Page 56 of Born for Silk
“You want it?”
“Fuck no.”
Cairo looks at Bled. “It will get out of control now that Darwin is missing, and we cannot have his chosen Collective speculating. So, we will have the Shadows enter and finish twenty-one Xin De Trade men and Darwin’s Collective. We will kill them in the Common way—with poison from the La Mu root. Xin De will turn on Common, and we will send the Martial Blues in to keep the peace. We will put the entire tower under heavy restrictions and organise a new management team from the ashes of this?—”
“Civil unrest,” I finish.
“Yes.” The Trade Master smiles, but it does not meet his sharp gaze. “And we are their hope for peace and Meaningful Purpose.”
Impressive.
I slash a man’s throat open for touching a silly, little girl, and Cairo somehow redirects the entire event to suit his damn agenda. Most of the time, I hate the man— No, I despise him all of the time. I would reach in and pull out his beating heart most days, but I must admit he is a narcissistic mastermind.
“Do you have a lord in mind for the task, Sire?” Turin Two asks, probing to get to the guts of this topic. He might want it. A tower far away from me, but because he wants it, I desperately do not desire to give it to him.
“Not as yet,” I answer.
“All settled then.” Bled looks at Medan. “Execute Darwin’s Collective. Stoke the civil disputes over who is to blame, then save the day. Happy, Lord Medan?”
Medan nods stiffly.
Cairo clasps his hands on the large oak table, entwining his fingers, his many rings glinting under the lights. “It may seem less than authentic, but it’s necessary to keep the peace. For the citizens of The Cradle, we needed to remove Lord Darwin, and I assure you, Lord Medan, we will move in before there are too many casualties.”
I rub the rough, hard surface of my jaw. My mind is now tickled with the memory of a little creature gagging on my cock while Darwin choked on blood... And her sweet questions after, her warm thighs and pussy on my lap, her big violet eyes full of arousal, her interest in my genetics and?—
“Are you smiling?”
I glare across at Turin Two, cocky fucker. “I was thinking about Darwin’s sliced arteries.” It’s not completely a lie. My eyes narrow on him. “For such a small Xin De, he sure had a lot of blood inside him.” I stand, ending the meeting. “I have hunting to do. Bled, join me.”
He stands, smooths his leathers down his chest and walks to open the door for me. “Aquilla Cats?”
“Pests. And the beasts used to be extinct.” I walk through the door, and he trails me. “But I do enjoy culling the fuckers. To think our ancestors thousands of years before The Cradle used to sit around and watch a screen all day.”
Bled hums. “Well, bored people are boring.”
Chapter Eight
Aster
Silk Girl Vows:
For The Trade, I will share my last breath if The Cradle need me to. Whether it is land, man, or breath, I do not take possession.
I spoon some oatmeal between my lips, humming.
My cheeks radiate heat, so I wave a small parchment hand fan in front of my face, fanning the sweat to a glistening cool mist.
Glancing around the table, I notice the others are rosy-faced, while above us, the air conditioner hums softly so I know this isn’t an external heat. Nope. We are burning up from the inside out. All of us.
‘Ovulating, little creature.’
I suppress a groan as the events from yesterday unfold behind my eyes like turning pages in my memory.
“Lick.”
“Concentrate on me, little creature.”
“Go to your room.”