She shakes her head, looking away.
The food is delicious, and I force myself to forget about what I saw. Maria and the boys discuss whether the steak is better than the lamb.
I’ve eaten nearly half my plate when I suddenly wonder if it hasn’t all been spelled somehow. Or drugged.
Worried anew, I set my fork aside.
“What is it?” Dean asks.
“You don’t think . . .”
“What?” he presses.
I bite my lip. “It’s delicious. Almost too good.”
Dean shares a look with Declan and before they can answer, the music abruptly stops and the mood in the room shifts. All of the ghostly guests blink out of sight. We all turn to see what has sent the conversations around us to an abrupt halt.
Cutter stands in the doorway.
His suit is impeccably cut and expensive, though it fits right in with the fancy formalwear of the others. Despite that, I am not fooled. His ego and his need to be in control is as disgusting as ever. Rather than blend with us, he’s forced us to blend with him.
He does a quick sweep of the room and when his gaze settles on me, I can feel the weight of it.
The twins both growl under their breath and I know they can feel it too.
The music starts up again and Cutter looks away from me, heading for the bar.
I exhale.
“Here.” Dean presses a glass of champagne into my hand. “Might as well take advantage.”
“I’m okay,” I assure him.
He slants a look at me. “Your heart is racing, Celeste.” When I hesitate, he adds, “I won’t let anything happen to you. Enjoy yourself this one night.”
I relax and take a small sip.
Under the table, Declan wraps his hand around mine in silent reassurance.
My eyes catch on another figure in the doorway and the champagne bubbles I’ve just swallowed tingle inside me.
Like a magnet, Dr. Livingstone finds me immediately. His expression softens as he takes in my appearance and some strange emotion washes over me.
After a brief hesitation, he crosses to me, and I rise to meet him, everything else forgotten.
“Celeste, you look . . .”
He trails off, and I blink, disappointed that he didn’t finish. But I remind myself he is my doctor.
“Declan, Dean, it’s good to see you two,” he says.
“Doctor.”
I look over only to see that both guys are standing now, one on either side of me. Dr. Livingstone’s eyes sharpen at the way they edge in close, protective.
“Would you like to dance?” I ask, the words out before I realize I’ve said them.
He seems surprised too, but he nods and offers his hand. “I’d be honored.”
I let him lead me onto the dance floor, aware of the eyes on us now. But when his hand lands on my waist and he steps close, I forget them. Just like before with Declan and Dean, I am grounded in this moment, content with the pleasure he offers simply by holding me.
“New dress?” he asks.
I laugh but it’s short-lived. “You could say that. Does Cutter throw these parties often?”
His eyes dart around the room, quick, assessing. “This is definitely a first.”
“In more ways than one.”
He holds my gaze for a long moment and then glances away at something over my shoulder. “Your court is unhappy with me.”
I lift a brow. “My court?”
“Every queen has one.”
I scoff. “I’m no queen.”
His eyes sparkle with some amusement I can’t read. “Oh, but you are, Celeste. You’re just the only one who hasn’t figured it out yet.”
“And these are all my subjects?” I can’t help but play along with his little game.
“Of course.” He nods at the gathering we’ve attracted. Angus, Maria, and of course, the guys, all watch from the edge of the dance floor. “They root for your happiness. And they would give up a lot to help you achieve it. Isn’t that the definition of a loyal subject?”
“You make them sound so one dimensional when you put it that way.” I look back at him. “I root for their happiness too. And for yours.”
“Mind if I cut in?”
Dr. Livingstone’s expression shutters as Cutter steps up beside us. A refusal is on the tip of my tongue, but I bite it back, along with my disappointment at being interrupted before our dance is over.
But Dr. Livingstone reluctantly drops my hand and steps away. “Of course.”
He walks off, leaving me alone with the puppet master himself.
“May I?” Cutter bows before me and then holds out his hand.
I take it, then stiffen at the unmistakable sound of a growl from behind me. Without turning, I know it’s Declan. Sure enough, it’s followed by a quiet hiss from Dean.
Cutter seems amused as he begins to lead.
“That dress looks ravishing on you, my dear. I’m surprised they haven’t torn off their suits and resorted to a brawl for who gets to take it off you tonight.”
“Don’t be crass,” I snap. “And don’t reduce them to animals.”
He tilts his head. “Aren’t they, though?”
“The only animal I see in here is you.”
“You wound me, Celeste. I am only trying to make your stay more comfortable. And I’ve included your friends, which I knew you’d want. Don’t they look nice in their fine clothes?”
I refuse to take his bait and look at them.
“You’re trying to win me over,” I say. “I don’t know why, but it won’t work.”
Something sharp and sinister flashes in his eyes, there and gone in an instant. “I don’t need to win you over. Not when you’re the only one who can help your sister.”
He’s right. We both know it.
Still, I won’t let him think he’s won me.
“This changes nothing. At the end of the day, you’re still a monster.”
He smiles blandly, but his next words are cut off as something slams into him from behind. He drops my hand, staggering sideways a single step before quickly recovering. Dark eyes blazing, he turns as Maria unleashes another blast of magic.
A chandelier rips free and crashes to the ground where Cutter just stood.
The music stops.
Maria utters words in a language I don’t understand. Something ancient that makes my earlier vision of the bloody heart flash before my eyes.
Behind her, and all around us, spirits reappear.
Maria raises a hand and points at Cutter, still chanting. A chair lifts off the floor and breaks into pieces. One of the legs flies at Cutter, its pointed end aimed at his chest.
Cutter catches it in midair before it can impale him. He tosses the wood away and snarls at Maria.
Her eyes glaze softly yellow, but whatever she’s preparing for next is cut short. Cutter closes the distance, moving faster than anyone I’ve ever seen.
Maria shrieks as Cutter’s fist slams through her body and into her chest. He rips it free with Maria’s heart gripped in his hand. It pumps for another beat, blood running in thick rivulets down Cutter’s wrist and onto the floor.
Maria’s eyes are wide and frozen, and then she falls, crumpling to the floor in a heap of gown and blood.
No one else speaks as Cutter roars, biting into the heart and ripping off a chunk that he chews and swallows.