Page 64 of His Toy

An idea crossed my mind. “You need to see Hazel,” I said. Heather perked up. “I will tell you the location of the clinic if you swear that you will stay far away from Eric.”

“I swear.”

“If anyone so much as mentions his name,” I glared at her, her blue-green eyes reflecting my image, a dark, faceless figure, “run. Do not trust anyone. Not even me.”

Her brow’s furrowed. “I trust you, sir. I can’t take that back.”

A woman I respected, a woman Ineeded, trusted me. Yet I kept more secrets inside of my head than a crypt. I had never told her the whole truth.

“You should stay with her,” I said. It was safer for both of them in the clinic. At the very least, it would buy them time to escape. But Heather shook her head.

“I’ll come back,” she said. “I’ll see if she knows anything.” She stood on her toes, then planted her feet again, visibly eager to get started on her journey to see her sister. “We’ll get him, Zaid. I just know it.”

The confidence in her voice made me ache with guilt. If I had to, I would lock her to the wall in the dungeon and leave her there while I took care of Eric.

But to ensure she never spoke to me again, to make sure she was safe, I would have to force her to see the truth, to see the monster inside of me.