Page 10 of Splitting Secrets
God, I’m so ridiculous.
“Clearly, you haven’t.”
I open my mouth to respond but nearly choke on the words when I’m shocked by a light. It’s so bright, I can hardly crack my eyes open without searing my retinas. It’s drastically different from the gentle glow that was around Finley. When I turn back toward the bed, his apparition has disappeared.
Calm, calculated steps thud against the stone, the sound growing louder as my new visitor gets closer and my heart races faster.
Two visits in one day? That can’t be good.
I pace back and forth in a panic, mentally weighing my options, but there really aren’t any. I’m trapped in this cell andwhoever is on their way to me is walking with intent. Could it be Divina back to confuse me more? Raze coming to skin me alive? Or, what if Divina wasn’t lying, and it’s one of the Midnight Syndicate members coming to make the offer she was so hellbent on telling me to reject?
I don’t have to wonder for long. Just as I stop in front of the window of my cell door, one of the men from the woods appears on the other side of it—I think his name was James.
“Have a moment to talk?” he asks, his harsh smile deepening at the small, cruel joke.
6
Sonny
“You and I both know you aren’t getting out of there without agreeing to our terms,” James informs.
I haven’t missed the arm’s length he’s kept between himself and my cell door. Nor has it escaped me how close he’s kept his arms tucked to his body, as if he’s afraid to make a mistake and touch anything.
My reply is a seething stare. This man exudes power. He’s clearly very high up in the hierarchy of the Midnight Syndicate. He could be off doinganything,and this is obviously the last place he wants to be right now. Yet here he stands. Not Raze. Not someone lesser Syndicate member.Him.
That has to mean something, right? It has to speak to how the Syndicate regards me—as something important enough for one of their leaders to take time out of his day to address.
“Right, then,” he mutters uncomfortably, reminding me that I must look out of my mind. That seething stare? It’s got to make me appear crazy to him. “Well, lucky for you, we’re prepared to make an offer.”
My brow arches.
“You sure had a lot to say before,” he points out, shifting his weight onto one hip.
“I had a worthy audience,” I retort, making a show of dragging my eyes down his body in appraisal, then flattening my expression.
Not. Impressed.
I may be sitting in a cell, covered in filth and talking to myself while my stomach is starting to eat itself, but I don’t need any weapons to wound his ego.
He sticks his nose up the smallest amount. “We’re prepared to offer your freedom in exchange for your loyalty to the Midnight Syndicate. You’ll have to go through initiation, but that won’t be too strenuous.”
My brows knit together as I dissect his words in my head. “Why would you want me to join if you see me as a threat?”
He barks out a laugh. “A threat? Please. We’ve encountered far worse things than some homeless girl with no family.”
I ignore the sting that sends through my heart.
“We’re offering this because it would be a shame to see a brilliant mind like yours go to such waste.”
“And if I say no?” I jerk my head toward him, lifting my chin doubtfully. “You’re going to kill me?”
“If you say no, we’ll do far worse than kill you,” he promises. “Take your time. I’m sure there’s a lot to consider. Weigh your options. But know that we won’t wait forever, Sonny.”
He turns on his heel before I can reply, his feet moving at twice the speed they had on his way down here. Evidently, James can only stand my new home in short bursts.
The lights flick off, blanketing me in darkness all over again. I blow out a breath, then drag my feet over toward my bed and lay down. Sleep takes me under as I drown in thoughts of what life may be like working beside Raze and Divina in the Syndicate.
7
