Page 95 of Jagged Souls
“Still…” Antonio says, his voice coming in from every angle. “Varius got the police to raid most of my businesses, and that can’t go unpunished. So which one shall I take?”
My heart hammers at the idea of her losing either. I’ve already taken her magic. If he takes one of her senses, will she give up? Will she kill herself before I can get to her?
“Why don’t you take,” Micha says slowly and clearly and without any of the fear eating me up inside, “that giant stick out of your ass and fuck Eduardo’s new hole with it. Then deep throat it until you fucking choke.”
I swallow down a raspy cry. She’s still holding on, still fighting.
I have to do the same for her.
She doesn’t need my emotions right now. She needs –
“I wasn’t talking to you,” Antonio says.
I still, that little flare of relief at her words dying a brutal death, then decaying inside of me, turning into rot.
“Pick, Varius,” he orders. “I know you’re watching.”
“No!” The word is torn from me as I stagger towards the soul doll. “Take mine! Trade me –”
“He can’t hear you,” Khalid says softly, his tone flat.
“Tell him!” I snap as I turn to him.
His eyes bore into mine. “I’m not trading you.”
“Leno is dead!” I yell. “You’re secondborn now, so if I’m gone,youwill lead. The Family won’t fracture –” Not like it would if Leno was still alive. He couldn’t make the ruthless decisions Khalid and I can. That Caden could when he used to rule, sacrificing his own kids to save the Family, to save Mother.
“I’m not trading you,” he simply repeats.
Micha grunts in pain as acrack!reverberates through the room. He’s broken something of hers.
“It’s just a finger,” Khalid says, as if that should fucking matter. “He’s going to kill her anyway.” If she were anyone else, I would ignore her pain and not let it affect me from making decisions. The reaper is right; Antonio is going to kill her regardless. He has to stop her heart to stop us from using her soul doll – the alexandrite burning up as soon as she dies.
But that is my wife.
Her screams of pain still haunt me from when I tortured her myself. I haven’t slept a single night without reliving her cries, without seeing all the blood pour from the blows of the hammer. Some nights I watch her miscarry. Other nights I can’t stop myself from raising that hammer to her thighs…
I can’t stand by while she suffers again, even if it’s ‘just’ a fucking finger.
“Choose, Varius,” Antonio says as if he’s talking about the fucking weather.
“Khalid!” I snap, this time taking a step towards him. The runes flare red beneath my feet. The power hums inside my blood.
He stills like a predator in the grass. “Choose her eyes,” he says. “She’s smart. She’ll interrogate –”
“I’m not hurting my fucking wife!”
“Antonio –”
“It’ll be my choice!” It doesn’t matter if I’m not the one picking up the scalpel.Iwould have hurt her if I decide.
And I can’t do that to her again.
I can’t be the reason she loses her eyes.
“Dammit, Khalid.Please.”
His lips tight, he kneels down beside the soul doll. I don’t know if he’s going to carve what I’ve told him to or if he’s going to make the decision for me, but there’s nothing I can do other than beg. I am completely helpless in this situation.
