Page 113 of A Lesson in Obedience

He rubbed the side of his neck, clearly not liking where this was going. “Where are you trying to go?”

I threw a chunk of my braids over my shoulder, straightening my spine when I said, “Chancellor Fowler’s house.”

His eyes widened in shock, his voice lowering as he pulled me away from River’s door. “Why the fuck would you want to go there?”

“I just do. You’re the only one who can. You don’t need Ike to find an address for you because you’ve been inside. Get me inside.”

He pressed his fingers into his eyes, rubbing. “Is that supposed to make me feel special? What happened to no more secrets?”

I shrugged. “This isn’t a secret. I’m blatantly asking you to take me. What happens from there, I’m unsure.”

Grayson nearly choked. “So, you want me to take you there without any sort of idea how you plan to proceed. What even is this plan, Riley?”

“I DON’T—” I started to shout but looked around to see some of the staff starting to look at us. I took in a deep breath and collectedmyself. “I don’t know. He’s always finding me, coming at me, talking to me. It’s time I did the same to him. I don’tknow the end result, but I’m asking you to do this one thing. I’m not telling you to keep it a secret but just let me do what I need to do. River is my last straw.”

Grayson focused on my eyes and I could clearly see when he noticed nothing but determination there. “Regardless of being truthful, Asher is going to kill me.”

43

Riley

We landed in that same room I found myself in a while back. The same couch, the same fireplace, the same bar cart where Chancellor Fowler had elevated the glass pieces to strike Marianne. I shuttered, quickly letting the memories subside. The fireplace wasn’t illuminating the room, so a few sconces surrounded us with light.

I heard the sound of coughing from behind me and I looked over at Grayson. He held his hand to his chest, another cough erupting from his throat.

“What’s wrong?” I asked, rushing over to him.

“I don’t—I don’t know. My heart is going really fast and—” He started to walk forward but he lost his footing, catching himself before he fell over. “And everything won’t stop moving.”

I grabbed his hand but it was clammy and cold, like the warmth was being drained from it. “Grayson what’s going on?” I tookhis face and turned it to look at me. In a matter of seconds, his lips looked dry and his body was wobbly within my grasp.

I wasn’t strong enough to hold him up, so we both fell to the ground.

“The room needs to stop spinning,” he pleaded, trying to clear his throat.

I heard a door open and multiple footsteps echoed in my ears. A voice that made my blood go cold filled the room.

“Your little shadow wielder having some trouble, sweetheart?” Chancellor Fowler bent down next to me, watching as Grayson struggled to breath and how the color started to drain from his face.

“What are you doing to him?” I seethed out.

His face turned innocent. “I’m doing nothing.” He lifted his chin towards the girl who casually sat on the couch, tucking her legs under her thighs. “Fluid manipulation is a wondrous thing. Slow, draining and extraction and then as you can see the dehydration sets in. No one barges into my home unless I want them to and I need to take precautions.”

I held Grayson closer to me. “Make it stop.”

“You aren’t here to do anything stupid now are you, Riley?” he questioned, curious.

I shook my head erratically, my heart speeding up.

He narrowed his eyes at me, reaching up to touch his knuckles to my cheek. I made no move to lean into it, but I didn’t shift away. His eyes shifted over my shoulder to the girl on the couch.

Grayson tried to swallow over and over, each time seeming to get easier and his skin grew less cold. He had his eyes closed still, but he was instantly looking better.

Chancellor Fowler grabbed my arm and lifted me up, leaving Grayson to fend for himself on the ground. He placed his hand on my shoulder and leaned down to be eye level with me. “Not that it’s never a delight to see you, but why are you here?”

“You hurt him.”

He pushed out his bottom lip as he considered my accusation. “You’ll have to be more specific.”