“I see you haven’t given up on finding creative ways to get yourself killed,” he says in lieu of a greeting.
My spine stiffens. “Why? Are you having another mood swing? Have you decided to kill me after all?”
The memory of him manhandling me yesterday is all too close to the surface. There will be no making peace with Sin.
He rolls his eyes before stepping closer to me and picking up the shadowy orb from the desk. “The desk is protected. The orb will shatter if anyone unauthorized tries to open one of the drawers. The darkness will be unleashed and will fill their lungs, suffocating them.”
The small shadows in the orb dance as if they’re sentient, and I swallow. “Something you devised, I’m sure?”
Death traps sound like something a Destroyer would be proficient in.
Sin bares his teeth at me before answering, “I don’t have the pleasure of taking credit for this. It came from a friend.”
I scoff at his mention that he has friends. From what I’ve seen, while the others seem to respect Sin, they aren’t close. I suppose having the sense of humor of an asp will do that for you.
Sin replaces the orb before taking a seat on one of the leather chairs.
Chewing on my bottom lip, I consider whether I should leave the room. Sin has no proof that I was going to go through Morgana’s desk, and if I leave now, that might only make him more suspicious.
Instead, I pace to one of the bookshelves and scan the titles. Most appear to be old historical accounts, and I pull one off the shelf, thoroughly intrigued.
“You make a terrible spy,” Sin drawls, sounding bored. He’s spinning a dagger between his fingers, and I immediately look away, reminding myself he isn’t going to kill me.
“I’m not a spy,” I answer, not bothering to add any venom to the statement, as I take my book to the couch the furthest away from Sin.
He’s welcome to think I’m a whore, but a spy is just ludicrous.
Sin tsks. “Spoken like a truly terrible spy. Of course, that’s exactly what they want. They want you desperate, meek.”
I grit my teeth, staring at the book but not seeing the words. I contemplate throwing it at his head instead.
As if sensing he’s struck a nerve, Sin continues, “It’s so easy to spot a Council whore. It’s always the pretty ones. The ones who are utterly useless, except for what you can offer between your legs. And offer it you do, for any scrap of power or information.”
Sin lounges in the chair, his posture completely at odds with the abhorrence in his words.
I have spent my life swallowing my anger and avoiding conflict. But I’m already neck-deep in conflict, and it’s not even from my own realm. I don’t bother biting my tongue.
“Are you for real with all of this?” I ask, incredulous. “You. Kidnapped. Me. I am not a spy. I’m trying to figure out why the hell I’ve been indeterminately detained by a glowstick with anger issues. So, unless you’re ready to use your big boy words and tell me why I’m here, go fuck yourself.”
Sin crosses his arms and eyes me up and down before answering, “Why would I bother fucking myself when I’m staring at an eager little whore?”
I throw the book at him.
Hitting him would have been all too satisfying, but of course, Sin catches it easily, grinning maliciously. “You’re playing a dangerous game, mortal.”
I give him the finger. I already knew there would be no reasoning with this man, and now I’m annoyed with myself for even trying.
Sin stands, dropping the book on my lap.
“Bat those eyelashes at the others all you want, but no one is going to share classified information with you,” he says before apparating out of the room.
I sit there, fuming for longer than I’d like.
Sin is an asshole and a bully. But I have years of experience dealing with bullies. I shouldn’t have engaged. I know better.
I make a mental note to ignore Sin at all possible costs the next time I see him, before turning my attention back to the book.
‘A historically accurate description of the realms and their people’is an old leatherbound tome. It’s so cracked along the spine that it’s difficult to read the title. It was the ancient appearance that caught my attention.
