Auryn takes my hand and follows me down the hall, though she keeps casting sideways glances at me, like she suspects me to turn on her at any moment.
In the kitchen, I pull out a barstool for her and help her lift onto it. Her delicate feet hang when she sits, and it occurs to me that they might be cold. The floor in the cell has a few threadbare rugs on it, but the compound has mostly concrete flooring. I could grab some clean socks from the storeroom, but …
“Auryn, can I trust you to stay on this stool?”
She cocks her head inquisitively, but then she nods.
“Good. Be right back.”
Gage is going to strangle me for leaving her to her own devices, but I can’t stand the thought of her padding around on these frigid floors with no socks or shoes.
The smallest socks I can find are Olly’s size, but they’re better than nothing. I race back to the kitchen, hoping to find Auryn where I left her.
She looks up at me from the barstool with curiosity.
“What’s in your hand?”
Whew! As long as Gage didn’t pop in while I was gone, we’re good.
I kneel at Auryn’s feet and tug the socks on, rolling the tops down to keep them on better. “There. These old floors are too cold for myprincesato walk on. Now your feet should be nice and warm.”
Something warm and wet drips on my arm, and I look up to see Auryn in tears.
“What’s wrong?” I surge to my feet and wrap her in my arms. My instincts scream at me to protect her, to soothe her, to comfort her. The only problem is, I have no idea what could have triggered this.
“I remember socks,” she whispers, her shoulders shaking as she sobs. “My feet have been cold for so long … I had forgotten.”
Dear God, what did the Orions do to her?
“Hey, it’s okay.” My lips brush the crown of her head in a soft, featherlight kiss. “It’s okay. Listen, I’m going to heat up something special for you, and then we’ll go back to your room to eat it together. Does that sound okay to you?”
She leans into my chest, sniffling. “It’s not my room. It’s a room, but it’s not mine.”
“Would you like your own room?” What am I doing? Gage is already going to murder me for letting her out, and now I’m offering her one of our spare rooms to stay in like she’s a member of our pack? I must be suicidal.
Auryn looks up at me with a frown. “Omegas don’t get their own rooms.”
I don’t have a ready answer for that one.
Despite how nice it feels to have her pressed against me, I peel myself away from her to prepare the food. I happen to know there are some leftover tamales that I bought from a street vendor the other day hidden behind the lettuce. Em would never touch the lettuce to look for them, and Olly doesn’t like them. Gage is free to have them if he wants, but he rarely takes someone else’s food without asking.
Sixty seconds later, I have our dinner. I grab two plates and stuff some forks in my pocket. By the time we get back, the tamales should be cool enough to eat.
Back in the holding cell, I hand Auryn a plate and turn to activate the door lock. Suddenly, I hear a muffled exclamation of surprise and confusion.
When I wheel back around, Auryn has her tamale in her mouth–husk and all. Her pretty face is screwed up in a grimace as she tries to gnaw through the tough fiber.
“No!” I make the mistake of reaching for the tamale and almost lose a finger in the process as she snaps at me.
“My food!”
“Princesa, sweetie, you don’t eat the outside.” Pulling a fork from my pocket, I show her my tamale. “Watch me.”
Auryn’s eyes widen as I open my tamale’s husk and dig out a bite with my fork. She looks back and forth from her tamale to mine, and before my eyes her face lights up as Iwatchthe understanding cross her pretty features. “See?” I put the fork in my mouth and chew the spicy beef. Auryn licks her lips and picks at her husk.
“I don’t have the weapon,” she says once she has the husk open. “How do I eat it without the weapon?”
“You can eat it with your hands if you want, but that’s a bit messy. I prefer a fork. Here.” I hold out the other utensil, handle first, and she cautiously takes it from me.
