Malum

Tillie

Present

I sidestep past the elegantly placed rocks that lead up to the main entrance of the mansion. Gabriel lifts his hand to knock, but I pause it and reach for the handle. It’s open. I shove the door farther until it slams against the wall. Just as I take a step forward, a plane roars overhead.

“I have a feeling that’s a jet full of angry men…”

My jaw tightens as I enter the house, expecting something. Anything. Only I find myself surrounded by silence. When Katsia ran Perdita, everything was always busy—constantly. There was always music playing, men walking around half naked, that sort of crazy shit. I continue to trudge into the house, glimpsing up the circular staircase.

“Why is it so quiet?”

A hand falls over my face, cutting off my breathing and I kick back, throwing my fists everywhere. The body behind me is large, holding me with strength. The smell of gasoline ignites my senses and then everything slowly goes dark.

My body is heavy, my lids refusing to open. I hear something playing somewhere. It’s not music, it’s—a lullaby. Strong strings tinkle, the warped sound wailing the probability of a low battery. My cheek is throbbing, something cold pressing against it. Finally, I manage to open my eyes. The room is sideways. Dark concrete walls. No windows. I fly to my feet, wobbling a few steps. My hand flies out to stabilize myself, coming into co

Daemon’s book!

I spin around in search for my duffle bag, finding nothing but a damp puddle on concrete ground. The very ground I woke up on. Gross.

Muffled whispers echo off the long hallway that resembles a prison sector, with I don’t know how many cells leading off.

“Who’s there?” I call out, pressing my cheek to the cool bar in an attempt to get a better look.

“They won’t answer,” the voice that replies to my hurried question sounds robotic.

I scream, spi

I catch movement near a dark corner on the other side of my cell, and that’s when I see the outline of someone. “What do you want from me?”

There’s a long silence, aside from the whispers that don’t seem to stop. A dark chuckle ripples through the air like a bad frequency threatening to taint everything you thought you knew. “I don’t want anything from you.”

I chew on my bottom lip. “Well can you come out of the shadow, so I can at least see you better?”

“No.”

I slide down the cell door until my ass hits the cold ground. “Are you a prisoner?”

“Yes.” There’s a roughness to the way he talks.

I’m intrigued. Aside from the robotic tone.

“God I fucking hate that bitch.” I decide to change the subject, massaging my temples. “I’m going to kill her.”

“Yeah?” the voice says, and I don’t miss the bite in his tone. “Make sure you save me her tits so I can tear them off and feed them to my dog.”

I don’t bother to look toward him. I know I can’t see. “Your dog likes silicon?”

He doesn’t answer.

“What’s your name?”

I turn my head to look over my shoulder, my eyes going back to the baby rattle that’s sitting in the middle of the cell. It’s a haunting reminder of what I’ve lost and what I also need to find.

“Don’t have a name.”

I turn back to face the shadow. “Well, that’s just sad…”

That was a dumb thing to say. I blame it on stress and confusion.

Silence. Nothing more than silence fills the cold space between us.

This is getting weird, talking to someone who I can’t see and who has a strange voice. “This is ridiculous. I can’t believe I’m locked in this shit cell.” Shut up, Tillie. Stop talking. Find a way to get out. My head hurts. I slam my eyes closed and pull my legs up to rest my face on my knees.

“Do you know why you’re here?” the voice asks. I should call him Shadow. Since he is nothing but one.

I turn to face the shadow. “Yes and no. Do you?” Where the fuck is Gabriel?

“…Yes.” His voice. There’s something about it that sparks something inside of me.

The sound of a door opening and heavy heels click across the concrete hallway. I stand, stepping backward until I bump into shadow man. I didn’t realize I had ventured into his space. “Sorry.”

His chest is to my back. I can feel every intake of breath that he takes. I can also feel how rock hard his chest is pressing against my back. He’s tall, and…built.

His lips come to my ear. “Are you the mea principessa?”

My body stills. I step away, but the man’s hand presses against my flat tummy, holding me against his chest. “You wa

Shit.

His smirk presses against the back of my neck, right as the cell unlocks and Khales comes into view. Dressed in a short crop top and a leather miniskirt, her black hair is tied in a high ponytail. She’s looking right at the shadow.

She smirks. “Ready to see your mother, Tills?”

I straighten my shoulders.

Shadow man chuckles. “Sic ‘em, girl.”

I don’t know what it is or why. I do not even know the shadow, but he gives me a direct line of confidence. One that I need right at this very moment.

I tilt my head, my eyes ru

Khales chuckles. “Oh, I can’t even begin to tell you how wrong you are.” She lunges toward me, her hand coming to my throat. Before I can register what is happening, I’m being smashed against a cold wall. “I saw you found Daemon’s book.” She tilts her head, looking me up and down.

“What of it?”

A small smile comes onto her mouth. “Oh nothing, just that Daemon is… complicated.”

Slowly inching my hand toward the front of my jeans, I squeeze around the handle, keeping my eyes on hers. I don’t care about what she’s saying, just keep her occupied and her eyes away from what I’m doing.

“Oh? And why is that?” I know why and how he is complicated, but the fact that she thinks she knows what she is saying is almost comical. I say almost, but I mean all the way there.

She exhales, her fingers flexing on my neck. “Aw, because he’s sick, dear.”

I yank the knife out and in one movement, launch the tip of the blade into the side of her neck. I watch her eyes pop in shock as her warm blood spills over my hand. Finally, her grip lets up around my throat, going to her own in search of the stab wound.

“You don’t know shit.” I sink the blade in farther and she lets out a small gurgling cry. “About Daemon. And no one fucking likes you—” I shove her body away from me until it falls to the ground in a lifeless heap “—bitch.” Wiping the blood off the blade and onto my shirt, I look up at the two guards who are standing at the door of my cell. “Do you know who I am?”