“Exactly.”
“What is it? You and Sheriff Stoic never explained.”
“Sheriff Stoic?”
“The bracelet,” I replied, shaking my wrist again. “What. Is. It?”
He sighed and stepped into the light. It hit me that this moment was eerily similar to the way we met.
Which had only been about twenty-four hours ago.
Damn, it had only been a day since I’d been kidnapped. It seemed a lot longer than that.
“It’s spelled. It will keep you within a certain distance of the town. If you tried to leave, it would stop you.”
“Like ashock collar?” I asked, incredulous at the temerity of this man. Vampire. Whatever he was.
“Of course not. It won’t hurt you. Just…keep you from going any farther.”
“Like a dog or some other runaway pet?”
“Why are you fixated on the dog thing? I doubt Kent would appreciate it.”
“Take it off,” I demanded.
He shook his head.
I took a step closer and lifted my wrist so that the bracelet was inches from his face.
“Take it off!” I repeated, louder this time.
He winced. “Screeching at me won’t change my mind.”
“I’m warning you.”
“You already took the remote out of the game room. What else can you do?”
The absolute arrogance in his voice was too much for me to bear. With a vicious scream that would make a Viking warrior proud, I launched myself at him.
So much for being non-violent.
I got the split-second pleasure of seeing his eyes widen in surprise before I all but landed on him.
Unfortunately, I had no idea how to fight. Other than the bitch-slap I’d administered to his face last night, I’d never struck another human being in my life.
Within a few pitiful seconds, he had me subdued with my arms locked behind me and my back pressing against the fridge.
“What the hell is wrong with you?” he asked.
“I’ve had it!” I shouted up at him, trying to twist out of his hold. “How are you so fucking dense, so…so…thickthat you can’t understand why in the hell I would be angry with you?! How would you feel if someone held you hostage, put the equivalent of a dog collar on you, and then acted likeyouwere the one who was crazy because you had a problem with it? Know what that’s usually called? Gaslighting!”
His eyes glittered, that glow sparking in his irises. “How can you not understand why I can’t let you leave? I’m responsible for every soul in this valley. If you leave here and tell anyone, we could end up with tanks rolling down Main Street and most of us either dead or caged and experimented on like animals. And it would be my fault for letting you go. Their lives, their blood, would be on my hands. I have a responsibility to all of these people. For their safety. Including your uncle!”
At his words, the fight went out of me. I’d been so consumed with the fact that he wouldn’t let me leave that I hadn’t thought about why. While I knew I was trustworthy, he didn’t. Just like I didn’t know if he was completely honorable either.
“I wouldn’t tell anyone,” I said, my tone flat and distant. “But I realize now that you can’t trust my word. Just like I can’t trust yours.”
He opened his mouth to say something else, likely protest that I could trust him, but I was suddenly exhausted.
