Page 44 of Spark of Madness

“I’ve seen the way Arlo binds women when he purges,” Wesley says. “I think that could be an effective trial, to be left and used for so many hours.”

“Let’s put it to a vote,” Ryker says. “All for seven in seven, say aye.”

“Aye,” the sound of the single word rings out in chorus.

“All opposed, say nay.”

Silence.

“Give me fourteen hours,” Mercy mutters.

I look over to find her head dipped slightly, her fierce eyes looking up through her eyelashes to stare across the table with a slow burning kind of fury.

Ryker grins with amusement. “Excuse me?”

“Give me fourteen hours and leave Delle alone. Let her skip this trial. Let me take the burden for her.”

Sordid chuckles carry through the space, but the sound doesn’t include my own. My stare is locked on her, humor evading me as I see the honest determination in her expression. She’s serious. She would actually endure double the necessary time to spare Delle.

Ridiculous….intriguing.

My heart thumps an odd extra beat as I feel something I can’t explain. It couldn’t possibly be admiration or respect because I have no capacity for those feelings when it comes to sinners like her. And yet, those are the only words that come to mind describing the feeling.

There’s a strangeness that vibrates through me, like dissonant chords being played simultaneously.

The laughter fades and dies.

“No,” Killian says plainly.

“That’s not how this works,” Ryker follows.

Mercy lifts her chin and tilts her head, looking across the table and speaking with unearned authority. “And why not? It seems as though you’re making up the rules as you go. You said it yourself…there is room forcreativity.”

Sweet fuckingsin.

This woman knows no boundaries. It fills me with fury, but oddly, it’s only for the way she creates risk for herself. She has no concern for self-preservation. She understands no one has survived the trials and the likelihood of her own survival is equally low. Maybe knowing that her days are limited makes her bolder and more daring than she ought to be.

“No.” Killian doubles down, harshly emphasizing the word. “And just for that ridiculous request, I think we ought to let Delle complete her trial first.”

Mercy shoves to her feet, the legs of her chair screeching as they scrape across the floor and tumbles over backward. “Over my dead body,” she spits.

“That can be arranged,” Killian says, and the others chuckle.

I quickly slip on my gloves before standing, reaching out to grab the short dangling ends of the rope attached to her wrists. I tug on them, forcing her to spin away from the table to look at me. Our eyes catch for a heated beat, and I see rage swirling there, like a gray storm whirling around her irises.

It’s rather beautiful.

I speak without looking away from Mercy. “If you’ll excuse me, brothers, I need a moment to handle my ward.”

“Please do,” Ryker huffs.

“I’ll be back for Delle,” I add as an afterthought, nearly forgetting she’s also my responsibility now.

“I’ll see her to her room,” Theo offers, and I nod without looking.

With a tug of the rope, I walk away, pulling Mercy along behind me.

chapter fifteen

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