Page 81 of A Silent Prodigy for the Lycan Princess

We all laugh. I’m glad they aren’t mad at me for not spending a lot of time with them. I try to see them daily for dinner or lunch,or join them when they go out at night, but it’s not the same as spending the whole vacation with them. “Where are the others?” I ask.

“Jazz and Val went shopping,” Tori says. “Jazz is Val’s bestie, so we wanted to give them some privacy.”

“And Lion?” I ask her.

She looks annoyed. “I don’t know.”

“He went off somewhere,” Marilou says. “He said he wanted to train.”

I feel confused. Lion is very similar to me. We both like our me-time occasionally, but usually we are also very social. He has been very broody recently, and I don’t know why. What’s going on with him? I’m glad we are approaching the New Year’s Eve party now. We’ll all be more relaxed, and maybe I will finally find the right time to talk with him. Hopefully he will open up to me.

Chapter twenty-five

The Tattoo

*MEG*

Opal… I mean Annette, has been quiet for the last couple of days. Night lets me look after her because the last thing he needs or wants, as he claims, is an annoying little leech to constantly cry and brat around. It’s better this way. I know how he can be when he is angry.

We had one teenager with us once, and he got so mad at her for being scared and crying that he beat her until she couldn’t move anymore. The next day, she was gone, and I never saw her again.

Opal is safer when she is with me. I will make sure she doesn’t make any noise and will keep her safe. He can’t hurt Opal.

That’s not her name.

I shouldn’t call her that. I should remember that she is Annette.

Just like I am… I am Meg. Meg.

“Azurite.” Junior approaches me. “The boss demands your presence.”

I nod, patting Opal’s head when I get up. “I will be back soon,” I tell her.

She nods, hiding in the corner between her bed and the wall when I follow Junior. He doesn’t spare her a look, though. Junior doesn’t give a shit about any of us; he ignores us and prefers not to work with us.

He hands me a box. “Take that to Night,” he says.

I don’t need to ask him where Night is. I know what’s in the box and what he is doing with it. The walk through the corridor feels endless. To this day I don’t know where we are. There is a small garden here, surrounded by the thick walls of the building we live in. I am barely allowed outside. I’ve only seen the garden five or six times since I came here. But I don’t know what’s beyond the thick walls of the building. The windows leading outside are barricaded with wood or iron.

I drag my feet along, the pit in my stomach broadening the closer I get to the white doors. I’m scared that one day the darkness will swallow everything from me and not leave anything behind. Day by day it’s getting stronger. Sometimes I can’t quite remember thebeforeanymore. Before Night took me. Sometimes, I dream of Paris and a kind older man who kept watching over me and other kids. He was always so nice.

Night is never nice.

I used to remember his name, but recently it keeps slipping away.

What else will the darkness swallow?

I knock at the door. “Come in,” Night says, his voice cold and distant as usual.

I step inside, trying to ignore the three new gems cowering against the wall. I think they are the same ones I saw last time, but I can’t quite remember. PJ is here, too, leaning against the door and waiting for his orders.

Night is sitting on a chair, patting his leg now, so I follow his silent orders and sit on his lap. One of his hands closes around my waist. “Look at the new gems,” he mutters, his breath brushing against my neck. “Aren’t they pretty? They have the perfect blood. One of them is a beta, though, very unfortunate. But his pack is far in the mountains. He won’t be missed soon.”

“I staged a rogue attack,” PJ says.

“Good,” Night mutters, his other hand brushing against my leg before moving below my long skirt. He touches my inner thighs now, and I try not to tense. He doesn’t like it when I tense.

“Begin,” he orders PJ.