Page 79 of The Prince's Captive

His eyes darted to her left wrist and she dug her fingers in deeper, hiding the wristband and the lines from view. He shook his head and huffed. “You… What explanation would satisfy? You twist them all.”

Now he was accusing her of being the manipulative one?

She almost wished she did still have her wrists chained together so she could strangle him to death with it.

“There is no explanation you could give me for what you’ve done to me that could ever make me believe you. Youpromised—” Marcella’s voice broke and she hated herself for it. She rolled her shoulders, trying to shrug off the feeling of that knife cutting into the back of her neck, but it wouldn’t go away. Her eyes filled with water, and through the distortion, she could see Gavril move toward her.

“Marcella—”

Her back hit the wall. She’d walked right into the corner of her cell, flinging out her hand to catch herself. Her legs started to buckle, and she could see Gavril had stopped, staring at her like he was the one who was trapped. She choked out, “I was the fool for believing you for even a second. I can’t—I can’t—”

“I’m sorry. I’msorry.I—fix it. I want to fix it. Give me a chance,” Gavril said, his feet shifting but not moving any closer to her.

Did he?

Did she dare believe this act too?

Or at least she could tear down the illusion and expose him so thoroughly he could not dare try to fool her again.

Marcella blinked the water away, forcing her gaze to clear so she could fix him with her plea. “You want to make this right? It’s easy. There’s one way, two choices. Tell me, do you have a word for mercy?”

“Misericordiae,” he said, eyeing her.

“Good. Havemisericordiaeon me. Either let me go or put me out of my misery.” She let her hands fall to her side as she took a faltering step toward him. She whispered,“Miserere occisio.”

Mercy killing.

Gavril sucked in a sharp breath, but he didn’t recoil. He stepped closer. His voice was barely more than a whisper. “You—You pray to Asentai for the chance to live.”

Not anymore.

Marcella’s throat tightened and she shook her head. “Breathing on that table isn’t living. Living as your experiment isn’t living. If you have an ounce of mercy, and are being honest about not being able to let me go, you will kill me.”

She said it like a command.

It was.

“I can’t.”

“Won’t.”

“Can’t.”Gavril had somehow gotten right in front of her and was gently pulling her left wrist up and between them. “And won’t.”

She didn’t understand. She glared at the band with the rune on it and she said, “Why? Because of this?”

“Yes,” he breathed out, tightening his grip.

“I know you’ve bound me to you. I don’t know how this works. What this thing is doing to me, but if you think leaving me alive is going to give it or you the chance to—to do whatever you’re planning on to me—” her voice cracked again. “I don’t—I don’t understand. Why can’t you just have mercy on me? What is this that you’ve done to me?”

His brow furrowed, and his pulse beat against her skin. He studied her face, then his eyes widened. “You… don’t know. You haven’t known.”

“If you won’t put me out of my misery, tell me, what do you want from me? What do I have to give you for you to get this over with? I—I can’t go back on that table.” She’d started shaking again. Her legs fell out from under her, but Gavril didn’t let her go.

“You won’t. You won’t.” Gavril knelt in front of her.

She ripped her arm out of his grip, clutching it to her chest. She curled in on herself and the sobs started to force themselves up her throat. “Stop lying. Stop.Please.Even Dhelnir himself isn’t as deceptive as you.”

“Marcella, I—” Gavril grabbed her by her shoulders and started to pull her toward him, but she threw her head back up.

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