Page 280 of Scarlet Wars
His frown hadn’t moved. “If that’s true, then why the hell are we still breathing?”
My pulse spiked, thoughts beginning to spiral before I could rein them in. My gaze cut toward him, dark and cold. “To lureherhere?”
A sick, twisting feeling coiled in my chest. The idea of Emma—chained and bleeding out somewhere here as well—turned me downright feral.
“We need to get out of here. Now.” My wrists strained hard against the cuffs, the bite of it tearing into already raw skin. Blood slicked my arms as I pulled harder, the pain slicing through me, but I didn’t stop.
“Emma would’ve portaled into Cyclos already,” James muttered, mostly to himself. “Whoever put us here clearly wanted us separated from her, which means it’s not unlikely.”
Hearing him confirm my fear sent a savage rush of adrenaline through my veins. My muscles screamed even more as I yanked harder against the bindings, the loud snap of bone grinding beneath the pressure. My vision blurred at the edges, but I didn’t care. I had to get to my girl.
James’s eyes flicked to the restraints pinning us in place, something dangerous flashing there. “We need to figure out how to break out of these.”
“Already on it,” I said mildly. “Give me a few minutes.”
He glanced at me, unimpressed. “Bold claim from someone currently hanging from the ceiling like a cow waiting to be sold off to the next butcher.”
I snorted despite throbbing of my limbs. “Please. No one could afford me.”
He huffed a quiet laugh before the silence crept back in, both of us mentally running through bad options.
I exhaled through my nose. “If translating’s off the table, we’re going to have to do this the hard way.”
James narrowed his eyes into slits. “Definehard.”
“Dislocate your thumb.”
He blinked. “Come again?”
“If you can slip your thumb out of the cuff,” I said evenly, “the rest of your hand will follow.”
“That’s psychotic.”
“So is hanging here until someone carves us open. Or worse, while they’re getting their hands on Emma.”
James cursed under his breath. He flexed his wrist, testing the width of the cuff. “You first.”
“Gladly.” I inhaled through my teeth and tried to ignore the burn. My jaw clenched as I twisted my hand at an unnatural angle, trying to work my thumb beneath the steel.
Pain exploded through my hand. My thumb wrenched sideways with a sickening pop.
“Fuck!”
Black spots started dancing at the edge of my vision. I gritted my teeth and pressed into the ache, forcing my hand to slide through the narrow gap of the cuff. Skin tore. Blood seeped through the inside of the alloy as I shoved harder…and then my hand slid free.
My freed arm dropped, dragging my weight sideways and wrenching hard at my other shoulder. I choked back a curse and forced myself to focus. My thumb was bent unnaturally to the side.
James winced. “That was disturbing.”
I breathed through the pain. “You’re up.”
James’s mouth flattened. He twisted his wrist, working his thumb beneath the steel. He groaned when it caught at the bone.
Pop.
A low hiss slipped through his teeth as his thumb dislocated. He forced his fingers through the gap. His face paled slightly, but his hand slid free with a violent jerk.
James blinked hard, shaking out his hand. “Well, that sucked.”
