Page 115 of Kiss of Seduction

Varro’s cursed spawn had done nothing but ruin and take. He’d taken her freedom, Amanda, her life. He’d taken everything away from her, replacing it with pain and terror. Now he’d wanted to take Natalya too.

“Natalya refused to go to the infirmary with the others,” Drago continued. “According to Hasan’s guards, she insisted she was fine and just needed the day to herself.”

The words made Evie even more angry. Of course she’d said she was fine. Of course she’d pushed everyone away and insisted she didn’t need any help.

With the anger came realization of Evie’s own usage of the term. Did it upset Natalya as much when Evie used those words as it just had her?

Drago left to speak with Aleksander, and Evie cleaned the ichor off her hands in the kitchen. She was beyond tired, and Aleksander getting in her face didn’t help.

Needing to just sit, Evie sank down on one of the couches and buried her face in her hands. Worry, anger, and fear battled for control in her mind. She was tempted to let them all lose and have exhaustion win instead.

A hand touched her shoulder and she flinched, but it was only Lily. Evie sighed and leaned against her, thankful for her presence.

When Lily sat, Evie noticed her wince slightly. “Something wrong?”

“Aleksander doesn’t take kindly to broken promises,” Lily said with a humorous scowl. “And I drank way more than I said I would last night.”

“Hehityou?” Evie asked, baffled at the realization.

“Hespankedme. There’s a difference.” Lily blushed and bit her lip. “He made it up to me. He always does. And he knew I’d be nursing a headache too, so I guess he figured that was a punishment in its own right.”

Lily’s face turned serious. She pulled out the Chain pendant necklace Evie had left on the dining table. Evie had completely forgotten about it.

“Where did you get this?”

Evie snatched it out of her hand. “Nowhere, I…” She turned her face away. “Natalya had it.”

Lily looked surprised. “She hasn’t had a Purple in a long time.”

The comment stung more than Lily probably realized. Natalya had Claimed people in the past. She’d had humans at her beck and call, probably groveling at her feet, eager to please. Evie was just the most recent.

“That makes me feel real special,” Evie muttered.

“Did she ask to Claim you?”

Evie scowled and shook her head. “She mentioned something about the contracts last night. Didn’t know why at the time, but then I found out she hadthis.” Evie shook the pendant with the statement. “It’s obvious what she meant with it now. I told her I didn’t want it.”

Lily frowned. “Why?”

“What do you meanwhy?” Evie said harshly. “It would mean being owned. That I would give myself away to someone else. That I’d behers.”

Evie said the last word mockingly, but the rush of warmth that ran through her when she said it was far from insincere. It made her feel flushed. Strangely calm. Safe.

“Well, she wouldn’t actually be Claiming you until the summer solstice, and that’s months away,” Lily said. “Until then, it’s more like a promise of sorts.”

“Of future enslavement?” The words were cruel to mask the weird feelings rushing through her.

“Do you think I’m Aleksander’s slave? That Blake is Flea’s?” Lily’s voice was surprisingly sharp. “It’s not slavery if you can break it off whenever you want.”

She had a point. With Varro, Evie’s life hadn’t been her own. She had been a doll, a food source, a body without agency. She couldn’t stop what was happening to her, no more than shecould leave her indenture. A Ribbon contract could be ended with the snap of a chain.

“We’re here because we want to be. Because we choose to be.” Lily’s eyes softened. She gestured at the pendant in Evie’s hand. “I’m actually surprised she hasn’t asked you before. Especially since you two are already living by the terms of that color, from what you’ve told me. If not one of a higher tier.”

“So why can’t we just stay like that?”

“It’s not how it’s done here. The contracts ensure our safety. It’s a guarantee that we’re not powerless to leave if something happens. And the pendant is toxic to supernaturals, including fiends. If Natalya hurt you, you’d have a way to defend yourself.”

“She wouldn’t hurt me,” Evie said too quickly. Lily’s knowing look made her lower her eyes. “You’re telling me nothing would change if I put on the necklace? I wouldn’t be a…”