The Last Witch: Volume One

‘Your niece?’ Grayson has a rather fake disbelieving smirk. ‘I thought you were the last Hooper? Well, you and your son. Now you are telling me you have a sister? Not only that, but she had a daughter? That’s a fair few more Hooper’s than I was led to believe existed. Surely you weren’t lying to me before? No…you can’t possibly have a niece.’ Grayson’s playing with him like a cat would play with a mouse, enraging my prideful uncle even further. And what’s more, the revelation that I’m family hasn’t surprised him one bit. I think maybe he knew as soon as he saw me.

‘I had a sister. That’s her daughter.’ All I get is a slight nod from Harry. No eye contact. ‘Are you happy? Now leave my wife alone. For God’s sake, man.’

‘Where is your sister now?’ Grayson asks.

‘Dead. She died seventeen years ago when the girl was five,’ Harry says, nervously eyeing the knife still at Christa’s neck. But Grayson is watching me with a chilling calm.

‘Lilly…. that is a very pretty name,’ he says sweetly, crossing his legs and leaning back on the sofa. ‘A pretty name for a very pretty girl. My name is Grayson. Grayson Kendryk.’ He nods behind me. ‘The man who found you is Hendrix Spencer, and the man standing by your aunt, is Cailean Collin. But we call him Collins. I wonder, have you heard of me?’ He secures eye contact with me once more and emanates ease, calm and control. Nothing around him seems to faze him. The bodies in the hall, the severed fingers on the floor, or the thin, frightened young woman sitting beside him.

I shake my head. I have no idea who he is.

He seems to be thinking as he looks me over. About what? I have no idea. After a sudden intake of breath, he turns and looks at Collins.

‘Remove the handcuffs from Lilly’s wrists.’

What? He’s setting me free?

Yes!

With my hands free I have a chance of getting out of here.

Collins steps forward to do as he’s been asked, and I’m more than happy to be rid of the cuffs. I eagerly hold out my wrists behind me.

Hendrix steps forwards. ‘Boss, do you think that’s wise? She could be dangerous.’

‘Nonsense. Look at her. She’s skin and bones. And besides, she knows better than to try and run. Don’t you, Lilly?’

Hastily, I nod. Anything to get my arms free.

‘Precisely.’ He leans in towards me as Collins makes his way over. ‘Just so you know, if your hands go anywhere near that gag of yours without my express permission, you will sorely regret it. Do you understand me?’ He waits for me to agree. ‘I mean it, Miss Hooper. Do as I say and everything will be fine. Disobey me, and it will not be. Am I being clear?’

I nod. I believe him. Completely.

With no effort at all, Collins breaks the handcuffs and removes them from my wrists entirely, dropping them to the floor by my feet with a thud. The freedom feels amazing. But sore. My arms have been behind my back for so long, moving them so they’re in front of me is slow work. The bones click, and the muscles stretch as they try to remember how to work. It hurts, but it’s a good hurt. Like stretching out a dead leg. Grayson’s eyes furrow as he sees my pain.

‘How long have you been like this?’ he asks as I settle my hands on my lap. ‘Christ!’ He snatches my arm and pulls up my sleeves revealing dark bruises and bloody welts from where I’ve been pulling against my restraints for so long. ‘You must be in agony!’ Glancing over his shoulder, he glares at Harry. ‘What kind of man does this to his own family?!’

I snatch my arm away and slide back across the sofa keen to get some distance. Collins returns to my aunt’s side with a disgusted glance at the metal cuffs on the floor.

‘Lilly, I’m not going to hurt you.’

I jerk away as he reaches out.

‘What is that?’ Grayson asks Harry. ‘Why does she flinch away from me?’

‘She doesn’t like being touched,’ my uncle mumbles. ‘Never has. It’s called haphephobia.’

‘Fear of touch. I’m familiar with the condition,’ Grayson muses before sliding away an inch and holding his hands up by his head. ‘Then I won’t touch you, Lilly. You have my word. Here…’

He hands me the glass of water. I take it, and this time it goes down a little easier. I keep the glass in my hands, using the coolness to rest against my wrist hoping it will help ease the throbbing. But I don’t trust him or his apparent kindness one bit and keep a watchful eye on him.

‘I know you are afraid, and that the attack you just suffered below the house must have hurt your throat, but can you try and answer my questions? Why have they done this to you?’

My smile disappears as I run my fingers along the raw skin in the corners of my mouth caused by the gag.

Grayson pulls off his tie and dips it in the remainder of the water.

‘May I?’ he asks, holding it just by the corner of my mouth. ‘The tie will touch you. I won’t.’ I nod, and he gently cleans the wounds. I watch him as he concentrates. How can someone so terrifying be so…tender? And why is he being so kind to me when he’s actively torturing my aunt and uncle?

‘If it hurts too much to talk,’ he says, lowering his tie and looking me in the eye. ‘Just give me a nod or a shake of your head. I need to know, are these people your aunt and uncle?’

I give a slight nod, which my uncle doesn’t like at all.

‘Girl, you better keep your mouth shut! You have no idea who you’re dealing with. He’s not your friend!’ Harry’s voice sends a cold shiver straight down my spine and despite myself, I lower my head.

Grayson slowly turns his attention to Harry. ‘That girl… has not opened her mouth nor said a single word since we found her. I suggest you do the same. Unless asked a question, Mr Hooper, I recommend you keep your foul mouth shut. Or the next thing we cut off will be your tongue.’ The way Grayson speaks is slow and purposeful. Not an ounce of anger, just a ton of menace. But it works, and my uncle remains silent. But I am also very aware that not a few moments ago, a man that I have known my entire life, the closest thing to a father I’ve ever had, just tried to kill me rather than see me in the hands of these men.

Returning his attention to me, Grayson carries on.

‘I just want answers to a few questions I have. Your uncle’s manners and refusal to cooperate has got many people killed and landed him and his wife in this position. But you will help me, won’t you? I am not here to hurt anyone. Least of all you.’

I give a small nod. I have no intention of being tied up again or losing digits.

‘Good girl. I knew you and me would be friends.’

‘She isn’t what you think,’ Harry insists.

‘I think denying what she is, is rather redundant. Her gag and the fact that you would rather see her dead than anywhere near me, tells me everything I need to know. You filthy traitor. You call yourself Hooper. You are the furthest from a Hooper I could ever have imagined.’

‘You have no idea what she’s capable of,’ Harry tells him darkly. ‘There’s a reason why she was locked up. She’s not…normal.’

Grayson looks between us warily but seems to decide that Harry’s talking nonsense.

‘I don’t like normal so that works out well. You know who I am, Hooper. You know what I am, and now you have seen what I am capable of. So, if you think this malnourished, frail and frankly traumatised little thing frightens me, or your words will scare me off, you are very, very mistaken. I suggest you stop acting like a fool. I understand that may be hard for you, Mr Hooper, but please, do try.’ Grayson shows me a smile and even throws me a wink.

But Harry’s not done.

‘She has to be contained. She’s evil, Grayson. A monster. A fucking murderer. You have no idea.’ My hands are shaking. I try hard not to let his words get to me. But after everything he’s done, he dares call me the monster? I’m getting angry as he continues listing all the words I’ve heard a hundred times before. Liar. Bitch. Psycho.

‘ENOUGH, HOOPER!’ Grayson shouts, making me jump. ‘Now, you and I both know that the reason you hid this girl is because…she is a witch.’

My insides feel heavier than lead.

Harry laughs and shakes his head. ‘I don’t think so.’

‘Harbouring a witch is punishable by death, Mr Hooper. Hiding her from us…is much worse.’

‘Good job she isn’t a witch then,’ he insists.

‘You are lying,’ Grayson starts speaking through his teeth he’s getting so frustrated. But he doesn’t ask me directly what I am. Just Harry. ‘I really hate being lied to. She is a witch. There is a binding spell currently dangling around her neck. Admit it now, Please.’

Harry and I both remain silent as he holds his cynical stare.

‘Right,’ Grayson sighs, slapping his hands on his knees and moving closer to me. ‘Then there will be no problem in me removing her gag. Will there? I mean, if she were a witch, and was given back her magic, I would be more inclined to think that you and your wife would be the ones in danger here. Not me. You are the ones that locked her up. You are the ones that just tried to have her killed.’ He reaches out for me, his hands going to the gag still tied loosely around my neck. ‘We will soon find out where her loyalties lie. Just to be clear, Miss Hooper. Witch or not, I will not harm you as long as you behave. Saying that however, if you feel the need to exact some revenge on your captors, I heartily encourage you to do so.’

‘DON’T!’ Harry yells as Grayson gets in touching distance. ‘GET YOUR HANDS OFF HER, YOU FUCKING FREAK!’

Grayson’s hands stop just by my neck. ‘Freak?’ Grayson repeats quietly. I see a darkness in his eyes that makes me thrilled I didn’t insult him at any point.

Collins stands straighter. Hendrix gives a low growl. All three men react to that word, the insult aimed at their leader, and if I did care about Harry, I’d be afraid for him right now.

The atmosphere in the room intensifies as Grayson lowers his hands from me, and turns instead to my uncle. Well, Harry certainly succeeded in stopping him removing the gag. But I’m pretty sure he’ll regret how he accomplished it.

‘Did you just call me a freak?’ Grayson slowly gets to his feet and walks towards him. The predator stalking his prey. Harry’s eyes grow wider in fear the closer Grayson gets. Considering the circumstances, Harry seems pretty unharmed.

I get the feeling that’s about to change.

‘I think the only freak here, is you, Mr Hooper. I see the way she cowers as you speak. The terror she has about being touched. She’s yours, is she? And in what way is she –yours? She’s a pretty little thing. I bet that’s why you kept her alive, isn’t it? So you can make sure she’s yours whenever you want her to be-’

‘If you’re insinuating-’

Grayson’s angry. His voice is brimming with it as he cuts Harry off. ‘You mistake my manners for leniency. I have spared you any real harm because you are after all, still a Hooper-’

‘You murdered my staff, mutilated my wife, and now you accuse me of interfering with my own niece! Is that your version of manners?!’ Harry replies astounded.

‘Why else would she be so afraid of touch?’

‘I wouldn’t touch her even if she weren’t related to me. She’s a vile, filthy, disgusting Witch-’

‘A witch, huh?’ Grayson looks at me over his shoulder with a triumphant smile before turning back to Harry. ‘Your son is no witch. You are no witch. But she is. The red hair alone is a giveaway. All Hooper witches had that lovely hair. Never mind the gag or the fear she clearly instils in you. She’s a Hooper witch. And you will pay for hurting her. You will pay dearly.’

Panicked, Harry turns to me. ‘They’re here to take you away with them. You know that, right? To do whatever they want with you. You think they want to be your friend? Getting into your knickers, that’s what they want. And if you say no to them, they’ll force themselves on you. They want to further our bloodline. Make more Hooper’s. Make more witches.’ Harry doesn’t get to say another word before Collins, looking utterly disgusted at his words, slams his fist hard into Harry’s face. His nose explodes with blood, and I flinch at the sound of the bone breaking.

‘You’re vile,’ Collins tells my uncle before looking at me and shaking his head. ‘No one is going to touch you like that, Lilly. We would never.’

But every cell in my body is on alert at the mere suggestion. I sit even more nervously on the sofa with my hands gripping the edge of the cushions. I reach up for the gag.

‘Don’t,’ Grayson warns. ‘Don’t even think about listening to his lies. If you remove that binding spell and turn on me, there will be consequences, Miss Hooper. Please, do not force my hand. I do not want to hurt you. Truly.’

‘I can’t…’ I whisper.

‘You can’t? Can’t what?’ he asks, his eyes narrowed in sympathy as he hears the fear and strain in my voice.

‘I can’t face any more. Not again. I can’t. Please, please let me go.’ I look at them all standing there, with blood on their clothes and death on their hands. ‘If you are here to hurt me, please kill me instead.’

‘You did not actually just ask me to kill you?’ he asks sadly. He takes a step in my direction.

I get to my feet and sprint to the door, but I’m much weaker than I thought. I’m clumsy and slow. Grayson catches me easily. He lifts me up as I thrash and scream, desperate to get away. Desperate not to be hurt by anyone anymore.

‘NO!’ I shriek. ‘GET OFF. PLEASE. I BEG YOU!’

‘Take it easy, Lilly,’ Grayson says loudly over my screaming while tightening his grip. ‘You’re not going anywhere, so calm down.’

‘Please don’t hurt me.’ I keep trying to get free as terrified sobs escape me.

‘Lilly Hooper!’ he barks. ‘Look around you. You’re completely surrounded and you can barely stand. Stop trying to run, and settle down before you hurt yourself,’ he warns in my ear.

My head falls forwards as I cry. I give up trying to get free from his arms that are wrapped tightly around me, and I just sob desperately.

‘Please don’t hurt me, Grayson. I beg you.’

He turns me, keeping me wrapped in his arms as he looks down at my tear soaked face.

‘Please…’ I cry. ‘Please…’

‘Listen to me. My men and I do not rape women. I don’t like the accusation that we would, so get that out of your mind right now. We’re many things but not that. We do bad things. But only to people who deserve bad things. I believe the people in the hall, the people who have locked you up, left you hungry and cold, left you fearing the touch of another, I believe that they deserve bad things. And I know that they…’ he points to Harry and Christa. ‘They definitely deserve bad things. Don’t cry.’ He places a hand on his heart. ‘I swear, us finding you has been the best thing to ever happen to you. I assure you. Now please, calm yourself.’

His dark eyes fill with sincerity. He reaches up and wipes my tears with his thumb. It’s a kind gesture. One I do appreciate. But it creates the familiar agony that I always feel with physical contact. An instant sensation of violation and dread that makes my skin feel like it’s being burnt with hundreds of needles over every inch he touches.

‘Do you promise?’ I ask weakly.

‘I promise. I just can’t let you remove that binding spell until I know that you won’t turn on us. You clearly don’t trust us and you are very emotional. I won’t risk our safety. Or yours. But I promise that you can take it off soon. When you are calmer. When we both trust each other a little more. Fair?’

His hands settle on my hips as he looks down at me with gentle kindness. I lay my palms flat on his chest as a mark of trust, and nod.

‘Good girl.’

‘He’s lying!’ Harry spits blood onto the carpet. ‘Look at what they’ve done to Christa. They’ve murdered everyone you know. You’ll be passed around. Is that what you want? You’ll be tied up. Their hands will be all over you, touching you!’ Harry continues tormenting me, knowing exactly what to say to make me panic. I fear touch. I can’t stand it, and as he says these things, I see them in my head. All the things that could happen to me play out like a film behind my eyes. My hands cover my ears as it gets harder to breathe.

‘Please, make him stop.’

Grayson lets me go and stands over Harry who shrinks back at his mere presence, but there’s nowhere for him to go. Grayson holds out his hand to Collins who, without needing to be told what to do, places the knife into it.

‘You tell her we’re going to hurt her. Touch her in nasty ways because you know that is what she is frightened of. I think it is you who are the vile, filthy and disgusting thing here. This is what happens to men who touch women without their permission in my world.’

With incredible force, Grayson drives the knife into my uncle’s wrist, almost severing his hand altogether.

‘We take away their hands.’

As Harry yells, Grayson twists the knife making his screams of agony even more unbearable. I’ve never heard a man scream like it! Blood spurts from the wound as Grayson yanks out the knife. He rests the tip above his other wrist.

‘You…you can’t do this!’ he stammers eyeing the knife. ‘You need me. I’m a Hooper!’

‘So is she. And so is your son. I bet he’ll accept my offer if she won’t. Not so cocky now, are you? Knowing your life isn’t as safe as it was before we found her. You’re not the last Hooper, and I have no problem killing a man like you. Unless you have some information that can change my mind?’ He keeps the knife pressing into his skin. ‘I want to know where your son is.’

‘I told you,’ Harry’s voice is shaking and getting weaker as the steady flow of blood from his wrist gathers by his foot, creating a large puddle. I don’t know if it’s fear that has me silent, letting this happen. Or the sense of justice that finally he’s getting what he deserves.

‘Last I heard he was in Paris spending his inheritance. I haven’t seen him in over five years.’

‘Your son isn’t in Paris. Or anywhere in France. I looked. I want to know where he is, Hooper!’ The tip of the blade digs in, piercing his skin.

‘I told you, last I heard my son was in Paris! I swear!’ Spit flies from his mouth as he speaks, desperate for Grayson to believe his words. And he does.

‘What about the other boy?’

Other boy? Harry only had one son.

‘I told you,’ Harry’s starting to slur. ‘I have no idea who you’re talking about.’

‘Yes, you do. I know you do. He was here. Two years ago. He is one of my men, and I have it on excellent authority that the last place he was seen was heading inside this house. And he hasn’t been seen since. I want to know the following. What was he doing here? Where is he now? And where is the Journal? WHERE IS HE?’ Grayson’s calm composure is gone. Replaced by this menacing interrogator. His anger’s so terrifying, it even makes Harry flinch. ‘TELL ME!’ He takes the knife and digs it into his throat.

‘I DON’T KNOW WHO YOU’RE TALKING ABOUT!’ Harry yells, desperately trying to get away from the knife. ‘I SWEAR!’

‘Mid-twenties. Stark white hair. Violet eyes, you really couldn’t miss him. So. One last time or I will drive this knife straight through your fat neck until it comes out the other side. Where is he?’

My stomach hits the floor, and every bit of breath leaves my lungs.

I know who he’s looking for.

Oh shit. What the hell do I do? I’m so distracted by my own panic that I only just now realise that the room has fallen silent and that everyone, absolutely everyone, is looking at me. Grayson has a considerable frown as he looks me over and then he points at me accusingly.

‘What did you just say?’

‘Me?’ I ask in a shaky voice. ‘Nothing.’

‘Yes. You did. You whispered a name.’

‘Did I?’ I ask in a weak, fretful whisper. I give a shrug and shake my head. ‘I don’t-’

‘Miss Hooper. You are lying to me. I can see it on your face. I can hear it in your voice. I warn you, lie to me again, and I’ll tie you up next to your uncle. Do you hear me?’

His threat and the tone in which it’s delivered turns my blood cold.

‘We made a deal. You would not lie to me, and I will not hurt you. I will ask you again. The boy I’m looking for, with white hair and lilac eyes…have you seen him?’

All I can do is sit here, frozen. Grayson looks back to Harry, digging the tip of the blade in a little deeper.

‘Wait!’ Harry gasps. ‘Wait, wait!’ His eyes move frantically between Grayson, the knife and me. ‘The man he’s looking for, it’s him, isn’t it?’ Harry waits, his eyes firmly on me. ‘It is…he’s the one that got you into all that trouble. That’s who he’s looking for?’

‘Trouble?’ Grayson asks. ‘What trouble?’

‘Don’t. Don’t you dare, uncle Harry.’

‘You said you never saw the man I’m looking for,’ Grayson accuses, glaring at Harry.

‘I never saw him, no,’ Harry says. ‘But she knows.’

‘She does?’

‘Of course she knows who you’re talking about. She just said his name. Toby. Toby Smith. He used to sneak into her room through the window.’ They’re all watching me, and the panic on my face is as clear as day. ‘Two years ago,’ Harry says hastily, eyeing the knife. ‘She ran off with him and then he dumped her back here six weeks later. Toby. Her boyfriend.’

‘Boyfriend?’ Grayson says in disbelief, lowering the knife. ‘You, you and he-’

‘Was,’ I say weakly. The mention of Toby makes me want to curl up on the floor and sob. ‘Okay. Okay, I know who you’re looking for, and yes, we were together, but I don’t know where he is.’

‘Tears… Grayson, don’t fall for her little act,’ my uncle scoffs at me as I quickly wipe them away, hating that they fall at the mere mention of Toby’s name.

‘Shut up,’ I snipe. Harry’s getting paler and paler as he continues to lose blood but he’s always been a stubborn man. He’ll die when he wants to and not a moment sooner. He isn’t done trying to break me yet.

‘One wrong word. One innocent touch. One argument where she loses her temper. That’s all it takes. Even if she doesn’t mean to. She can’t control herself. She doesn’t want to control herself! That girl is dark and dangerous.’ All eyes turn on me. ‘Why don’t you tell them why you were down in the cellar? About what you did when you tried to run away?’ Harry’s throwing me under the bus. It’s him or me, and he won’t give up without a fight.

‘What did you do? Why were you in the cellar?’ Grayson asks.

I open my mouth to speak, but nothing comes out. I have no idea what to say because I can’t tell him the truth.

‘Whatever happened, whatever you may have done won’t change my promise to you. I won’t hurt you as long as you are truthful.’ I trust the sincerity on his face. It’s a risk telling him anything. But what other choice do I have?

‘You heard about the Miller farm massacre?’ Harry asks before I can say a word. ‘She killed six innocent people in those six weeks she ran off. Murdered them all in cold blood. Even your man couldn’t cope with her, so he brought her back. And she will do the same to you in a heartbeat.’

‘Stop talking, Harry!’ I warn.

‘The Miller farm massacre?’ Grayson asks. ‘I read about that in the paper. It was humans.’

‘If Simmons and I hadn’t gone in there and moved those bodies, we’d have witch hunters swarming all over us. Making it look like a human affair was near impossible, but we did it so we didn’t suffer for her actions. She ran away, lost control of her magic and killed those men. I had to lock her up. It was the only way to keep us all safe.’

‘That wasn’t me.’

‘One man was found pinned to the roof of that barn by a pitchfork. Another had every single one of his bones broken. Another literally torn to pieces. His entrails wrapped around his neck like a scarf. That’s who she is. That’s what she does. I could go on.’

‘I would rather you didn’t,’ Grayson replies, looking at me with uncertainty.

‘She can’t be trusted, Grayson. She will kill you and your men, and anyone else who so much as looks at her funny. That binding spell must never be removed. Or she will destroy us all. You take that binding spell off, she’ll turn on you. I guarantee it. You can’t allow yourself to be fooled by the fragile little girl routine. You can’t!’

‘If you’re so scared of her, why not just brand her?’ Hendrix asks. ‘Much more effective way to keep her in line.’

‘Because,’ Grayson answers on Harry’s behalf while gesturing to the gag. ‘Only a Witch with magic can brand another Witch. To sear the binding spell into flesh will only work with magic. But this he can do. Bind her magic. Lock her away.’

‘I had to be cruel. I had to be tough. After what she did-’

‘You tortured me long before I ran away.’ I look at Harry, hating him with every fibre of my being. ‘Since I was five, you made my life a living hell.’

He looks at me the same way as he says the words he would say after every time he raised his hand to me.

‘You, girl…are a monster. And you got what monsters deserve. And Grayson will do far worse than lock you away when he sees the real you.’

I look Harry straight in the eye. Something I was always too scared to do. My fists are clenched, and my hands are trembling, but not through fear. Not this time. Everything he’s done to me, not only the last two years but since I was five, and he calls me a monster?

I can’t help the laugh that comes with my words. ‘You think out of the two of us, that I’m the monster?’

‘You killed those men. I know it-’

‘What about what you’ve done?’ I take a step towards him. ‘What you let happen to me under this roof?’ Grayson steps slightly to one side, giving me a clear path to face my captor. ‘In the seventeen years I’ve lived with you, you have starved me. Beat me. Humiliated me. Encouraged the cruelties that your wife and your staff would put me through for sport. Before putting me in your cellar, you locked me up like an animal upstairs in that attic every day for almost two decades. You took everything from me, Harry. Simmons just tried to kill me!’ The anger coursing through me is like acid burning at my insides. ‘My mum died and left me in your care. I was five years old. A child. You were supposed to look after me.’

‘I did my best!’

‘TWO FUCKING YEARS I’VE BEEN DOWN THERE! ALONE! IN CHAINS!’

‘Bloody hell…’ Collins whispers. ‘That’s inhumane. How could you do such a thing?’

‘What the hell was I supposed to do with her?! Take her on holiday? Let her go to school?’

‘How about feed me! Clothe me! Protect me!’

‘If anyone got the slightest inkling you were here, we would all have been taken by Hunters. We all would have been executed. Even knowing a witch is a death sentence. You can’t control yourself, just look at what you did to your poor, stupid mother. How could I let you out in the world?’

‘I was five when my mum died. How can you blame me for something I can’t even remember? Am I the mad one for thinking this was all a pointless waste of energy on your part? You could have just left me alone. Hell, you could have just killed me! You didn’t have to make me suffer like this.’

‘It was my duty to keep you away from the world. To keep you in line. You lose your temper and look what happens. People die!’

‘I NEVER USED TO BE LIKE THIS! I DON’T WANT TO HURT ANYONE!’

Harry looks to Grayson. ‘You need to listen to me. I’ve seen her angry. I’ve seen her upset and believe me when I say you’re completely unprepared for it.’

‘Maybe he’s right,’ Hendrix grunts. ‘Boss, she could be dangerous. If she’s really been in that room for two years, I’m not sure she’s gonna be all that stable.’

I don’t give anyone the chance to say another word as I take one more step towards the ever-weakening Harry.

‘This has nothing to do with anyone else so stop trying to bring them into this. This is between us.’

‘I should’ve known something was going on when you started acting out.’

‘You mean fighting back!’

‘I never saw it coming. You and a boy. I mean, who in their right mind would want a girl as damaged as you?’

‘I can think of someone.’ I want to choke on the words. ‘You didn’t seem to care about him wanting me, though did you?’

‘I don’t know what you’re talking about,’ he says, looking away to the floor. His denial is infuriating. ‘Lies. You’re a liar.’

‘Call me a liar one more time, and I’ll show you a real monster.’

‘Slanderous lies-’

‘I mean it. I’ll rip out your tongue and make you eat it. You make me sick. Even now there’s no remorse. No admittance that what you’ve put me through is nothing less than sadistic.’

Grayson’s footsteps get closer until he stands by my side, looking at me with a sort of pity in his eyes. It’s the first flicker of kind emotion I’ve seen in them.

‘Someone here has been inappropriate with you, haven’t they?’

I stare at Harry and dare him to say a word. But he won’t. Not about that. Not about…him. My blood’s pumping so fast I can hear it. I don’t think I’ve ever been this angry.

When Grayson’s hand attempts to take mine, I snatch it away.

‘Don’t fucking touch me. DON’T!’

‘I’m sorry. I didn’t mean-’

‘WILL YOU CONTAIN HER!’ Harry yells at Grayson. ‘BEFORE SHE KILLS US!’

‘Boss,’ Collins calls nervously. ‘I think we should-’

‘What?’ I snap angrily. ‘Put me down? Lock me up? I DIDN’T KILL ANYONE! I NEVER HURT ANYONE! THE ONLY ONE WHO HAS SUFFERED HERE IS ME! HE’S LYING TO YOU!’

Grayson’s hands raise up. ‘I believe you. No one here is going to hurt you. I promise.’

‘Oh, I know,’ I snarl with bitter tears streaming down my face. ‘That’s never going to happen. Not again.’

Grayson’s eyes flick behind me for the briefest of seconds. An action I’m sure was more subconscious than conscious. I turn and see Hendrix making his way slowly towards me. A knife in his hand. His black eyes are firmly on me. Collins is watching me too. His fists clenched.

‘SHE IS A FUCKING MONSTER!’ Harry shouts, pulling against his ropes. ‘WILL YOU BLOODY LISTEN TO ME?! SHE’S A MURDERER. A MANIPULATIVE BITCH. A LIAR. SHE’S EVIL!’

That’s it. There’s no more I can take. No more I will take. My whole body is vibrating with fury. I’m panting with hatred. In a quick move, I reach out and snatch the bloody knife still in Grayson’s hand. He tries to take it back, but I’ve already pressed the blade into the cloth around my throat and sliced.

As soon as the binding spell leaves my body, I feel it. My magic’s free and flowing through me a hundred miles a second, making me breathless and dizzy, but strong. After being separated from it for so long, it swirls inside my chest and claws at my skin desperate to get out. Begging me to use it. It’s seeping from my pores and feels fucking fantastic.

Without my magic, I’m nothing more than a helpless girl.

But with it…I’m a force to be feared.

Even by a man like Grayson.

And definitely by Harry fucking Hooper.