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hands.
    “Get. Off!”
    I twisted, but he’d grown stronger since the last time I’d allowed this much advance. His saucers dug into my leg and it hurt. “Damn you, I said… Let… go!”
    Instinct was to keep prying and stay focused on that aspect. Logic insisted I turn the opposite direction of the winding, but it was hard to remember that when I saw the blood seeping from under his saucers. Especially hard to think he purposely dug even deeper as I sought freedom from his grasp.
    During my schooling, the instructor made me repeat the releasing exercises until they were ingrained to memory. I’d hated the boredom of it. Well, the effort finally paid off, and I turned automatically in the correct direction. Sucking in a sharp breath as the pain intensified momentarily, I was finally free and able to back up to a safe distance.
    Blood streamed from the saucer-cuts and pooled beneath my left foot. I shook with anger and fear at how close I’d let him get. Never again . It was time to seek new prey for Theo to work out his needs on. I’d take my pleasure from the ones who’d already learned to wield their power.
    Surveying the damage while I fumed, I contemplated my next move. It’d be gratifying to kill the ungrateful beast now, but if I did that, there’d be a penalty to pay. Daddy’s anger would likely lead to a more severe punishment than the injuries I’d just received.
    Footfalls crunched gravel on the path. Who would that be at this hour? A glance revealed Asynn, Daddy’s newest page and pet, slowing down in her approach as she noticed my stance and the blood.
    “Mistress Milleu, you’re wanted in your father’s den.” She looked closer at my leg and looked back at me with a smirk. “You’ll probably want to hurry. I’ll tell him you’re coming.”
    Smart ass.
    I didn’t say that. But she’d know I’d not directly disobey a summons from Daddy. No one in their right mind would, and being his only daughter didn’t grant me any immunity. It was the beast’s blood that ran with his, although his human ancestry was just as cruel. Chthonic monsters and greed-driven slave traders. Not much compassion in the genes either way, I guessed.
    By the time I reached the dark cavern at the water’s edge where he spent most of his time, Daddy was fairly mad. The ground beneath me vibrated to the rhythm of his growls. It didn’t matter that I was his kindred; he expected prompt responses to his orders. Always.
    The door was open a crack, probably left that way when Asynn went through because she thought I’d be close on her heels. I never knew my mother, but I suspect I’d inherited some of her defiance. Maybe he’d tell me what he wanted without my having to go all the way inside. His den suited him, but it made me nervous. The gray stone walls sweated, leaving salt trails behind as one seep dried and another began somewhere else. Damp and cool, it smelled of rotten ship hulls and moldering seaweed.
    “Daddy, you called?”
    The walls rattled when he yelled, turning my name into a threat. “Milleu! Now!” Of course.
    Just peeking through the cracked opening wasn’t going to be close enough for him. I swallowed my distaste, slipped in and closed the door behind me. With as humble a demeanor as I could muster, I approached. He growled again and the desk he sat behind danced, spilling papers that Asynn frantically gathered while avoiding becoming a casualty to the flaying tentacles. The girl gave me a stern look as she got the rest of the papers and backed to the far side of the room.
    Sniveling idiot. She’d be bait soon and didn’t even know it, ego too inflated to question the process.
    “Yes Father, you called?” It wouldn’t do any good to attempt bravado. Using the more formal paternal title would stroke his tentacled ego. I knew his ways and open defiance was a straight ride to the pens, daughter or no. I scratched the back of my neck and waited. He’d want to think I was nervous, afraid even.