Page 85 of Love to Defy You
The hooded figure closest to him steps back, hands raised in the air, but says nothing. No one makes a move to stop him, but the air shifts in the chamber. An uneasy tension lingers as Rasmussen turns in a circle, naked and crazed with red hair sticking out in all directions, making one last Hail Mary.
It’s futile, but I can’t help but admire his courage.
Rasmussen turns back toward the dais, facing Enzo and me, but then he stops. A cry of pain rings out through the chamber, and Rasmussen falls to the floor on all fours, his weapon clattering to the floor beside him.
A small throwing dagger is lodged into his upper back. I didn’t see who among the Order threw it, but I suppose it doesn’t matter. It won’t change his fate.
The figure with the rope around his waist approaches Rasmussen with calm, deliberate strides and picks up the stolendagger. He steps behind the redheaded candidate and grabs him by the hair, pulling him onto his knees.
And then he drags the blade across his victim’s throat. Blood spurts out of Rasmussen’s neck, and a wretched gurgling sound comes from him as he chokes.
Time is suspended, stretching indefinitely, until the light leaves Rasmussen’s eyes. The air rushes from my lungs at the same moment he expels his final breath. My blood runs cold as though I, too, am experiencing death alongside him.
The executioner lets him go, and he falls forward, facedown onto the cobblestone. Blood starts to pool around his head, and he is left there, unceremoniously naked, as a stark warning to the rest of us.
Stand up against the Order of Apollo and you die.
Enzo claps his hands together. “All right, then. Who’s next?” His expression is alight with sinister glee as he surveys the remaining candidates. “After all, the fun is just getting started.”
Chapter 18
Willow
On Sunday morning, the first thing I do when I wake up is check my phone. Nothing.
With a groan, I bang my head against the upholstered headboard. This huge bed swallows me up without Alek here to share it with me.
He said he’d be back before I left for the airport, and I still have seven hours before I need to leave to catch my flight.
I have no appetite for breakfast, so I get up and finish packing for my trip. Every so often, I check my phone for a text or a missed call, even though it’s in my pocket with the volume as high as it can go. If he tries to reach me, I’ll hear it.
I give Mikhail a call, but it goes straight to voicemail.
“Asshole.” I type a quick text to him, my fingers pounding on my phone screen.
ME
CALL ME.
It isn’t until after lunch that my phone starts to ring. When I yank it from my pocket, UNKNOWN flashes across my screen.
I pound the answer button, praying it’s Alek, and press the device to my ear. “Hello?”
“Hello, Willow. It’s Enzo.” His dark voice purrs in my ear like velvet. “Mikhail said he got a text from you that sounded rather urgent.”
Disappointed, I slump down on the edge of the bed. “Why couldn’t Mikhail call me himself?”
“He’s preoccupied at the moment with Order business,” he says. “What did you need from him? I’m happy to assist.”
I let out a ragged breath. “I just want to know if Alek’s okay.”
“Don’t worry, he’s fine. I’ll return him tonight in one piece.”
“Tonight?” I pull the phone away from my ear and glance at the time. “But I’m leaving this afternoon. I won’t get to see him before I go.”
“You’re taking a vacation without your fiancé?” Enzo asks.
My suitcase lies open in front of me on the floor, and I stare at the pink dress on top that Alek picked out for me. “It’s for my father’s wedding, but it’s in Andarusia, so...”
