it.

?Although he wasn’t actually touching me.

?She looked over as I moved my hips seductively, her eyes alight with drunken desire. She gave me a thumbs up and went back to grinding the man’s leg she was dancing with.

?I felt the man behind me slide his hands down to my hips, never touching me, not even once. I just kept dancing, grateful that he wasn’t actually touching me. I hoped Jack could control himself. This was important. I just needed to spend maybe an hour more here before Viv was sloshed enough to get the answers I wanted. Any longer than that, she may forget both of her names.

?The male tilted his head down, the heat of his skin burning my forehead. “Careful, little daffodil, someone might think the worst.”

?My eyes flashed open, but I kept dancing, immediately wondering where Jack was and why he hadn’t seen him first. “Azrael,” I said cooly, my heart hammering in nervousness. “Does Jack know you’re here?”

?“Why would I ruin such fun?” he hummed.

?I swallowed, turning back to the dance floor as I danced like a siren for Jack’s brother. I prayed toGodhe couldn’t see us. I couldn’t imagine those two getting into a fight here of all places. How many woulddie because Azrael was a psychopath?

?Just breathe. Azrael wouldn’t hurt me, not with his brother’s initial carved into my chest. Maybe I could get some information from him while he was here too. What kind? I wasn’t sure, but information was key in the games of this world. The more you had, the more powerful you were. Azrael was smart, but so was I. “Are you following me?”

?He chuckled, the sound inhuman. “Sorry to ruin your life, but you’re not my type.”

?“Oh?” Maybe I could finally see his face. Jack hadn’t worn a mask tonight, Azrael might not have either, and I had been curious as to what the other brothers looked like ever since Malachi, Azrael, and Beckett showed up at my doorstep. “And what’s your type?” I asked, sliding down his body slowly only to shimmy back up a moment later.

?He kept his distance as if he hated being touched.

?A horrible place to be for a guy who didn’t like physical contact. I just had to be quick if I wanted to see what he looked like.

?My heart skipped a beat, and I spun around, keeping my own arms close to my body as I kept dancing seductively, only to be met with a cracked mask. Much like the one he had worn the first time I had seen him, only this one had the ears of a deer.

?He smiled, only half of his lips shown behind the porcelain mask that seemed to have been made to fit his face perfectly. The crack down the center looked sharp where it had broken apart, little fractals sliding through the porcelain like lightning.

?Azrael clicked his tongue. “I always wear my mask,” he purred and then his sinister blue eyes fell to my lips. “I like my girls caged with metal collars around their neck and shackles around their wrists and ankles. Compliant,” he said thoughtfully, “but teachable. I like my girls to be conformed non-conformists. To love to hate and hate to love. To crave pain and fire. To worship me on their knees with their tongue out, blood dripping from the tip, their eyes pleading for me to take their confession.”

?I slowed, my eyes widening. I had to be honest, that was absolutely terrifying.

?“You think Jack is a sadist because he likes using ropes?” he cooed, such pity in his eyes. “You don’t know the meaning of the word.”

?What. The.Fuck.

?I shook my head inwardly, trying to get ahold of myself.Focus!If I wanted information, I couldn’t get distracted by the pure sadistic nature of him. I needed to focus. “Why are you here?” I asked, finding his eyes again trying to dance. It was more difficult than it should have been, dancing like this without touching. I hated it. It would be far better sold if we looked like everyone else.

?He stepped closer an inch of distance between us as we both continued to sway. “It seems both our assignments have led us to the same place,” he spoke, studying my face as if he were planning on slicing it right off my skull later.

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