Page 94 of Fighting for Her Heart

The silver cuffs burn my skin, but the physical pain is nothing compared to knowing I’ve been betrayed—again. And by the person I most loved, mosttrustedmy entire life.

At least in the parts of my life I remember. Nora is the only person I loved before I met Ryker, Zuben and Axe.

“Howcouldyou!” I glare at Nora as three other women gather behind her all looking smug as they stroke her arms and her hair. Anger consumes me.

“Ember,” Zuben says, his voice weak. “Did you not hear our warnings?”

“What warnings? When?”

“We were calling out to you, little dove,” Ryker says. There’s so much pain in his eyes and his voice, it’s hard to bear.

In between Ryker and Zuben, Axe is slumped in his bindings, seemingly unconscious.

“Axe!” My voice breaks.

“He will wake, cherished one,” Zuben says. “They have only just drained him.

I can’t believe I was fooled by the witches’ apparitions—the ones that made me think that my men were taking pleasure with other women, not to mention the one that made me believe that Ryker was kissing me. Was I kissing someone, or nothing? I’m not sure I want to know.

“Let them go!” I shout to Nora. “Now!”

“And why would I ever do that?” She sashays toward me and then cups my face. “I am ever so grateful for your help in creating them, my daughter.”

“Don’t call me that!”

A hint of pain crosses her face. “As you wish, Gullveig.”

“Don’t call me that either! My name is Ember!”

“But is it?” Her hand strokes my cheek. “Who do you think gave you that name?” Her eyes turn cold, cruel. “As you recall, I found you in the remains of a fire.”

The air pushes out of my chest. Ember, my name—the only name I remember—is who I am, part of my identity, and now she’s claiming thatshewas the one who named me that?

“My darling.” Nora cups my face again. “There is no need for you to suffer. If you cooperate, there is no need for these men to suffer either.”

“You’ll set them free?”

“Of course not.” She looks at me like I’m a fool. “But if theybehaveand you comply, I may be able to move them to more…morecomfortableaccommodations.”

“Do it then!” I shout. “Do itnow!”

Instead of releasing, the silver collars around the men’s necks tighten. Their skin burns. They cry out in pain. Roaring, Axe regains consciousness. He sees me, and his roar grows even louder until it’s strangled by the collar, burning and choking him.

“Stop it!” I struggle against my bindings, increasing my pain. “Stop hurting them! I’ll do whatever you want!”

The bindings around my wrists disappear. My arms drop to my sides, but I’m still fastened against the wall at my neck and my ankles. At least Ithinkthat I am. I no longer trust my ability to judge what’s real and what’s magic.

The pain is real enough, though. So is the smell of roasting flesh.

I reach to grab the collar around my throat, but my fingers burn and my hands spring away.

Even if my bindings are magic, it doesn’t make them less effective or painful.

“What do youwantfrom me?” I ask Nora.

“Very little.” She smiles at me with an expression I recognize from childhood, but no longer seems loving—at all. “All this pain could have been avoided, if you weren’t so stubborn.”

“Stubborn?” I snap.