Page 53 of Mindeater

Danny trains the gun on me, keeping a healthy distance as well. Moments later, Ryx reappears. There’s no trace of the boy I used to know. His face is painfully blank, eyes cold and merciless. If our roles were reversed, I’d be beside myself. Fuck, I couldn’t do this to him. Out of all the poor souls I’ve brutalized, Ryx would have never been one of them. I would have died before raising a single finger against him.

In his left hand is a wicked-looking knife.

“Don’t do this,” I beg him. If I thought for even a moment he’d listen, I’d tell him what I know.

“You never did know when to shut up,” he spits, squeezing the hilt.

Just as I’m about to keep yapping, he approaches, stealing the words from my throat. Every step is steady. Purposeful. A vile stench covers his scent, so rotten with his revulsion that I nearly gag.

He has no intention of stopping, and whatever bond we had as children is gone. I’m his prisoner.

Stopping mere inches away, he wields the knife, slashing it up in an arc and cutting my shirt in half. My skin pricks from the cold. Not hesitating, he rounds me and does the same to the back, letting the fabric hang only by my sleeves.

I shiver, arms straining. “Please.” Fuck, I’m so pathetic. So scared to die.

Especially by his hand.

It takes him too long to reach my front again. He’s seen my scars. He knows my life wasn’t sunshine and rainbows after he was taken, and yet, there’s no mercy in those silver irises. No sympathy. Nothing.

“Where is the secret entrance to New Grove?” He doesn’t look me in the eye. No, he’s focused somewhere near my throat or jaw. Why can’t he look at me? Doesn’t he want to see what he’s doing? Savor it?

“I don’t know.” It’s true. I don’t. Patryn’s tunnel hardly counts.

The knife flicks forward, a deep slice splitting the skin above my right nipple. I hiss through the pain, my body twisting as I try to run away from it.

“You’re their Maven. You’re on the council.” He cuts me again, lower this time. “This is nothing, leech. Tell me what I want to know, and I’ll make it quick.”

“I’m not on the council,” I rasp, trying and failing to suppress my anger. He means to torture me. “I’m nothing to them.”

“Bullshit,” he growls and stabs me. I cry out, arching away from the blade. Rivulets of blood drip into my waistband. “Your fancy collar says so.”

“I’m not! I swear by the first seer I’m not!”

“Your god means nothing to me. Where. Is. It.” He slices my thigh next. I try to kick him, but he blocks it with almost no effort. “That man knew things. He knew about me. What I am.”

It seems impossible to sweat in this climate, but adrenaline doesn’t care about the cold. Salty liquid drips down my cheeks, mimicking tears. “That man? Our guardian? Patryn?”

There’s a flicker. So brief I almost miss it. Confusion. How could he forget Patryn?

“Right. Him. He knew where it was, and I know he told you, too. So stop fucking lying and tell me.”

“Patryn is dead,” I pant. “They killed him. I told you they killed him.”

This time, he frowns. “You’re lying.”

“Matthias killed him the night you were taken. He became my new guardian.”

“I don’t know who that is. All you leeches look the fucking same.” He lunges, knife to my throat. “Seems you need more persuading.”

This close, I can feel his void-like mastery crawling over me. The pressure. The static. My numb fingers tingle in response. Muted emotions start to trickle in, too. Anticipation. Anxiety. Worry. Hate. Fear. I tear my eyes away from Ryx and lock in on the source. Kane is closer than he was.

“Boss,” he croaks.

I try to latch on, to sink into them and steal them away. Kane gasps as I peer into his mind. “Fuck, it’s wearing off!” he shouts, palming his head and backing away.

I test my telekinesis next—the ropes start to give way. Without wasting a second, I unravel them and rip the knife from Ryx’s hand. It lands in my shaking palm, and I slice it through the air. He dodges, then barks, “Get the fuck out of here!”

My abilities are still weak, barely there, but it’s enough. “What is wrong with you!” I yell and try to stab him.