Page 181 of The Order

Xavier holds up a finger, drawing in a deep breath.

“Say another word, and I snap your neck. Why don't you two go ahead and step away from her and grab yourselves a drink,” Xavier says. Both men hesitantly back away.

I stand still, my eyes on Josh and his wide grin. Lowering my eyes, I take several steps toward him, ready to smear his face along the clear glass.

Grabbing my waist, Xavier pulls me along with him. As he takes a seat back on the chair, my ass meets his lap.

“Easy, love. I want you to savor his demise,” Xavier says quietly, his hand on my thigh, giving it a slight squeeze.

Feeling uneasy, I focus on the feeling of the blade rubbing against my ribcage.

“How thrilling,” I begin, turning to look at him. His breath smells like alcohol. His hair is ruffled.

His shirt is open enough to show me his mark and the black tattoo on his chest. I pause, resting my gaze on its design with curiosity.

“Like what you see?” he asks, grabbing my hand. He lets my fingers trace along the parts I can see. “It’s permanent.”

“First, you stop me from kissing you earlier. Then you tempt me with the idea of giving Josh a long and painful death. You sure do know how to taunt a girl,” I growl, his fingers trailing up and down my exposed spine.

“You don't know the half of it,” he says, looking around the room with a sigh.

I try to find my friends in the crowd, taking the opportunity to focus my energy on connecting to one of their minds.

“I’m curious,” he says, directing his attention back to me. “How much longer do you plan on trying to reach out to your friend's minds?”

My heart sinks. Staying silent, I keep my gaze forward. Pulling me backward, he forces my head into his shoulder. His lips find my ear.

“I've been around longer than anyone in this room,” he whispers, his grasp tightening. “Don't think for a second that you have an advantage over me.”

Feeling my energy rise, I blink away the tears in my eyes, shoving down the hopelessness I feel the longer his hands roam my body.

“F-Forest?”

Fallan’s voice enters the back of my mind, quiet, barely even there.

Drawing a deep breath, I focus on our connection, feeling its fleeting presence.

“Where are you? Are you hurt-”

“It's dark. I can hear Officials speaking-”he says in a rushed whisper. Xavier’s hand grabs my jaw.

“A glimpse before they’re all gone,” Xavier hisses, leaning forward, my eyes panning down to the pit below.

My heart stops as each one of their terrified expressions comes into focus below. Much like I had, they each wear a bag over their heads, their throats covered with the metal collars meant to subdue their powers. The others I fought the Shifters with who survived were forced back into the pit. There’s no blade in the center of the space this time. Jolting forward, I watch the Officials rip away the bags for their heads. Fallan looks up at me, our eyes locking. Even in all of this mess, he sighs in relief, a slight upturn of his mouth at the sight of me.

His face is bruised, his body drained. Kai limps closer to Valerie and Hunter, grasping his still bleeding and injured leg, frantically searching the crowd for any sign of me and a way out.

Moving closer to observe, a few drunk men stumble into me, their hands grabbing my body for support.

“Hands off,” Xavier hisses, shoving the men away. His grasp on my hips becomes punishing as he forces us to stand.

Looking around the room for an exit, my eyes land on the entrance I came from. I think of how many people I can take down with my power, wondering if the glasses they hold can be broken quickly enough to lodge into their throats.

Xavier forces my head into the barrier. My cheek presses to the cold glass, his hand shoved against my lower back, keeping me pinned with his knee. Watching in anger, Fallan yells a threat lost in the distance between us.

“Listen,” Xavier hisses. “And watch.”

Snapping his fingers, a few of his men walk away. His grasp grows firmer as I squirm. The others look up to me. Valerie covers her mouth in concern. Kai’s eyes well with tears.

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