Page 47 of Broken Empire
Murray let out a snort of laughter and lifted his hand to the door again. “Let’s hope the sedatives have worn off,” he said as he twisted the key in the lock.
The door swung open to reveal a large bedroom with a four-poster canopy bed in the middle. Shay was splayed on top of the blankets with her eyes closed.
My stomach lurched at the sight of her arms and legs. She was covered in bruises and cuts. “Fuck,” I muttered, hand going to my mouth.
Murray gave me a skeptical sideways glance, and I rolled my eyes upward. “I can’t believe she’s still asleep,” I said, pretending that was the reason I cursed at the sight of her. “How strong were the drugs?”
“Too strong. We’ve been waiting for her to wake up for over an hour now,” Murray said. “It really should’ve worn off by now.”
He went over to the bed and slapped Shay on one cheek. She stirred and slowly opened her eyes. When she spotted me, she sat bolt upright, mouth dropping open. “Killian?”
I stayed rooted to the spot. “Hi, Shay,” I said in an acid tone.
She slipped off the edge of the bed and took two steps toward me on wobbly legs. Murray laughed and grabbed her left arm to hold her steady. “He’s not here for you, sweetheart. He’s with us.”
Shay looked at me with wide eyes. “What… I don’t…” She stopped and started again. “Killian… what’s going on?”
I lifted the bag and stared at her, refusing to let my expression change one iota. “Pyotr wants to change your hair back to its natural color, so I’m here to help with that.”
“But…” She trailed off again, looking bewildered. I could practically see the cogs turning in her mind. She probably thought she was hallucinating from the drugs that were shot into her earlier.
I remained stony-faced. “We should get started. We don’t have much time.”
She slowly shook her head. “Killian,” she said, voice barely above a whisper. “I… I don’t understand. I thought you were here to help me.”
“Help you?” I arched a brow and let out an amused snort. “Why the fuck would you think that?”
“Come on, Killian,” Murray said with a mocking grin. “Youdidlead the girl on for quite some time, so you can understand her confusion.”
I grinned back at him. “I guess that’s true.”
Tears were shimmering in Shay’s eyes. “Killian, please. Tell me what’s going on.”
“I already told you.”
She took one step closer. “I know you’re lying. You wouldn’t do this. You wouldn’t let anyone hurt me.”
I rubbed my jaw, lips curving into a nasty smirk. “Wouldn’t I?”
“No. I know you wouldn’t.”
“Then I guess you’re even more naïve than I originally thought,” I said, narrowing my eyes. “I really thought you would’ve realized what I’m capable of by now.”
“No.” Shay vehemently shook her head, tears rolling down her ashen face. “I know who you are, and this isn’t it.”
I let out a sigh and pinched the bridge of my nose. “Did youreallybelieve all that shit I told you? Every single word?”
“Yes.” Shay wiped her face and sniffed. “You love me, Killian. I know it.”
“Did I ever tell you that?”
She faltered, eyes darting off to one side. “Well… no. But I… I just thought…”
“Thought what? That we’d get married and run off into the sunset together because I fucked you a few times?”
“We weren’t just fucking,” Shay murmured.
“Weren’t we?” I wrinkled my forehead. “What were we doing, then?”
