Page 94 of Buried in Blood
Harmony steps through the door a moment later, silent, cautious. She’s always cautious now.
Good.
I don’t look up. I know she has free time right now. It’s part of her schedule.
“Did you know your dear Lucien is getting married next month?” I ask softly, running the blade in neat rows down the margin.
She doesn’t answer. I didn’t expect her to. I rise from my chair, circle her slowly. She’s dressed in black again—my choice, not hers. I like her best in the color of mourning. Because mourning is what she does best.
“You’ve been so good lately,” I murmur. “Quiet. Soft. Even helpful.”
Still, she doesn’t speak.
I grab her chin, tilt her face up.
“But I need more now.”
Her lips part, barely. “What do you want?”
Ismile.
“I want fireworks.”
I gesture toward the plans on the table. Diagrams. Guest lists. A courier schedule. Backup generators. Everything Lucien thought he kept protected.
But nothing is ever safe from me.
“Four bombs,” I say calmly. “One in the east garden. One near the ceremony arch. One beneath the catering truck. And the last…”
I drag my fingertip down the sketch of the manor’s heart—the ballroom.
“…in the floor beneath the first dance.”
Her eyes widen, but I don’t stop.
“Remote detonated. Timed. Precise. Poetic.” I brush a strand of hair from her cheek, almost lovingly. “But only if you help me.”
“No.”
Her voice is a whisper, but it’s enough.
My smile doesn’t fade.
“If you refuse,” I say gently, “I will burn everything down anyway. But this time? I’ll start with Reese. Then Brooke. Then every girl in the Hollows. One by one. Alive.”
A beat of silence. Her knees nearly buckle, but she stays standing. Just barely. I lean in, mouth hovering next to her ear.
“You’re the only thing keeping them alive.”
Then I hand her the detonator. Cold. Smooth. Heavy with consequence.
“You’re running out of time, Harmony.”
I place the folder in her arms—maps, instructions, names.
“And when it’s done, we disappear. You, me, and the ash of every liar in silk.”
She doesn’t say yes. She doesn’t have to. I already own her answer.
