Hunger had finally made me cave, but I’d barely managed to keep anything other than soup down. Wynn had put me to bed without the shackles on—no doubt thinking me too weak to attempt escape—and I rotated my ankles in tiny circles. Cracks and pops ricocheted off the walls. My knees protested when I stood, but I couldn’t dally any longer. Wynn would return. I’d recognized that fleeting glimmer of warmth at the end of our last session, and I didn’t want to welcome it back.
Running my hands along the smooth walls, I searched for hidden seams. Cracks. Secret passages. Anything. The drowning static buzz from the bird beast followed me as I worked, and my already fried nerves threatened to short-circuit entirely.
Between the bed, toilet, and silver anchors along the walls and floors, Wynn had created an inescapable prison. Slumping to the floor in the middle of the room, I fingered the hem of my shift dress. Speckles of dried-on blood dotted the edge, courtesy of Wynn’s wandering blade.
I needed to fight back. I couldn’t let him win. But between his beasts and his knife, I was sorely outmatched. If I wanted out, I had to catch him off guard. Knock him unconscious, and drag his hand to the magical wall to unlock the door.
I’m too weak. I’d already tried a physical assault, to no avail. He’d always been strong, but now, with my muscles racked by fatigue, he was an immovable force. I needed a weapon. Something to defend myself.
My gaze drifted to the shackle attached to the floor. One screw stood a few inches taller than the rest, thanks to the hours I’d spent loosening it.
Better than nothing. I scooted toward it and started twisting again. Getting more movement out of it the farther it pulled from the floor. Finally, it gave. I tugged it out of its hold and studied the pointed tip. It would have to do.
The cell door scraped along the floor, and I hid the screw in my hand. Wynn stood at the threshold. Beige linen pants. Faded blue tunic bordering on white. Shoeless this time. A reminder I was indeed in his home. He tried so hard to be light. To convince me this was for the greater good—no matter that he wouldn’t tell me about the cause.
Reaching for the door behind him, he paused when he noticed the puddle of vomit near the bed. “Not feeling well today?”
When I didn’t respond, he poked his head out the crack and called his Havra. She snaked between his legs, tattered rags in hand, and mopped up my mess. Rather than inspect his beast’s work, he studied me, as if searching for signs of weakening resolve.
I rolled the screw between my fingers. I wasn’t about to give in. When his Havra finished her cleaning and left, he didn’t notice that she’d forgotten to close the door behind her. Used to materializing through walls, she probably didn’t think twice.
Now is my chance.
“C’mon, Leena.” Wynn reached for me, and I lunged. Drove my makeshift weapon into the thick muscles of his neck. Stumbling backward, he cursed and clapped a hand over the screw.
Run.
I bolted for the door, but my muscles shook from lack of food and sleep. I only made it a few steps before Wynn caught me by the arm. My bones threatened to snap beneath his grip, and I tumbled to the floor. He jerked me toward the chains. Thrashing against him, I attempted to knee him in the chest. He responded with a swift punch to my gut, and the wind abandoned my lungs. Body shuddering for air, I wheezed in place on the floor, and he made quick work of shackling me in place.
Thick fingers extracted the screw, and it clattered to the floor. “And here I thought I would go easy on you today.” Painful breaths stabbed my throat until my chest relaxed. Wincing, I leaned against the wall. Wynn tacked my wrists above my head and once again settled down in front of me. The leather sheath on his hip dominated my vision.
“I saw it, you know.” He scratched his beard while studying me. “You gave out at the end. You were almost mine.”
I went completely still. He could never know. “You’re imagining things.”
Reaching for the blade at his side, he frowned. “I don’t think so.” He coated it with more Uloox venom and ignited his internal glow, kicking on his charm and meeting my gaze head-on. “Ready?”