Page 69 of Drop His Mask

Pausing, my free hand moved to his face, to his full lips.

Just before I could touch them, his eyes flashed open, his large hand jerking up to catch me by the wrist. His rough digits scratched against my skin.

“You’re playing a dangerous game, Raven,” Griffin admonished, but he didn’t let me go.

Instead, with his attention on me, he brought my wrist up to his lips, kissing the scars there.

“I can’t imagine the pain these caused you, but I can promise I won’t be another bad memory. I’m not here to hurt you. Quite the opposite actually.”

My heart softened. Ibelievedhim.

Tingles of unwanted desire shot out from my core and pulsated to every piece of my bare skin he touched. I wanted to untangle from him, jump away, but I was tired of running from my emotions.

I needed to process them as they came, or they would overwhelm me. Even if they were uncomfortable, suffocating,unwanted.

“I don’t have anything to give you,” I advised him. “My allegiance is to my teammate; 58. To 173, 174, and 182.”

Griffin’s lips flattened, his grip tightening on my wrist, but he did not react otherwise. “I’m aware of yourrelationshipswith those men. Of who your teammate, 58, is.”

“You seem to know everything. So why don’t you let me in on more of your secrets.”

Griffin hummed in amusement. “You’re not exactly forthcoming with any information so let me first ask you this. What do you want to do when you leave here? Where will you go?”

“Do you meanifI leave here?” I retracted my hand from his hair, leaning back further onto my pillow against the headboard.

Twisting my head to the bathroom door, I registered it was now cracked open before I let my vision glass over. I truly thought through what Iwanted.

“IfI escape this game and win… At first, I wanted more than anything to run off into the sunset to the rest of the world and live out my happily ever after. Or, I suppose as happily ever after I can.”

“But something’s changed?” Griffin’s digits continued to stroke the scars along my wrist, now moving to the ones that were self-inflicted.

It felt like a lifetime ago when I had left those marks. “A sparrow and a griffin. That’s what saved my life, you know?”

“Sparrow?” Griffin froze, his irises swirling hypnotically as I examined him. He gathered himself, before speaking again. “These did seem different. Self-inflicted?”

I didn’t want to utter it into existence any longer, so I jerked my head instead. “But then a sparrow chirped outside the window, and next thing I knew, I was finding a griffin figurine. Your story was one I was familiar with. A man that had escaped prison and even the country. Who had done what everyone thought was impossible. You had successfully left Violencia. It made me think I could too.”

“I’m sorry,” Griffin apologized. “My circumstances were…unique.”

“Don’t apologize. You gave me hope. Even if it was fleeting and flickering. Your story is what made me think I might have a brighter future. All of the Griffin gang. You were the ultimate good guys.”

“We weren’t. We aren’t,” Griffin argued. He gently set my wrist down on the bed, but didn’t move from my lap, his head still resting there. “So is that what you want? To leave Violencia and never return?”

It took me some time to gather my thoughts. To explain to him something I had not yet put into words. “No.” I paused, exhaling heavily. “I want to see the rest of the world, but I don’t want to abandon Violencia. I want to return. To make a difference. To be the change that is needed. Because while the officials and government are corrupt and horrible, there are a lot of good people there too. Innocents caught up in the mess.”

“I was hoping that’s how you felt.”

I laughed. “Yes, but it’s a pipe dream. I am only one person. What can I do on my own?”

Griffin’s haunted green eyes met mine. I could tell he was trying to communicate something to me, but I didn't understand what it was.

“Then our goals align. And what better ally than one who shares your beliefs?” Griffin sat up, careful not to jostle me. “Whenwe escape, I will help you with your ambitions to the best of my abilities. You have my promise. Now get some rest. I don’t imagine we will have much more time before the next game begins. Oh, and 195–”

“Oleks,” I corrected.

“So, he told you his name.” Griffin didn’t speak again as he got up and walked to the door, but then he turned to me. His face was darkened in shadows, twisted in rage, his jaw clenched. “Raven, I am not a good person. I am a jealous, possessive man that wants to claim you as his own. To take you and hide you away from the rest of the world. But that isn’t going to work out ,and I don’t believe in clipping a bird’s wings. You are a capable woman who knows what you want and how to take care of yourself. But please, do not grow close to 194. He is not a part of my plans. You will get hurt if you open your heart to him. And I promise you, he does not deserve it.” Griffin opened the door. “Now get some rest. We will keep you safe until we escape here.”

“But what about Jayce?” I covered my mouth; I hadn’t meant to speak his name. Whether Griffin knew who he was or not, it was not my place to tell him.

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