Page 72 of Mud

I said nothing.

“Well, did she?”

“I don’t know.” I had no clue who ordered Michael. I’d first thought it was Taland, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it was Madeline. Although what would be her reason when back then I wasn’t…that word, ugh.

“But you must know why your own people would shoot you,” said Taland, and I raised my head again, looked into his eyes.

“How do you know who shot me?” My voice came out just as small as I felt—and again, he acted as if it assaulted his senses.

“Your own team—that’s gotta be an order from very high up. The IDD was never beyond killing their own, butyou?” He continued. “You are Madeline Rogan’s granddaughter.” My heart stood still again. “Imagine my surprise when I found out. My girl, my beautiful, kind, sweet girl who wouldn’t hurt a fly…” Again, his fingertips touched my jaw as he analyzed my face with a madness in his eyes that sparkled like precious jewels. “My girl was not my girl at all. She had no trouble hurting things—orme.”

Laughter.

Iris, how I broke. He stomped all over the ruined pieces of me, turning them to ashes. I cried and cried because this laughter was different. This laughter showed me exactly how much he was hurting—just as much as me. He chose to laugh and I chose to cry, but the feeling was the same.

Look what you’ve done,my own mind said to me.Look what you’ve done to us.

I looked, indeed.

“How did you manage to escape the Headquarters,though?” said Taland next, shaking his head, pushing his hair away from his face. It suited him, longer. Just like I always knew it would, it suited him. Raven black and shiny and soft, it looked good in a long mess like this—and that made me cry harder.

Here I thought I had a hold of myself, that I could control my emotions better than anyone in the world. At least from showing on my face.

But that had always been the thing with Taland—I could never fake it with him. I could never hurt and hide it, be happy and act casual, be sad and smile. I could nevernot crywhen it was just us.

“You must have had help. Your leg was a mess—they refused to heal you. After all, we still don’t know the effects of magic in the body of a Mud, so maybe they were trying to protect you? In which case, I’m terribly sorry that I intervened by healing you, but my brothers needed to have their time. And a bullet isn’t going to take your life—that’smyprerogative.” He leaned closer and closer until his chair tilted over and our noses almost touched.

I stopped crying for a second, didn’t blink or breathe or do anything but look into his eyes, lose myself in them, breathe in his scent of leather and wood that brought back so many beautiful memories…

Taland reached out his hand and pushed hair that had been sticking to my wet cheek away from my face. He analyzed all my features as if with longing—but that was probably just wishful thinking. My own delusion speaking.

Because Taland didn’t miss me, not the way I missed him. Not so much that it hurt physically, that I’d forgotten his face. He didn’t miss me like my eyes said his showed. He hated me far too much for that.

“You betrayed me.”

Three words falling over me like mountains.

His voice was barely there. If it wasn’t so silent, I might have missed it, but I didn’t. I heard it, though he barely moved those long lips.

“I…”

I had nothing to say that would make any of this better. Not even for a little bit.

So, I said nothing, like always. It was better for the both of us.

“Do you have any idea how—” Taland stopped speaking abruptly, let go of my hair and stood up, backing away from me two steps before I realized why—the door atop those metal stairs opened.

All three of his brothers came through, and Seth was holding a box in his hands, and they were all smiling and whistling a happy tune.

“Is she up yet?Oooh, good, good! We’re ready for round two,” Kaid called before he’d even descended the stairs completely.

“Yes, she’s up. You might want to give her some water first, though. She’ll pass out quickly if you don’t,” Taland said.

Taland Tivoux—myTaland. He looked at me as he dragged his chair away, smiling. He looked at me and even winked.

“I’ll be enjoying the show from over here.” And when he was far enough away that I could hardly see his face with clarity, he sat down on his chair, crossed his legs and made himself comfortable, then winked at me again.

“Oh, this round is gonna be better than the last if you don’t give us a name, Miss La Rouge. We’re taking it slowly—and we have tools!” Seth proclaimed, showing me his box before he threw it on the floor byhis feet. By the sound of it, a lot of metal and glass was in there.

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