Perry swallowed, his throat as rough and dry as bark. “I never trusted you, Kirra.”

She blinked at him, her smile widening at hearing him speak. “I know. You see me for who I am. That’s why I like you so much. You know the truth but you still don’t hate me. Well, that and you look delicious. More so when you’re moving, but—”

She quieted when the door slid open and hopped off the cot.

The man who entered was average in build, with closely shorn dark hair and eyes the color of water. A sparkling Blood Lord chain hung at his neck, the sapphires and diamonds bright against a trim dark coat.

Sable.

Fury crashed over Perry like a tidal wave. He wasn’t prepared to see his sister’s killer. He hadn’t expected the rage that tore through him. He wanted to rip Sable’s eyes from his head. Break his fingers off and snap his bones into pieces. But trapped in his body, paralyzed, the urge had nowhere to go. It pounded inside his skull, shaking loose memories of Liv.

His sister came alive in his mind. Tossing her hair over her shoulder as she laughed. Tickling Talon until tears ran down his face. Punching Roar in the arm over some joke they’d shared.

His mind felt so weak; he couldn’t push the memories away. To his horror, the pressure of tears built behind his eyes.

“Kirra, you can leave now, please,” Sable said calmly. “Loran, bring me a chair, and then you can leave as well.”

They did as instructed. Perry waited for Sable to come to the chair by the cot, to begin whatever he had planned.

He didn’t.

With every passing moment, Perry’s anxiety built. The drugs were still in him, slowing his thoughts and making his blood feel thick. He couldn’t fight his emotions. He felt his control over reality slip as horrible images flipped through his mind. Bleeding wounds. Burnt flesh and poisoned veins, each one worse.

He’d almost forgotten Sable until the Blood Lord spoke.

“Your temper is faint, but what I can scent is truly extraordinary. Unfortunately, I don’t think I’m entirely responsible. The drug you’ve been given has mild psychotropic effects. I can’t imagine you’re enjoying that very much. Hess’s idea, not mine. It was intended to demoralize you. I told him it wasn’t necessary, but your near success on this mission embarrassed him. Personally, I was impressed by what you almost accomplished. I’ve been looking around. I know what you did wasn’t easy.”

Perry forced himself not to respond. He wouldn’t give Liv’s killer the courtesy of his words.