Page 165 of Love & Heart Braking

“He’s been telling us some interesting information,” she said. “Never trust a griffin to keep quiet.”

Bullshit. Lerome hadn’t told them anything.

She didn’t speak again, perhaps she expected me to be filled with rampant thoughts of betrayal and misery at her declaration.

Settling back, I enjoyed the comfort of the medical bed until the doors whooshed again. I opened my eyes to the sight of two guards dragging the older griffin in. My chest constricted at the burn marks dotting his bare arms. There were two blistered imprints either side of his face in the shape of hands. My breath quickened.

How could these people be so sick?

“My daughter’s handiwork,” Acribus said proudly.

She was as repulsive as Smolder.

I swallowed hard as they bound Lerome to a chair at the end of my bed. The griffin lifted his wry gaze to mine as if to say “Well, here we are.”

“Here’s how matters will proceed,” Acribus declared. “If you fail to summon your arrow, we will execute the griffin.”

Lerome snorted. “Be my guest. That audio will play across every radio station in Nepos if you do.”

The phoenix smiled. “Your little threat is weak and grows tiresome.”

He shrugged a shoulder. “Then kill me. The magic is tied to my life force.”

Her smile widened. “There is much we can do to you while you live, black feather.”

“I’m sure,” the griffin said, ignoring the slur. “Go for it. I can handle whatever you hit me with.” His focus drifted to me again. “But they can’t handle what we have.”

My inhale caught. I was the absolute wrong person to team up with in this shituation. Soleil wouldn’t have batted an eyelash at agreeing to sit and watch his torture. Devereaux wouldn’t have liked it but might’ve accepted Lerome’s decision. Gug and Maligni? I had a feeling they’d play along. Maybe only Austin would struggle with watching torture too.

I just didn’t have the stomach for people being hurt.

Plan B time.

I widened my eyes and shook my head frantically.

Acribus laughed. “Miss Concordia is not so sure. Perhaps she can imagine you without limbs, your skin peeled, your eyes in jars.”

I hadn’t been imagining anything of the sort, but my eyes rounded more at her vile words.

The phoenix let red fire escape her fingertips. “I can cauterize every wound I inflict, griffin. You will never bleed out while I am here.”

“As I said,” Lerome answered, “do what you want. You know the consequences.”

Her flames stuttered at his words, and I watched them closely.

“Consequences don’t apply to people like me,” she snapped. Her fire was at odds with her words, however. The flames dropped right back.

She was afraid.

Why?

Acribus clearly had orders to get me to talk using Lerome. Yet… killing him would unleash incriminating audio over the radio. My brow cleared. Ah. She didn’t want to be the one to take responsibility for causing that. She also couldn’t break her mother’s order.

That I could work with.

I kicked my legs to get her attention, then I opened and closed my mouth a few times.

“What?” she said in irritation.

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