Page 37 of Scattered Glitter

“Everything is fine,” he murmurs right next to my ear, making goose bumps erupt all over my nearly naked body. “But in this room, with us, you can’t lie. Every word that leaves your mouth will be the truth. And you can’t leave until I allow you to. Otherwise, you’re completely in control of yourself and your actions. When I allow you to leave, the compulsion will fall the moment you step a foot outside the curtains.” His voice wraps around my mind. Then, he lets go of my wrist.

I jerk back, blinking, my body stiff as I try to shake off the feeling he just had over me. “What the hell? What did you do to me?”

Koen’s dark eyes hold mine calmly. “Where’s my watch?”

“In my locker backstage.”

What the actual fuck?Why did I say that?

“Why did you take it?” he asks,unnervingly composed. “Was that the plan from the start? Were you at the grave to ambush us? Answer each question in order.”

“It was a reflex. I didn’t plan to steal it. No.” The words spill out, and I am unable to stop them.

Shut the fuck up, Nova!

“Told you, she’s fucking delightful,” Levi chimes in, his laughter rumbling from behind Koen. He’s lounging against the wall, amusement glittering in his eyes as if this is all a game to him.

I try to move, to turn and leave, but my feet are lockedin place, refusing to obey the desperate commands of my brain, and panic tightens its grip around my chest.

Koen tilts his head slightly, his gaze still piercing. “Why were you at our sister’s grave?”

I grit my teeth, trying to resist, but the words push their way out. “I like to talk to her when I miss my sister.”

“Why?” he presses, his expression softening a fraction. “Why her?”

“My sister’s grave is in Phoenix,” I breathe out. “And your sister’s reminds me of hers.”

Koen’s expression shifts slightly, but enough for me to see something flicker behind his eyes—curiosity, perhaps even a hint of sympathy. He studies me, his gaze lingering, making my skin prickle.

Levi’s chuckle breaks the moment. “Look at that, Koen. The Little Bird’s sentimental. Who would’ve thought?”

I force myself to breathe, to steady the panic that threatens to swallow me whole. My eyes are locked on Koen, daring him to say something to release me from this twisted game he’s set up.

“Why is stealing a reflex for you?” he presses instead.

I grit my teeth, the truth crawling up my throat before I can swallow it back. What I can do is keep my answers as short as possible, though. “Pickpocketing is a hobby.”

That earns me a small smirk from Koen, his lips curving with a dark kind of amusement.

“What do you do with your loot?” Levi straightens, clearly intrigued. “Do you sell it?”

“They’re under my bed. No. They’re trophies.”

Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.

I try again to will my body to move toward the door, but my feet remain stubbornly rooted to the floor. My panic sharpens when I realize I really won’t be able to leave thisroom until Koen allows me to. “What the fuck did you do to me?”

In answer, Koen’s smirk deepens, the corner of his mouth lifting.

The curtain gets pulled back, and Carl’s head peeks in. “Everything all right in here?”

“Everything is fine,” I say automatically, the words sliding out as if they belong to someone else.

Because they do.

Goddammit.

“Then get on with it. They’ve paid you well.” Carl nods and closes the curtain again.

---