Page 186 of The Order

“Maybe I should rip it out and cut your throat for what you did to my father,” I seethe, his grasp tightening.

His lips move to my ear, my body tense at his unexpected closeness.

“Might as well cut yours too. The way I see it, his death is on your hands as much as it is ours.”

Adam’s hands shove me, the mesh bag falling from my head as I stumble forward. The lights in the arena are excruciatingly bright. Countless gold masks look down at the pit, even more than the night I’d originally fought for my life down here. To my horror and delight, the others are already waiting in the pit. They look disoriented, trying to take in the space around them. Fallan’s eyes meet mine from across the space. His hand grips a wound at his side, the blood flowing freely. I take an uneasy step and see my brother’s frantic gaze scanning the space. Hunter and Valerie are shaking.

“Don't!” Fallan yells toward me, my eyes finally adjusting on the Shifter circling the outskirts of the pit, its head turned in my direction.

Slowly, the pit lights dim, my hand clutching the knife in my side. Xavier’s eyes are the first I see when I scan the crowd. Tonight, he’s wearing a mask just like the others, and for a brief moment, I wonder why. Leisurely, he sits in his chair, a scandalously dressed woman perches beside him. While she draws the attention of other masked men around her, Xavier’s knees are nearly touching the glass as he leans forward to get a better look at the pit. My blood coats my hand. I force back another scream that threatens to leave my throat as the blade remains lodged between my ribs. His eyes stayed locked on me, glancing down at the stab wound. I move my arm from my side, pointing it in Xavier’s direction, shaping my hand into another imitation of a gun with my fingers.

Unamused, he begins shouting from behind the glass, grabbing the shirt collar of the person next to him. His words are lost in the distance between us, and the sound of my heartbeat is in my throat. The Shifter sniffs the air, its body more humanoid in comparison to the others I’ve seen so far. Fallan follows the creature with his eyes. The more I watch him bleed, the more I want to rip off this despotic collar and tear through everyone upstairs beyond the glass.

A cracking sound breaks my concentration, several voices shouting at the commotion unfolding above us.

Xavier holds Adam against the glass. Adam tries to pry Xavier’s fingers away, but he’s stuck against the glass barrier. I can’t hear him scream, but the fear painted across his features is enough to know he’s powerless. Pointing down toward me, Xavier yells louder, his free hand motioning toward one of his men. One of the servants grabs a pistol, pressing it firmly into Xavier’s demanding grasp.

Looking back at my friends, I see the creature observing what’s happening above, craning its neck toward the Lottery guests. Seizing the opportunity to group with the others, I quietly move forward, watching them follow in silent unison, doing their best not to get anyone's attention.

“Say it!”Xavier yells, his voice echoing through my mind, his anger forcing down any barriers once safeguarding his mind.

“I want to hear you say it to me, you spineless coward!”Xavier yells again, my hand touching my temple, realizing it’s not just my mind.

His voice fills the arena like waves pounding relentlessly against the shore.

The glass, once trapping all the noise from the mindless chatter above, now lies broken beneath Adam’s skull. Adam writhes in pain against the broken glass. The small cracks in its surface are enough to allow the conversations on the other side to reach us.

“I went against your orders,” Adam cowers, his voice nearly to the point of a sob.

“Which one were you not supposed to touch?” Xavier questions, scanning our confused expressions down below.

Shakily, Adam touches the glass, his finger hovering above my position in the pit. Fallan stands only a few feet away, his arm outstretched toward me.

“And what did you do?” Xavier seethes, ignoring the stir of his men as they try to get his attention.

Xavier shrugs them off, his focus only on Adam.

“I touched-”

He has no time to finish that statement.

No time to react.

Never has the sound of a gunshot silenced a room of Untouchables so quickly.

The sound penetrates the air, his blood smearing the glass, nearly reaching Josh as he stands there in shock. Xavier’s face is covered in blood and pieces of flesh. His hand releases Adam’s lifeless body as it slumps to the ground beneath him. I feel Fallan's hand touch my arm. Our group clings tightly to one another, backing away as a unit. My only weapon is the knife still stuck in my side.

“Enough of this. I want her back up here,” Xavier begins, his eyes growing wide as his hands clench his throat.

Slamming his fist against the glass, his knees buckle, his mouth unable to open.

I look at Fallan. He shakes his head in frustration.

“T- This isn't me,” he whispers, his hand still clenching his wound, his collar still active.

“What the hell-” I begin, unable to get the statement out as I realize how close the Shifter had gotten to us.

Forcing us back with his arm, Fallan narrowly avoids a swipe to his chest. All of us are a tangled mess of sprawling limbs. Letting my back hit the wall closest to us, I glance up again, keeping the creature in my line of sight. The knife shifts in my side, each movement just as painful as the last.

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