Page 98 of Too Cursed To Kiss
“Uh huh,” Agatha said, rising and smoothing her cheek with a perfect manicure. Her bracelets clacked together. Every finger had a silver ring. “I’ll see you again in the mirror room. Good luck, and remember, don’t say anything about the ring.”
I swallowed, remembering Victoria’s caution. But ifAgatha was asking, then she knew something outside of this timeline. “Why?”
“Because if Sert finds out you could use it, he’ll want to know how, and that will go very badly for me.”
“I owe you. We’re good.” Inside, I glowed. Agatha of my old time was the same one here. At least I had a link to the old me.
She smiled and got up. I threw the blanket back and settled my feet onto the floor. I got up with virtually no pain. Weird, as I knew I was still hurting, but I couldn’t feel it eating away at me from the inside.
By the time I’d made it to the bed, Victoria had returned with a white pantsuit folded over one arm.
“Nothing in black, huh?” I asked.
“Black? No, I don’t own black things. This will be a bit snug, but we had to cut off your other clothing.”
Victoria set a silver brooch on the side table, then left me to dress. The lacy white bra and panties were not her size. I tried not to consider where she’d got them and failed. Britannia was my size, so that meant Caledonia likely was too, though with an unnaturally small waist and huge tits, but that explained the padded bra. The front of the pantsuit gaped. Now I knew what the brooch was for. I only stuck myself twice trying to latch it.
I sucked the iron-y blood off my finger, dreaming of sucking other things that weren’t mine. Salty and musky… As if summoned, there was a knock on the door, and Mason entered.
“All ready, miss?”
“Yes, Mason, all ready,” I replied, following him through the panel in the wall like it was business as usual.
CHAPTER FORTY-TWO
Mason led the way through corridors connected to the stainless-steel halls that went to the garage.
“Where are we going?” I asked, expecting the mirror room.
He gave no answer, walking staidly before me and finally shifting one of the wall panels, then disappearing.
I followed him into a rock-walled cave. Somehow, we were underground, but I’d arrived here without the full experience of descent. In the center of the rough-hewn area was a large, raised platform made of the same chalky brown stone as the walls. Circled around it and watching me enter were Britannia, Caledonia, Agatha, Maverick, Victoria, Devlyn and Sert—and Wald. They weren’t quite the same, but all had elements that made them recognizable. Britannia’s hair was curled and had a streak of emerald green flashing when she flicked it back. Caledonia I’d never met, but I’d know her anywhere. She had Britannia’s sharp nose and fine cheekbones but with huge eyes and cupid’s bowlips. Her tits were at least a DDD. Maverick’s hair had no silver streaks, and he had no limp. Devlyn’s hair was closer to ginger than blond, and Sert, well, he looked the same. Wald’s eyes weren’t covered by sunglasses, but they were fixed on Sert, ignoring me. That annoyed me more than the dying thing.
“Ah, our victim has arrived,” Devlyn said, approaching me. The shithead was exactly the type to be condescending to make-up for whatever he was lacking.
“Nice to see you…” I was going to say,alive again, and then realized in his eyes I was a stranger. Sert fixated on me as if I’d suddenly become interesting; that wasn’t good.
Keep your flipping head down, Harlan.
Living should be my whole focus. How hard was that?
“Let’s assess the wound,” Devlyn said, approaching me with a gleam in his eye that I didn’t like one bit.
“No need,” Victoria replied, waving a hand to get his attention. “The poison is throughout her system now. Only a full heal will save her.” Her voice was tight, her eyes sunken, and her cheeks hollow. Victoria never looked terrible. Something was off here. I scanned the other faces, but they were all looking at Devlyn or Sert like I was unimportant. Annoying and weird.
Devlyn patted the stone altar. “Then let’s have our lamb hop up here, so we can work on her.”
Wow, things I’d like to do less: eat fire ants, walk through acid, die… oh yeah. I walked forward, the wide legs of the pantsuit swishing at my ankles.
“Do you have the item?” Devlyn asked.
Wald walked forward and in his open palm was the time ring. The red stone glinted as if calling me.
“No, you can’t give him that!” I yelled, lunging for it.
The silence in the room stifled more words as I grabbedthe ring out of Wald’s hand and held it behind my back like a three-year-old.
“If you want to live, you’ll give the ring back to Wald, so he can surrender it to me,” Devlyn instructed, his eyes lingering far too long on my cleavage, which had amped up as the brooch slipped from my quick movements.
