Page 115 of Retribution

'I'm going to try to do this without activating it,' I say, 'but if I do, I'm?—'

'It's okay,' she says quickly, 'Do what you have to do. I want it off, Blake. I hate it.’

‘I hate it,’ she whispers again.

I give her asmall nod.

'The others. They should be in here. If they're touching you, if it goes off I mean, they might be able to take some of the brunt of it. If it's spread between three people, it won’t be so bad.'

‘Okay.’

I call for Shade and Mav and they come in, both of them looking grim, and I tell them what we're doing.

‘Is this safe?' Shade asks dubiously.

‘Would you rather we leave it on her?' I retort.

‘No.'

I shrug, 'Hopefully it won't zap but hold onto her. Keep your skin touching hers, so that if it does, it's not so bad for her.'

Daisy moves to the middle of the bed and Shade puts his arm around her. Mav’s on her other side, his hand resting on her bare hip.

I put my tools back into the slot and move them around carefully, trying very hard not to accidentally shock our girl.

'I think I might have got it,' I say a few minutes later, putting another of my picks inside. ‘If I can disrupt the…’

Daisy grunts in pain, and I see her jaw tighten. The guys both yell and I feel the metal rods in my hands conducting the current.

'Fuck,' I snarl, doing the last part as quickly as I can, and I hear a click as the thing releases.

Before I can do anything, she has it in her hands and she’s throwing it across the room. She scrambles off the bed and as far away from it as she can, collapsing to the floor.

She's shaking and breathing heavily.

Shade and Mav are both looking at their hands, shocked expressions on their faces.

'It felt like that every time?' Shade asks quietly.

I answer when she doesn’t.

‘It would have felt worse,’ I say. ‘A lot worse.’

Shade is off the bed and striding towards where Daisy is kneeling on the floor. He gathers her up into his arms, pulling her close and picking her up carefully.

'I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry,' he keeps repeating quietly. 'I didn't know. I promise you, I didn't.'

She grips him tightly.

'I know,' she says. 'I'm sorry I didn't tell the truth. I'm sorry I didn’t…that I haven’ttold you everything. I just…'

She just shakes her head, and suddenly they're kissing each other deeply. She's gripping him tightly, her fingers running through his hair.

'Shade, please,' she whispers. ‘I need...’

'I've got you,’ he rumbles, and I hear a zipper.

He impales her on himself and she lets out a low moan, wrapping her legs around him as he moves her up and down.