Twisted

worse. And after witnessing Sorin’s skill, she wasn’t sure even Aden’s ability could save him.

Aden knew it, too. Hadn’t he predicted this wouldn’t end well? And yet still he said, “I accept your challenge, Sorin the Vicious. We fight for the crown at sunset tomorrow.”

THIRTEEN

“WHY DID YOU GIVE HIM so long to prepare?”

Aden sat on the lid of the toilet in Victoria’s private bathroom, hungry, so hungry, tired and unsure. Had he done the right thing?

He’d soon find out.

He held clippers in one hand and a small trash bin in the other. He passed the first to Victoria and set the second on the floor between his feet before he replied. “I gave myself so long to prepare.”

“Oh.”

She was paler than usual and shaky rather than sturdy. Agitated, even. He understood. He did. Aden had threatened her brother. Was going to fight her brother. She was probably confused, upset and unsure.

An hour ago, that might not have bothered him. But as they’d stood in the throne room, danger torpedoing toward him, she’d taken his hand and offered comfort. Somehow, some way, that contact had tugged him out of the cold, emotionless wasteland he’d been living in. He was feeling. Hope, admiration, affection, each like the warm rays from the sun.

Now he rested his elbows on his knees. “I’m going to ask you a question, Victoria, and I don’t mean anything by it, okay? So don’t get the wrong idea. I’m just curious.”

She stiffened, and he could feel the worry pouring off her already. “All right.”

“You’re helping me, but you obviously love your brother.” He’d felt her desire to run to the homicidal maniac. Only, instead of attacking him, she would have hugged him. Would Sorin have murdered her, too? “So, why are you here, helping me?”

Some of the worry faded. “Fishing for compliments? Or an I love you confession?” Before he could respond, not that he knew what to say, she added, “I don’t want the two of you to fight, that’s all.”

Did she expect him to walk away from this? “We will fight. That, I can promise you.” Blunt of him, perhaps, but he didn’t want any misunderstandings.

Her shoulders slumped a little. “I know you will. Believe me, if I thought I could talk sense into either one of you…”

He watched her, trying to gauge her reaction to his next words without looking like he was trying to gauge her reaction. “Do you want me to walk away?”

A moment passed. She sighed. “No. You can’t. He would come after you. Others would come after you. The challenge has been issued and accepted, and if it’s not followed through, everyone will think you are weak, that they can have what’s yours. You’ll never have peace. I just…”

Wanted them both to be okay. Understandable.

“And before you ask, I want you to win.”

That, he hadn’t anticipated. “Why?”

“Because there’s a possibility you will spare him. He will not extend you the same courtesy. Do—do you know what’s going to happen?”

“I don’t know about the outcome of the fight, no.” Truth. Through Elijah, he’d seen it, but he’d seen several different versions of it. “I do know your brother won’t cause any trouble while he waits for the challenge. Meaning, no one else will try and attack him. Or me. If that helps. Elijah told me.”

She shuddered. “It doesn’t help. And I…I don’t think we should talk about this anymore. My body is reacting negatively to your every word. Any more, and I might throw up on your feet.”

Great. He’d meant to reassure her, not sicken her. “Is an upset stomach your only symptom?”

“My blood is chilled and thick, and my heart is drumming too forcefully against my ribs.”

Not as terrible as he’d feared. She’d just described a mild panic attack. “And you’ve never experienced this type of reaction before?”

“Not to this degree.” She frowned down at the clippers. “So what do you want me to do with these?”

If she wanted to topic switch, they’d topic switch. He wasn’t sure how else to calm her. “I’d like you to shave my head.”

“Shave your—what?”

“Shave my head.”

Horror blanketed her beautiful face. “But you’ll be bald.”

He felt a small wave of amusement rush through him. “There are worse things.”

No, there are not! That will seriously affect our lady action, Caleb said. He’d been fuming since Aden had made the decision to say goodbye to his dye job.

“Anyway, I won’t be bald. I’ll be blond. There’s a guard on the clippers that’ll leave a couple inches of hair.”

“Oh,” she repeated, then fumbled around for a moment as she tried to turn them on. Finally the little motor revved to life. “And you’re sure about this? There’s no going back if you don’t like the results.”

“I’m sure.”

“Then tell me why you want a cut.”

Yeah, Julian said. This is dumb. We’ll look like an idiot.

Elijah had no comment.

After everything that had happened, Aden felt like a new person. He was a new person. Yet every time he passed a mirror—and as a lot of the walls here were, in fact, mirrors, he saw more of himself than he wanted—he looked the same. That had to change, too.

“I just do,” was all he said.

“Very well, then.” Resigned, tentative, Victoria got to work, and he watched black lock after black lock fall to the floor.

Stop her, Caleb practically cried. Grab her hand and stop her.

For a moment, Aden felt something—a rope, maybe—pulling at his arm, lifting it, his fingers twitching, ready to close around Victoria’s wrist, and he frowned. A conscious effort was required to keep his arm at his side.

What the hell?

Come on, man, Caleb continued. All you have to do is lift your arm and grab her wrist.

Lift his arm. Grab her wrist. The answer popped into place. “You trying to take over the body, Caleb?”

Maybe, was the grumbled reply.

None of the souls had tried anything like that in years. Probably because they couldn’t take over without his permission. Or hadn’t been able to. But that tug…it was stronger than anything they’d done before. He wasn’t exactly sure what that meant.

“Don’t do that again,” he snapped.

Fine!

Victoria had moved between his spread knees, and at his words, she stiffened. “I didn’t…I’m just…you told me to do this!”

Immediately repentant, he said, “Sorry. I wasn’t talking to you.”

“Oh. Good. You had me worried.” She returned her attention to the trim job.

Her scent hit him with the force of a swinging baseball bat. Aden forgot the souls as his mouth watered, and his stomach curled into itself. He’d been on the verge of starvation ever since her brother had maimed and killed