Page 60 of Her Males

Shay stands and holds out her hand. I worry my bottom lip between my teeth as I look between her and Mammon’s retreating figure.

Choosing to stay with Mammon will undoubtedly destroy my relationship with my males. My actions here have probably already done that, but not going home will cement it. I feel my heart pounding in my chest as I stand.

I love my males so fucking much, but I can’t put myself before the females. I feel I can trust Mammon, and as much as I hate to admit it, Aziel sat on the information for decades.

My eyes water as I think about the young children I encountered at the facility, some too young to even walk. They were ripped away from their families and will spend their entire youth stuck inside some white-walled, sterile building until they’re sold to the highest bidder.

And they’re the lucky ones.

Some breeds don’t even treat their females that kindly.

Shay clears her throat and taps her foot along the ground, her impatience only furthering my stress.

“Come on,” she urges, wiggling her fingers in my face. “I need to get you home before your males notice you’re gone.”

I turn to Mammon. She’s paused in the doorway, her eyebrow quirked as she awaits my decision.

12

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CHARLOTTE

MY EYES ARE itchy.

I rub at them as I stare at the ceiling. The shadows are noisy as they walk up and down the hallway, their voices loud as they speculate about who I am and what I’m doing here.

It’s a question I wish I had the answer to.

A part of me expected my males to come busting in here in the middle of the night to bring me home, but it’s well into the morning and there’s been no sign of them.

Mammon said she’d inform them I’m alive and well, but I still worry they won’t get the message. Or that they won’t believe it. The last thing I want is for them to think I’m injured or here against my will.

I run a hand through my hair.

I hope Mammon didn’t send Shay as the messenger.

She disappeared when I decided to stay with Mammon, her eyes panicked. It feels odd to be worried about her, but I am. She seems like one of those people who always manages to weasel her way out of trouble, but I’m scared of how far my males will go to punish her for taking me.

They were furious when she so much as spoke to me, and taking me to Mammon is going to be seen as much worse in their eyes.

My jaw aches from how hard I’m clenching it, but I figure the pain is a fitting punishment. I hope my males don’t think I chose to leave because I don’t love them. I’d pick them in any other situation, but this is too big to put myself first.

I force myself to push thoughts of Gray, Silas—and even Aziel—to the back of my mind as I crawl out of bed. Mammon’s shadow didn’t say much as he led me here. I was told where to find the nearest bathroom and hygiene necessities before being left alone.

“Fuck,” I whisper, looking down at myself.

I’m still in Silas’s shirt. I lift the fabric to my nose, comforted by his scent as I make my way to the wardrobe in the corner of the room. The shadow said there would be some spare clothing in here, and as much as I love wearing Silas’s shirt, I’d rather not meet the entire royal family in this state.

I have a feeling they wouldn’t find it as endearing as my males do.

The wardrobe doors stick, and I drop my shirt and give them a hard yank. They open to reveal a small handful of dresses.

They’re all incredibly long, probably made for the tall height of demon women, but I manage to find and slip on one that doesn’t drag along the floor. I’m an average height for a human female, but even the shorter demon women I’ve met are a good few inches taller.

Both Mammon and Shay are the same height as my father.

I run my fingers through my hair and pry any lingering crusts out of the corner of my eyes before straightening my shoulders and heading to the bedroom door. My pulse races, but I shove my fear aside as I step into the hallway.

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