It didn’t matter. She would take responsibility, no matter what.
Ray didn’t knock on the door. Just shoved the metal to one side. It pushed against the wall with a loudbang!And it was that sound that rendered everyone in that room frozen.
Everyone except Maya Larsen and the girl on the floor in front of her.
Ray kept her breathing in check and walked through the disgusting basement. Its stone floors and ceilings were covered with patches of blood here and there. It was cold, a desperate, ice sort of cold that swayed the wind in the hollow room. Ray didn’t see Kyle’s wide eyes warning her to step back. Didn’t notice Alessandro’s interested tip of chin as she strode ahead. Didn’t hear Verana’s footsteps as she ran into the room.
Maya Larsen was holding a whip in her hand, her hands bloodied and her hair a mess.
But Ray’s eyes were on the small girl who’d curled into herself. The rage that washed over her was deadly. Was enough to take her back to her. Ray wasn’t thinking when she stepped between the girl and Maya. Wasn’t even feeling as she carefully looked at Maya Larsen’s dead, cold eyes.
Wasn’t breathing as she said.
“I’ll take it from here.”
Ray didn’t close her eyes when she heard the girl sob out loud and clutch the hem of her jeans.
When Maya Larsen simply blinked in her direction.
“Sure.” Said her emotionless voice, “Just after you take some responsibility.”
And brought the whip down with a sickening slash.
15
Raylene Walker didn’t pass out. But deargoddidn’t she hope she had. The whip came down on her like a damned lightning, thunderous andpainful.Ray’s entire body shuttered, her mind-numbing when the whip slashed on her shoulders. For a second, there was no pain. No ache.
And then itexploded like a fucking bomb.
She bit down on her tongue in an attempt to not cry out loud, but still, a treacherous sound of agony ripped past her lips. The pain waseverywhere,thundering through her shoulder and working its way down to her abdomen. There was a part of Ray that thought her body would be scarred forever, but it diminished with the sudden white andredthat flashed behind her eyes. It was as though someone had brought forth a hot iron poker and hadset her entire body on fire.
Ray’s words were incoherent as she slammed down to her knees, gasping harshly against the blinding agony tearing through her skin.
Everything throbbed. Everythingburnt.
Her ears were ringing, barely registering the young girl shaking behind her or Maya’s tip of her chin as she looked down at her through her dead eyes.
Ray’s body shuddered violently, and she let out a harsh breath before lifting her dangerous sheen eyes to Maya’s,
“Are we–good?”She managed to gasp through her clenched teeth.
One of her hands was braced against her abdomen, and the other was supporting her weight while her entire body threatened to give up.
But Ray wouldn’t give Maya that satisfaction.Not today.
So, she matched her lethal gaze, daring her to strike again even as her entire body begged for her togive up.
Maya’s chin lifted further, a look of interest entering her eyes as she threw the whip away. It crashed against the stone wall, making everyone except Ray and Maya flinch.
“Get up.”
Maya’s voice was low, was almostlost.But not kind.Never kind.
Ray obeyed, even as her entire body protested and screamed against the movement. She stood, her hands shaking and her body in near convulsion as she faced Maya Larsen. Ray’s breaths were harsh, borderlinecrazyas she ran a shaking hand through her hair and raised her eyes in question.
“This bravery, these actions,” Maya started, her heels clicking as she took a step in Ray’s direction. Ray fought her urge to step back, to back down from this, but she stood her ground. Knew she’d lose everything if she didn’t, “They won’t be tolerated henceforth.”
Ray’s eyes shuttered but didn’t lower. Not even as Maya got into her face and snarled softly enough for her to hear, “Your job isn’t to save Raylene Walker.Remember why we got you here.”
