“Maybe.You need a thick steel door that’s hidden behind a wall and only opens with a palm or retinal scan.I’ve never worked around an elevator, so I’ll have to check with my contact.”
“Whatever you think is best,” I said while studying a blueprint.
Lucian noisily pulled something off a shelf behind me.“Why did you threaten that male with more time for each offense?It won’t stop an addict.”
“I can’t do anything about his addiction if he doesn’t want to seek treatment, but we can certainly wear him down.These aren’t five-star accommodations, and now that he’s gotten a taste of isolation, each sentence will feel considerably worse.”
“Then lock them up for a decade.”
“We can’t incarcerate juicers long-term unless they target humans, in which case we turn them over to the Mageri to handle their own.But if we increase his sentence with each offense, it’ll eventually drive him out of Storybook.”
“Are you sure about that?”
“It’s a tried-and-true method with the highest success rate.People like Marcus prey on smaller communities because they think they can get away with it.Yes, they do.”I stared closely at the estimate breakdown.
“You could always kick him out of town.”
“Banishing criminals doesn’t solve anything.They always sneak back in and stay undercover.If you make them hate living here, that’s victory.”
A heavy metal object clanged against a shelf as he continued nosing around.“What’s all this stuff?”
“Oh, this and that.A few items we use, others we confiscated.”I flipped one of the papers over and reviewed the section detailing home renovations required for different installation types.Then I gripped the shelf by my head.“You did all this last night?Do you have any thoughts on?—”
A cold metal cuff clicked around my wrist.
“Stop playing around, Lucian.These aren’t toys.”
“That depends on how you look at it.”
I raised my head and faced him when I heard another click.
Lucian gave me a wolfish grin.“What kind of kinky club did you raid recently?These are the most useless handcuffs I’ve ever seen.”
My breath hitched when I noticed the one-foot chain connecting us.
When I pulled the cuff encircling my left wrist, cold dread washed over me.“You locked it.”
His playful countenance shifted to remorse.“Sorry, I didn’t mean to…Shit.It was only a joke.”
Lucian didn’t realize the gravity of the situation.I wrapped my fingers around his cuff and gave it a pull, then yanked at the chain.
My stomach dropped.“Oh no.This is so bad.”
“It was a poorly executed joke.I didn’t mean to offend you.”
I dropped the papers and hurried over to the desk, jerking the chain and causing Lucian to stumble.Drawer after drawer revealed nothing.“You don’t understand.”
He stood next to me and placed his fingertips on the desk.“Then tell me.”
I faced him.“I don’t have the key.”
Lucian rubbed the side of his face, which raised my arm like a marionette.“You can ask your guard to open it.”
“No, I can’t.”
“Oh right.That might get you in trouble if he found out.”Lucian lifted the cuff and studied it.“Atticus might still be at work.We can call him down.He shouldn’t have any trouble breaking this.”
“Nobodycan break this.It’s enchanted.”
