Page 56 of Sharing Silence

What the hell is going on?

“Did I do something wrong, Mercy?” he asks quietly.

She shakes her head. “No, honey. But I need you to get on your knees.”

He swallows. “My knees?”

Mercy’s smile vanishes. “Are you going to make me repeat myself?”

Simmons drops to his knees, and he’s trembling. Actually trembling.

“Good.” Mercy smiles again and looks at me. “See?”

I consider Simmons, and it is impressive, but it doesn’t mean much. “That doesn’t really tell me anything.”

She taps her bottom lip in thought, then looks back down at the young man.

“Simmons, break your finger.”

“Which one?”

I blanch at the immediate agreement, but Mercy doesn’t. She shrugs. “Whichever, love.”

Simmons grips his little finger—and snaps it. He winces, and his friends do, too. His eyes are scrunched closed, but he doesn’t make a sound.

“What do we say?” Mercy coos.

Simmons opens his eyes, sweat dotting his brow. “Thank you, Mercy.”

“Such a good boy. Go now.”

“Wait.” I hold my hand up, brow furrowed. “Why did you do that?”

Simmons looks panicked. “Because Mercy asked me to.”

“And she has control over you how?”

He swallows. “Because I don’t want to upset her. Can I go now?” He’s asking Mercy, not me, and that has me really smiling this time.

“Yes, honey, you can go,” she says.

He scurries away, and Mercy looks up at me hopefully.

That was impressive, but I’m not here to give recruitment advice. People sign their lives away to us for a reason, and it isn’t as simple as changing your mind.

“Give it some time,” I say, and Mercy’s shoulders dip. “Your first kill changes everything.”

She smiles, and though it isn’t as bright as before, it still seems real. “I suppose I am bowing out a little early. Well, I’ll get out of your way. Nyx and I are playing hide and seek, and I’m starting to think she’s in the ceiling.” She eyes the tiles above us, then slinks away.

We continue toward the basement door. “Can you send me her file?”

Envy nods. “You’re considering moving her?”

“Considering something,” I say, watching Mercy as she climbs a pile of mats and shifts aside a ceiling tile, lifting herself out of sight. “I just don’t know what yet.”

Envy shoves open the basement door. Clean lines of metal and glass greet us as we head downstairs into the offices, bunker, and medical facility. A duty doctor is on standby somewhere, but the basement spans the entire length and width of the house, so he could be anywhere.

“What was the emergency?” I ask, as we reach the medical bay. Envy types in her code, and the door shifts open.