Page 42 of Veiled in Stars and Silver
Tears of terror coursed down the other woman's cheeks.
I slammed the heel of my palm into her nose. It cracked. Blood gushed over Ivy's face, and she stood there, stunned.
I tore the knife out of her grip.
“That's nod enough,” she said, as she scanned the room with wet eyes. She lunged for the vanity. Her hand closed around the hatpin. I wrestled it from her grasp and gripped Ivy about the waist, thrusting her face-first onto the bed.
“I'm going to knock you out,” I said.
“It won't work. He can control us even when we are unconscious.”
Damn it. How did Peter get so much power? I twisted Ivy's arm behind her until it dislocated. Ivy screamed.Then I twisted the other arm till it dislocated, eliciting another scream from my friend. My heart pounded in my ears. I felt terrible. Still, I didn't let Ivy go. How far would she go? Would she bash her head against the vanity? Or cast herself out a window?
A door slammed, and my heart leaped into my throat. Had Pan taken over the whole place? Was I fighting a losing battle?
“Wendy? It's time to go!”
Relief flooded through me. Hook. Thank God.
“Wendy?”
“In here!” I called, holding Ivy's trembling form under me.
The entrance burst open. “Wendy, looks like the honeymoon is over...” His voice trailed off as he took in me and Ivy on the bed. “Then again, maybe it's barely getting started?”
“Pan wants her to kill herself. Grab one of those boas in the corner and help me tie her up.”
“We must hurry.” But he did as I said, grabbing the boa and rushing over to us. He helped me bind Ivy to the bedpost.
“This is something I've always wanted to try. Though admittedly in more...intimate circumstances.” He gave me a suggestive glance.
I let out a soft growl. Now wasn't the time to discuss Hook's sexual fantasies. Even though it left me wondering if I was the one he pictured when he said it.
“Thank you,” Ivy murmured, her eyes drifting closed, on the verge of passing out.
Hook took in Ivy's ragged and bloodied state with wide eyes. “Hell, Wendy. Couldn't you have been a tad gentler?”
“If I had, she'd be dead.” I stowed the last knife. “Let's go.”
Wemoved out into the main foyer. Madame Pearl's ladies came toward us, some carrying fire pokers, and every one had a frightening blank expression on their face.
Hook stayed close to me, his hand on the pommel of his saber. “Stay back.”
But the women kept pressing ahead, surrounding us.
Hook swept me into his arms with a grunt. “Hold onto me, we're going up.”
“Up?”
He shoved his nose into my hair and breathed deep. I gasped as he lifted into the air. We rose over the second-story balcony, and he watched me with amusement, no doubt reveling in my surprise.
“I may have also gotten some fairy dust from my anonymous benefactor,” he said.
He set me on my feet, and we rushed to his room. Hook threw open the door and hurried to the window, unlatching it.
I came up behind him, knives clutched in my fists. “Did you smell me to get your happy thought?”
He shoved the window open before turning to face me. “Well, the perfume you are wearing does elicit many pleasant memories.”
