Page 67

“Luke?”I choked out.

His gaze locked on mine.“I’m okay.No matter what, just tell them the truth.I’ll be alright.No matter what,” he said again while he held my gaze.

He had no way of knowing what was going on here, but he knew his life and mine was at stake, and he was telling me to let them hurt him, if I had to.

I bit my lip when it started to tremble.“Please, don’t hurt him.I’m telling you the truth.”

“There’s one way to find out.”Tarrant looked at Poe.“Do it.”

Lars moved behind me then, gripping my jaw and forcing me to look as Poe pulled out a knife, grabbed Luke’s hand, and held it down on the table.

“All you have to do is tell me the truth about your connection to the hounds, and you save your friend’s finger.”

“I told you the truth.”

“If you lied to me, you need to admit it now or he loses a finger.”

“I told you the truth,” I said again.“Please don’t hurt him,” I pleaded, even though I knew these males had no mercy inside them.

“You’ve got until the count of three,” Poe said.

“I can show you the scars, the ones that witch gave me.”

Tarrant paused, his gaze sliding down my body.

Lars loosened his hold, and with my heart beating madly, I lifted my shirt, showing him the jagged scars across my abdomen.

Tarrant studied them, then licked his lips.“Well, now, aren’t they pretty.”Then he turned to Poe.“I think she’s telling the truth, don’t you?”He used his claw to pick at his teeth again, then shrugged.“But I think we’ll do it anyway, as a deterrent.”

“No!Please.”

Luke sat utterly still, his eyes squeezed shut.Lars had me in a tight hold, again forcing me to watch.Poe looked up at me as he brought the knife down, severing Luke’s pinky finger.

My friend screamed, and I tried to pull away from Lars, but he tightened his hold even more.

Poe looked to Tarrant.

The older demon nodded and turned to me.“I’m going to believe you, for now, witch, but if I find out you were lying to me”—he pointed at Luke—“he dies, painfully, understand?”

“I understand.”

Lars released me, grabbed Luke, and took him away, then Poe grabbed my arm and led me from Tarrant’s office, closing the door behind him, but instead of leading me to the front door, he headed to the back of the house.

He was going to take me up on my offer.Oh shit.“Where are we going?”

“There’s a room back here where you can work your magic on me,” he said, and my stomach churned.

My mind raced, trying to think of what the hell to do.I needed to get Poe on my side, but I was only willing to go so far to do that.

He led me into a room.A spare room by the looks of it.There was a dresser and a bed and not much else.Certainly nothing personal.

“Do you live here?”I asked anyway, attempting to keep him talking.If he was talking, he wasn’t plotting sick things that involved me.I doubted this male could multitask.

“Occasionally, but I have a place in the city where I spend most of my time.”

He turned and slid his hands up my arms.“Okay, sweetheart, where do you want me?”

“If you could lie on the bed, I’ll work on your ribs.They hurt the most, right?”I said as I worked at keeping the revulsion off my face at having his hands on me.