Page 56 of Empress of Ruin
A slight, sardonic smile plays on his lips. “Yes, I’ll help you and vouch for you.”
“And what do you want in return?” There’s always a price.
Griffin pretends to look surprised. “You don’t think I’m helping you because it’s the right thing to do? Or out of the goodness of my heart?”
“We’re far too wealthy to give credence to theright thingor the desires of our heart.”
“True,” Griffin chuckles. “In the future, I expect I’ll have a large favor to ask of you. When the time comes, you will help me.”
Cryptic, and potentially dangerous. “What will this favor cost me?”
“Not more than you can afford to lose.”
Let’s hope that’s true.
The long nights continue, as do the early mornings. I start calling Lyra between meetings during the day, just to hear her voice. I, of course, get updates from the guards I now have in-house with us, but I want to hear about her day from her.
Mostly, she stays in the library and occasionally uses my office to work on her book edits. She also starts another project that she’s trying to keep secret from me for some reason. She keeps insisting that it’s bad and that it’ll need a bunch of editing before I see it.
I’ll just look through her laptop when I get a chance and email it to myself. Then, pretend to act surprised when she finally shows it to me.
Griffin requests the tribunal a few days after our conversation, on a virtual meeting with the important members of The Eyes. Silas spends the entire time glaring at me with lethal intent, while I sit back silently, waiting and plotting.
The expected five judges are appointed. The tribunal is set to take place at our usual place in exactly a month. Not much time, but it should be enough if I work quickly.
I start building my strategy immediately… which means several all-nighters pulled at the office.
I want to keep Lyra as far away from these nasty dealings as possible. I don’t want to bringthissort of work home with me. It would pollute the air she breathes, and that’s unacceptable. I won’t allow it to touch her, and Icertainlywon’t allow Silas to touch her.
If I lose at the proceedings, I already have a plan. She’ll be taken out of the country and hidden so thoroughly that nobody can find her. I’ll do my best to escape from The Eyes, but there’s a chance I won’t manage to get away. I’m fine with my death, so long as she gets to live. All of my money will go to her; she’ll be set up for life.
It’s a pleasant surprise when I see her name flash across my screen on my third night away from home. I pick up as soon as I see it, closing the file I’m reading on Spencer.
“Little Bird,” I greet. “Shouldn’t you be asleep?”
“Where are you?” she snaps.
I’m up from my desk immediately. “What’s wrong? What happened? Put Locke on the phone—”
“No, everything’s fine,” she cuts me off, sounding very grumpy. “But I’ve been locked in this fucking penthouse forthree daysandhaven’t even gotten tosee you. I’m going to lose my mind.”
I slowly sink back into my seat, something strange tugging at my chest. “Little bird, do youmiss me?”
“Don’t be ridiculous,” she scoffs, but it lacks some of her usual rancor. “I’m just… lonely. I can walk semi-normally now, so I don’t understand why I can’t go out during the day.”
“There are dangerous things going on,” I say. “Besides that, I’m not sure I trust you not to run again.”
“I won’t run again,” she says quickly. “But I’m losing my mind here. I don’t get to see anyone, it’s just me and my laptop all day, every day. I need human contact. Or… something.”
“You need a dose of my hand on your ass and my cock in that tight pussy as a remedy. I understand perfectly.”
“No!” she sounds flustered. I wish I could see her. “No, that’s not… that’s definitely not it at all.”
“I think the lady doth protest too much.”
“I’m not!” she shrieks. Then, quieter… “Seriously, Killian. I need more than what I have right now.”
“An obscene amount of money?” I supply dryly.
