PAULINE
I wiped my mouth with the back of my hand, tasting bile and blood. When I looked up, Marcus stared down at me with something that made my skin crawl.
Not anger.
Worse.
Recognition. Like he finally saw me for what I truly was.
"Dimitri..."
The name died on my lips.
He turned to the sentinels, then to the delicate and her handler. His voice came out flat and cold.
"Give us a moment."
They obeyed without question. The door clicked shut behind them.
Fear lanced through me sharp enough to cut. I scrambled backward on the floor, my hands slipping in my own vomit, but he moved faster. His hand closed around my arm with bruising force, yanking me upright.
"I had a daughter?" His voice cracked on the word. "A granddaughter out there?"
"I only knew recently." The half-truth tasted sour even as I spoke it. "I swear to you, I only just—"
"Do not." He shook me hard enough to rattle my teeth. "Do not lie to me. Not now."
