Page 49 of Traces of Her
Lydia makes no attempt to move. Instead, she continues to stare up at me with a defeated look in her eyes.
“Why?” she asks emotionlessly.
I stay quiet as I bend down and set a bottle of water on the ground. My hair falls to the side and I feel the cool air skate across my scars. Standing back up, I catch her gaze, taking in my damaged skin and quickly move my hair back over my shoulder, hiding the marks.
“What happened to you?” The words fall from her lips in a rush.
All color drains from my face, making it whiter than a sheet. Biting the inside of my cheek, I mull over her question before choosing to ignore her. What happened to me is completely irrelevant.
“You need to be ready for what comes next,” I tell her as my eyes bore holes into hers.
She stares at me, her face a mix of disappointment, confusion, and embarrassment.
“So what comes next?” she asks quietly.
That’s a loaded fucking question and one I don’t think anyone could answer confidently.
“He knows your weakness and he’s going to use it against you,” I tell her. “Don’t let him see that it affects you. Don’t give him that satisfaction.”
He’ll play on her weaknesses, that’s what monsters like him do.
My eyes widen as we both here the door slam shut and I’m frozen in place. Lydia lets out a deep sigh as footsteps come from behind me. His scent surrounds me as his hand falls upon my shoulder, warming my skin. Griffin bends down, his lips just barely kissing my ear. “You’re not supposed to be in here.” His velvety voice is low and stern.
Keeping my eyes on Lydia, my face remains impassive and I remain still. Anyone could be watching or listening to us at any given moment.
“If you want me to protect you, you need to do what I say.” He pauses. “Or you know what will happen and neither of us wants that.”
His words have no effect because he’s just telling me things I already know. Without another word to either of them, I turn my back on them and quietly exit the room, leaving Griffin to do whatever he has to.
Griffin’s hands may not be clean, but he’s the only thing keeping us alive.
And he’d die trying to keep me safe if he had to.