My hand moved before my mind even caught up. The slap cracked through the office like a whip. Her head snapped to the side, and a thin line of blood appeared at the corner of her lip. She pressed her fingers against the swelling cheek, then smiled—a deranged, satisfied smile.
“I don’t care what idiocy exists between you and Gideon,” I growled, every inch of me vibrating with wrath. “But you will never address your Luna with disrespect.”
Her grin widened. “And I warned you from the start, Selene… everything that happens now? You brought it on yourself.”
My eyes narrowed. “What are you talking about?”
Suddenly, Brielle lunged forward and grabbed my arm with a grip surprisingly strong for someone pretending to be delicate. Then—she screamed.
“Luna Selene, please! Please don’t hurt me! I’m sorry!” she wailed loudly, voice trembling in a deliberately dramatic display.
“Let me go,” I muttered, trying to pull my arm free, stunned by her theatrics.
She released me abruptly, staggered back three steps, then threw herself to the side—crashing against the sharp corner of Gideon’s desk.
The sound of her skull hitting wood echoed like a thunderclap.