Page 114 of The Monsters We Are

Her monster waslivid, but Kali was keeping it calm and cautioning it to wait. Really, with how rough and drained Wynter felt, she wasn’t sure she could release her monster. There was something very wrong with her right now. She felt weak and bruised and stiff, like she’d been starved for weeks, forced to run marathons, and subjected to more than a dozen beatings.

She subtly tried conjuring a small flame of magick in her hand. Said magick purred against her skin, answering her call, but didn’t follow her request. Not good.

Shoes scuffing stone.

Her pulse jumped as several sets of footfalls came her way. They halted a short distance from her, but no one spoke. She didn’t move, wanting to get a better sense of her situation before—

Cold power slapped her face hard. The shock of it made her body flinch and her eyes snap open. She stared at the four Aeons standing outside her cell. Yeah, she was in a fucking cell.Those motherbitches.

“I would imagine that you are wondering what’s causing you so much pain,” said Adam, his lips curved in a cruel smugness. “Liquid iron. My grandson injected you with it.”

Noah smirked at her, his eyes drinking in her face as he awaited her response, as if wanting to feed on whatever shock, anger, or betrayal she might feel. So his smirk dimmed somewhat when she gave him no reaction.

Dismissing him with a look, she clenched her teeth as she pushed herself onto her elbows . . . hearing a jangle of a chain. She only then realized that one was attached to her collar. Anger tore through her, but she set it aside, not wanting to give these assholes the pleasure of a reaction.

Without even looking to seewhatshe’d been chained to, Wynter forced herself to sit upright. Every muscle protested and cramped so painfully it took everything she had not to moan. She shelved the pain, more concerned about the spots dancing in her vision as lightheadedness crept up on her.

Dammit, she would not blackout. Not again.

She leaned back against the stone wall, going for casual. Which wasn’t easy when her eyes watered, sweat blotted her skin, and there was a slight tremor in her limbs.

Using only her peripheral vision, she took in the scene. She was in a dungeon or prison, by the looks of it. There were no torturous instruments that she could see. Just rows of cells. It was hard to tell due to how dark it was, but she didn’t think there were any other prisoners here.

Rather than demand answers to her questions, Wynter sat very still, making no sound, showing no fear. She swept her eyes over each male face, boldly meeting their gazes head-on. She recognized the two flanking Adam as his younger brothers, Emmanuel and Jude. Oh, the Ancients would have some fun butchering these dudes, especially Emmanuel since he’d killed Abaddon’s eldest son right in front of him.

Adam folded his arms. “Noah tells me that you are Cain’s consort.” A sadistic delight flared in his eyes. “Oh, how he will loathe breathing his last breath knowing that I have you in my possession.”

Wynter didn’t respond. She merely stared at him, keeping her expression unreadable. Which didn’t seem to please the Aeon. Yay.

“I can understand now why he point-blank refused to consider surrendering you to me. He wanted to protect you.” Adam let out a dark chuckle. “He failed.”

The others grinned and snickered. Wynter ignored them all. It wasn’t hard. They were a bunch of dicks.

Jude, who was basically a leaner and shorter version of Adam, rubbed at his bristly jaw. “I wouldn’t have thought that Cain would ever claim anyone as his own.”

“I would not have believed it of him either,” said Adam. “I certainly would not have thought that any woman would allow him to claim her.” He narrowed his eyes on Wynter. “Youdoknow what he is, don’t you? Noah believes you must.”

Again, she said nothing. She kept meeting his gaze steadily.

A bright white sphere flew out of his palm and crashed into her chest with the force of a punch.Motherfucker.It was like a mini explosion went off inside her chest and someone poured acid into the wound. She would have cried out if her breath wasn’t trapped in her throat.

Dragging in air through her nose, she gritted her teeth and clenched her hands tight. That rat bastard was gonna pay for that. Dearly.

“Your pain tolerance is impressive,” Emmanuel told her. Broader than both his brothers yet roughly the same height as the eldest, he was all brawn withsomebrain.

Adam nodded. “It is indeed. I am rather pleased about that. It will make it so much more satisfying when I break her during our upcoming sessions.”

Okay, she had to snort at that.

His brow lifted. “You do not believe that I can?”

“Kali won’t even let you try.” The deity was currently pissed—Wynter could feel it.

“If She cares so much, where is She?”

Wynter only smiled.

“You know, I still have a difficult time believing that you are a revenant. Even with the mark on your face. Noah assures me that it is true, however. And it is telling that the liquid iron has proven effective.”

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