Page 50 of Slay Me

If her glare could kill, I’d be dead. “Of fucking course not.”

“Harriss? Did you kill Thomas and Jenny or poison Liv?”

He glares at me. “Do you truly—”

“Yes or no will suffice,” I interrupt.

His near-white eyes narrow on me. “No. I did not kill the shifters, nor did I poison the fury.”

One by one, I go down the line of performers. Each and every one of them is absolutely horrified that I would accuse them of something so heinous, of course. And every single answer—to both questions—is a resounding no.

“You can all go. Get ready for the show.”

“You’re seriously still putting it on?” Liv demands.

The room falls silent. I turn to her, masking my anger with annoyance. “Yes. Your job is to perform. I’m not shutting down my operation because someone died. Not when I have others perfectly capable of filling the vacancy. Lex,” I say, turning my attention to the shapeshifter. “You and Fiona will be taking the new spot. Come up with something entertaining.”

“You’re serious.”

I shift my attention back to Liv, gaze locking with hers. “Everyone else can leave now,” I say.

“I’ll wait for you,” Apollo says as he stands and closes the distance, putting himself directly beside Liv and puffing his chest out.Fucking pathetic. As if you could ever satisfy a flame such as hers.

“You’ll get the fuck out,” Bracken corrects. “Now.”

The gryffin doesn’t move. Not until I hear Grayson mutter a, “Let’s go,” to Kinsley. Then, likely seeing his opportunity, he turns to Liv.

“I’ll check in with you in a few.”

She doesn’t respond. Arms crossed, she faces off with me as if she’s the one holding the power. As if it’s my blood signed in ink at the bottom of an ownership contract. Though, given the fact that she alone knows my true name, I suppose she does.

Time to see how she wields it.

The moment we’re alone, I cross the room toward her. “You’ve become rather bold, Fury.”

“You cannot expect us to go on tonight. Jenny and Thomas were our friends. Our people. We deserve a night off to grieve.”

“You’ve had all afternoon to grieve,” I reply. “And now you have a job to do.”

Her jaw hardens. “You’re an asshole.”

“Did you truly think that was going to change?” I shield my expression, hoping to hide just how much her words bother me. Why? Who the fuck knows. I’ve literally built my empire on fear. On being considered the biggest, baddest motherfucker in all of No Man’s Land. So why the hell do I care what one fury thinks of me?

Because she’s my mate.The voice in my head is so loud it’s nearly deafening. Yet I still push it aside. Destiny may have deemed her my other half, but she’s a weakness I cannot—Iwill notafford.

“Maybe I thought I saw something almost kind in you.”

I step closer. “You thought wrong. There is not a fucking inch of me that is soft, Fury. Best to remember that in the future.” My fingers flex, desperation to touch her damn near agonizing. Even if it can only be done with a fabric barrier between our flesh.

If I were to ever feel her skin against mine—the consequences would be devastating for the both of us. Me because I would no longer be able to deny the connection, and her because there would never be freedom.

She would be stuck here forever because there is no fucking way I’d let her go.

“Fuck off.” She shoves past me, shoulder brushing mine through the sleeve of my jacket, then stomps out of the tent.

The voice in my head is screaming for me to follow. For me to keep her right beside me until I solve this mystery. But it’s that fucking voice that led me to where I am now. And I’m only one instant away from claiming what has never been rightfully mine.

* * *

---