Page 31 of Consume Me

“My father had his man run here as soon as I was born and proved genetically entitled,” I told him. “A decision I’m sure he regretted since he never once asked me to come along, and I never bothered to come on my own. Not my type of place.”

Smith’s lips twitched. We both knew that the types of clubs I’d preferred in my younger days had a very different atmosphere. “It reminds me of The Library.”

“The Library?” I repeated.

“It’s a lot like this but with more whips,” he added in a low voice. “Very discreet. Should you ever…”

“I’m a married man,” I said, and I would be for the rest of my life. Once Clara was back in my arms, I wouldn’t need anything else. “Clara is all I want.”

“She’d be welcome,” he assured me. He didn’t press the subject further. Perhaps sensing that talk of my wife upset me. Perhaps not wanting to remind me of her absence more.

The Cigar Club was empty save for the presence of the men believed to control my destiny: the Council of Ghosts. The last time we’d faced them, the Prime Minister had been present. Today he was absent, and in his seat was a familiar face.

Chapter 12

CLARA

Her face told me everything I needed to know. Since the doctor had warned me about my condition, June had come to monitor my blood pressure dutifully every few hours. I never asked her what it was. Sometimes she would smile to herself. Other times she would frown. Now her face was a collection of hard, straight lines.

Something was wrong.

And this time I couldn’t keep my mouth shut.

“Is the baby okay?” I asked, nerves getting the better of me. Rubbing my stomach, I willed my little boy to stay put a while longer. At least, until mommy had a plan.

“Everything is fine.” Her eyes told a different story as they darted away from my face. “The doctor is being cautious.”

I wouldn’t have believed her anyway.

Rachel, who had become my shadow since our heart to heart, had stayed tucked in a corner behind us while June did her examination. Close enough to see everything that was going on, but far enough not to get yelled at. She’d learned her lesson when she’d bothered to ask June a question earlier today and gotten her head ripped off. It had shown me a different side of June. Maybe the nurse believed the lies they told her. Maybe she was a really good actress. Either way, she was either choosing ignorance or too stupid to know the truth.

“How are you feeling? Are you getting enough to eat?” she asked, turning on her bedside manner like she was flipping a light switch.

It might have been soothing in another circumstance. “Does it matter?”

“We need to keep the baby healthy,” June chastised me, her voice taking on a hard edge.

Of course, we did. I wanted to tell her that I’d been doing a fine job of that until I was stolen from my home and husband. But I knew how she’d pat my arm and tell me everything would be fine. She could keep trying to convince me I was crazy. I knew the truth.

But was I the only one? Had word gotten out yet? Was Alexander still looking for me? Did the rest of the world know?

The more time I spent with June, the more I suspected she knew exactly what she was doing. How couldn’t she? Unless she’d lived under a rock—or in this hellhole bunker—she knew exactly who I was. She could play sweet, innocent nurse all day long and I’d pretend alongside her—while waiting for an opportunity to crush this snake with my heel.

“When will the baby come?” I asked. I already knew we wouldn’t be waiting until I went into labor. My doctor had wanted to control the baby’s arrival. Dr. Rolland would want the same. But whereas Dr. Ball would have waited until I was near term, I got the impression that I was being prepped for delivery.

“Probably very soon. Ideally with a male child, we want to wait until the lungs develop, but your blood pressure seems to be a problem,” she admitted.

It was the most she’d told me. I grabbed a pillow, willing myself to stay calm. This was about my blood pressure and maybe I had some control over that. It seemed unlikely given the circumstances, but I would try. It was all I could do until I finally got a chance to make a run for it.

June’s eyes softened, mistaking my silence for fear. “Don’t worry. A friend is coming to see you.”

“A friend?” I repeated, wishing I’d heard her wrong and hoping she would correct me.

She didn’t. “Before the baby comes. To check on you.”

Bile rose in my throat and I forced it to stay down. I wouldn’t show any weakness. Not to her. Not to them. “My friend?”

“I assume.” She smiled warmly as she collected the blood pressure cuff and her stethoscope.