Disco didn’t lose his casual pose, but through our mark, I felt a brief rush of panic. “Rhiannon stored the knife in a safe place, she was concerned—”
I was taken from my seat and planted on the floor—on my ass one second, on my back the next—and the wind was knocked out of me. The room spun as I tried to get my bearings, to piece together what had just happened.
That fast, and I was no longer playing a game. I was facing the danger I’d been warned about, face to face with a vampire who would snap my neck without hesitation. Marius’s hand was around my throat, applying firm pressure, keeping me exactly where he wanted me as he kneeled by my side. I couldn’t see Paine, Disco, or the room around me. The only thing in my line of vision was a face that was as calm and blank as it had been when I gazed at him in front of the fireplace.
“You have no concerns, no thoughts of your own, and no free will in my home. You provide what I ask for, when I ask for it. Do you understand?”
“I...” Jesus, it was difficult to speak with his fingers pressing into my neck. “I understand.”
“Where is the knife?”
Since I’d lived a life in dangerous situations, I was good at thinking on my feet. I’d give my tormenter the truth but keep the important details to myself.
“Miami.”
Actually, Sucker was tucked away in a UPS box, which would be sent to Miami with a simple phone call. It was amazing what the Men In Brown were willing to do if you offered them a little extra cash.
“Where?” He asked the question like he was asking for directions.
“Safety box.” Another half-truth. The box inside the UPS box was a safe. The damned thing was made of steel and had a numerical lock.
“You’re going to retrieve it and bring it to me.” Again, not a request, an order.
Fuck, this wasn’t going as well as I’d hoped. Disco wasn’t shitting me. Marius would kill me. Period. Game over. You couldn’t argue with the grim reaper, or someone who had the power to turn off the lights permanently.
“I’m making a trip there next weekend”—I gasped as he applied pressure to my throat—“I can get it then.”
“I don’t believe you.” Again, talking to me as if I were as insignificant as a de-winged butterfly trapped in his deadly hand.
Was I going to die? Right here? Right now? The warm hum of the amulet against my breast told me if I wanted to, I could break from of his grasp, call on the power of the stone, and might be able to take his ass. But what would the end result be? Would I cause more harm than good?
Goose’s reminder came to me.
Submission isn’t done out of respect, it’s done because it’s expected.
It killed my pride to do it, to bow down. After my teenage years, I swore I’d never kiss anyone’s ass. “I’m sorry,” I rasped. Saying those two, small words hurt as much the unrelenting fingers around my throat.
“That’s one step in the right direction. A little humility would do you good. I can sense the anger in you, the rage. No matter how much you try to hide it. You’re not suited to be a familiar. Your will is too strong. If I hadn’t promised Gabriel I’d give you the opportunity to prove your worth, I’d have him take the information I need from your mind and you’d be dead.”
Marius stopped talking and looked at me. I understood then that his unreadable face made him undeniably opposing. When you couldn’t read your enemy, it was impossible to figure out the best strategy to defend yourself.
“You’ll go, this very moment, and get what I came for.” Marius’s tone remained level and even. “You’ll bring it back to me, and when you do, you’ll hand it over on your knees. Anything less and you’ll regret it.”