Page 35 of Black Hand
“Like?” Swirling the saltwater, I watched it like it was the most fascinating thing in the world.
“The reason you are different.” My gaze snapped to his and all the humor in his expression had vanished, though I didn’t like what had replaced it. It made me wary. “The reason why the Council wanted you bound.” He pointed at the pendant with a nod.
“By that logic, everyone in the Syndicate is a witch,” I reminded him. “All of us wear the same pendant.”
“Not the same, no. Just the same stone, and theirs comes off,” he countered with a stubborn lift to his chin as if he was daring me to deny it. “Also, no one sent to the cages has come out and was later allowed to reintegrate back into the Syndicate’s fold. Unlike you.”
Dominic voiced another thing that was always scratching at the back of my mind, but I’d foolishly ignored. Having the opportunity to mess with the Council, I convinced myself that it was because of Veronica that they allowed me back in like nothing had happened. Now faced with the truth—if it was the truth—I didn’t have anyone I could hide behind. The night of the fight came to mind, when the guards told me the Council had requested my presence. They were told to try and bring me in first, and if that didn’t work to kill me on the spot.
Why?
“Ah, I see it’s starting to make sense to you, too.” Dominic nodded knowingly before folding his arms across his wide chest. The shifter was oblivious of the effect he had on people it seemed. The female population, to be more specific. “Go on, try to take it off.”
It was something to do so I didn’t have to think about all these new things shining in my life, so I obeyed. He startled when I had no comment or snarky remark for him but kept watch when I brought the cup closer to my chest. I expected to be annoyed by his curiosity since it was my life, after all, but I wasn’t. As a matter a fact, I felt relieved that he was standing like an impenetrable wall next to me regardless that he couldn’t breach the barrier.
Bracing for another blinding light, I dipped my fingers in the cup and closed my eyes before I sprayed the pendant. The water landed more on my neck and chin than on the stone, but a few drops found their target. When no light came out, I peeked through my lashes first, unsure if there would be a delayed reaction, but nope. Nothing happened. With my heart beating on the roof of my mouth, I took hold of the chain and tugged on it. It didn’t budge, but I was sure there were red welts on the back of my neck. Dominic observed me like I was a bug under a microscope, his tense shoulders relaxing when he found my eyes on him.
“According to the human, I should take it off.” As soon as he was done talking, a line formed between his brows as if he was remembering he couldn’t enter the circle. “That might be a little difficult.”
“Now you think that Alice is the witch?” My teasing earned me a glare.
“She might not have the power of a witch, but she has the knowledge. Whatever she did activated the salt and the power of the earth in it before your blood touched it.” Spreading his arms wide, he encompassed the room that Alice turned into some cult’s sacrificial alter. “Not even I can deny her that acknowledgment.”
He was right, of course, but I just shrugged. Some childish part of me reared its head up because I wanted nothing more than to annoy him in that moment. “Should I step out?”
“If you can, yes. Let’s try that.” Sliding to the side, he curled his fingers in an invitation to join him. “No, wait. Try and take me inside first. If that doesn’t work, you can step out.”
Wound up tight like a bow, I reached for the hand he offered with trembling fingers. For some reason, an itch started between my shoulder blades, which made me uncomfortable. The problem was it wasn’t because of Dominic. Something else was bothering me, but I couldn’t figure out what. My skin burned deliciously when it connected to his, and I tugged him inside the circle. Neither of us was certain that he could pass, but he did as if nothing stood in his way. The second he stepped close enough for me to feel the heat of his body, goosebumps popped out all over my arms. I ducked my head so I didn’t have to see the smirk on his face.
“Let’s try now,” was all he murmured before he grabbed the chain firmly.
My knees locked so I could stay in place while he yanked, though I still expected him to rip my head off along with the pendant. Dominic tugged gently at first, and I could barely feel the sliding of the metal on the back of my neck. When that didn’t do anything, his palm slid around the links, stopping with the stone nestled at the center. Both of us flinched when it sizzled, and he dropped it with a feral cry. My skin pebbled for an entirely different reason this time. The predator in him warned me that he was about to attack.
“Dominic, stop.” When asking nicely didn’t work, I did something I never thought I would. I used compulsion. “Dominic. Stop.”
He froze, the glow diminishing in his green gaze before he shook his head to clear it. I was holding my breath because I’d crossed a line I shouldn’t have. If he’d been unsure about killing me up until know, I had a feeling that moment had sealed my fate. One second he was rolling his shoulders, and in the next his large palm was wrapped around my throat. He lifted me until just the tips of my boots were grazing the salt-sprinkled floor.
“Don’t. You. Ever. Pull. That. Again.” Each word was snarled, each said firm enough so there was no doubt in my mind that this was an order, not a request.
“Understood.” My voice was strained from the lack of oxygen my lungs were experiencing. “I didn’t … I didn’t want to fight you. Not now, not here.”
That did it. He released me and I stumbled back a step, my hand automatically coming to rub my throat.
“No matter the circumstances, don’t ever do that, Brooklyn. I’m warning you.”
“You have my word.” And it dawned on me what happened before I found it hard to breathe. “How did you shake it off so easily?”
“I don’t know.” His head tilted to the side. “It was like a fog was clouding my mind while your voice repeated the words softly, but the second adrenaline rushed through me I was able to break through it.” The shifter never missed any of my reactions, so he didn’t miss when my mind started racing. “What?”
“Johnathan gloated about the amulet he had to protect him from compulsion that night.” When his eyebrows dipped low over his eyes, I explained my worry. “You said I couldn’t heal after the stab wound, and only after you gave me your blood the skin knitted together. What if you can break out of my compulsion because I had your blood?”
“You’ve had Johnathan’s blood?” A dark cloud loomed over his features and his expression darkened. It took me a moment to see it for what it was, and the moment I did warmth washed over me.
He was jealous.
“No.” I couldn’t keep the dumb smile off my face, and the scowl I received was well deserved. “He would be defanged if he tried taking mine, and I’d rather die than have a drop of his vile blood.”
“I don’t understand.”
