Play With Me

“ Delusional ” to my medical certificate.
    His clean-shaven
face revealed a strong jaw topped by a sensual mouth. When the corners slightly
lifted, my heart banged against my ribcage, fluttering like a sparrow caught in
a cage. Strands of tousled golden hair fell over his forehead, reminding me of
warm honey. Even with the mystic light gone, the guy who remained was godlike.
    Bloody hell,
what brought a god to my hearing ? It was a
freaking sweater !
    As he arched one
delicate eyebrow, I snapped my mouth shut before drool could drip from the
corners. Heat rushed through my veins and filled my face.
    “Miss
Montiniere, will you please pay attention?” Abe’s words sounded far away.
    But those
sapphire eyes held me captive. And I never wanted to leave this personal prison
of ours.
    Slowly, a bony
arm looped around the god’s bent elbow.
    Cherry blossoms?
Why did the room suddenly smell of lavender and this distinctive note of spring
in bloom? The mix of floral scents pulled me back to the present. How long
since I had smelled it the last time? That must be something close to five
years. I let my gaze trace the skinny arm and wander farther up.
    Horrorstruck, I
gaped into the face of the one person I never wanted to see again.

 
     
    2
     
    SHACKLED
     
     
     
    JUDGE ABE’S
SQUARE office, with all the people shoved inside, started to spin around me. I
felt like someone had stuffed me into a too-small box and was pushing the top
closed against my head.
    “Who let that
bitch in?” Muscles quivering, I glowered at Charlene Montiniere.
    “Watch your
tongue, Miss Montiniere,” the judge warned. “This is a court of law.”
    “The fuck I
will,” I spat. My eyes staked her. “This woman dumped me at an orphanage when I
was a kid. She didn’t even look back.” Fear tightened my throat. How was the
hag going to ruin my life this time?
    Charlene gaped
at me. The skin sagged into bags beneath her sunken eyes. Her matted red-orange
hair had once been the exact match to my own long auburn tresses. She wore a
stark shade of red lipstick that clashed with her pale, bony face. In short,
she looked like she’d been through hell.
    Good, I hoped
the bitch had suffered just as much as I had. She could crawl back into
whatever rat hole she’d emerged from. And she’d better not even think about
saying anything to me. She’d lost that right when I was five.
    My hatred-filled
glare silenced her. One of her shaky hands rose slowly, as if she wanted to
touch me from the eight-foot distance that stretched between us.
    “Drop dead,
Charlene,” I growled.
    “Jona Montiniere,
I insist on you behaving in an appropriate manner, so we can continue this
hearing,” Abe Smith roared. “I understand your mistrust against your mother,
but once you listen to the reasons, you might change your mind.”
    No way in hell.
    The alarm signal
in my head was flashing bright red. Another minute in the same room with my
mother would’ve been an eternity too long. I spun around to face the old man
behind his monstrous desk and gave him a mocking military salute. “Goodbye,
Abe. I’m outta here.”
    The roar to call
me to order was futile. Consequences? Not my concern. I strode toward the door,
my only goal, fresh air and a good deal of distance between me and that bitch.
    People shouted
my name, some addressing me as Miss Montiniere, some using only my first name
as if we were friends.
    “Kiddo, don’t be
ridiculous. Stay where you are!” I heard Quinn call out.
    Not happening.
    His desperation
wouldn’t stop me from leaving. But a set of chunky arms around my waist could.
Riley was the first to capture me. The delight of victory shone in his eyes as
he pressed my back against the wall. “You’re going nowhere, little Miss, apart
from jail.”
    Don’t panic.
Hysteria never got me anywhere, and there was a very real place I needed to
get. Out of here.
    Fists clenched, my
nails bit into my palms. “Take your bloody paws off me!”
    The high-pitched
squeak Riley gave nearly shattered my eardrums when I bit into the hand he’d
clasped on my left shoulder. The donut residue I could taste on it made my
stomach roll.
    He jerked his
arm back. “Damn brat, you’re gonna pay for this!”
    Over his
shoulder, I spotted both Quinn and Riley’s partner rushing toward me, but the
stumbling Riley bounced into Quinn, and my only friend at the police staggered
sideways. He caught his balance by grabbing Miss Mulligan’s arm. The