Leaving Seth alone. In a cell. With no idea what came next.
Seth called after him. When that didn’t work, heyelledafterhim. He eventually worked himself up to screaming like a fucking banshee, but there was no answer, and no one else came. So Seth choked back the last cry and sat there, shivering in his horrible blanket.
The situation was bleak, wasn’t it? Whoever these people were, they seemed to have a lot of funding—nothing about the facility Seth had seen so far looked second-rate, other than his shitty cot—and if they knew about mate bonds, then they had to have some basic understanding of vampires and what they were capable of.
They were going to use him to lure Riley. That was what they’d said, and that was what made the most sense with Seth’s…predicament.
And it would work, wouldn’t it? Riley would come for him. There was no question in Seth’s mind, not an ounce of doubt in his heart.
And Riley would be captured, and it would be Seth’s fault.
Hot tears formed in his eyes. He couldn’t help it. Seth wanted to be brave and stoic in the face of danger, but he’d never been so scared in his life.
Had he really been put out by his little “kidnapping” at Riley’s gorgeous cabin? That had been nothing. A family vacation with no warning and a little bit of attitude.
This was…something else.
This was Seth being Riley’s weakest link and evil assholes taking advantage of that fact with no remorse. This was Seth putting Riley in danger by virtue of his existence and his fragile fucking mortal body.
With that thought, Seth made himself stand on shaky legs and walk the perimeter of the room. It was relatively small, maybe seventy square feet total. Other than Seth’s cot and cup of water, there was nothing in the room except one of those prison-looking toilet-and-sink combos coming out of the wall. And, of course, acamera staring out ominously from a corner of the ceiling, the red light blinking to let Seth know he was being watched at all times.
Gross.
The air in the room didn’t give anything away, not that Seth was even sure what insight could possibly be gained that way—he wasn’t a goddamn detective. But it was stale and tasteless, with no discerning scents making their way through.
Seth walked up to the glass wall and peered around as best he could. There were more rooms along the opposite wall, besides the one directly across from him. He didn’t see anyone—or anything—in any of them until the furthest one away, where he could just make out the corner of the glass. There, Seth thought he saw something, a shadow or maybe a flicker.
“Hey!” Seth called as loud as he could. “Hey! You!”
There went his customer service etiquette out the door.
But the shadow or flicker didn’t respond, and Seth didn’t see it come back to its glass wall again. Maybe he’d imagined it. Or maybe it couldn’t hear him. Mr. Perkins had been using the intercom to talk to him, and Seth couldn’t make out any of the muffled sounds of the building now that it was shut off.
Was his room soundproof? Seth wasn’t claustrophobic by nature, but he couldn’t help the cold clutch of fear in his belly at the thought. He tried banging on the glass wall, not sure anymore if he was testing its integrity or just giving in to panic. It wasn’t actually glass; that was for sure. It was something different, something that had the slightest flexible give under his slaps. But whatever it was, it had to be strong, if other cells here were hiding supernaturals.
And they were, weren’t they? That was what this research facility was meant for. It was meant for creatures like Riley. To steal them away and tear out their secrets.
Seth’s nausea took the moment to remind him fiercely of itsexistence, and he stumbled back to his cot, collapsing on it as he tried to swallow down his bile.
As it stood now, Seth wasn’t strong enough to fight his way out. Which meant waiting. Looking for opportunities. Getting as much information as he could out of his captors.
Seth drained the water cup after all. If it was drugged, it was drugged, and Seth couldn’t afford to let himself become even weaker by way of dehydration. He already felt the irresistible pull of sleep, anyway. Whatever they’d used to subdue him when they’d captured him, it was gnarly stuff, and he needed to sleep it off before he threw up all over his hospital gown.
He wasn’t sure if they’d give him another.
He lay down fully, pulling the scratchy blanket up over him.
Please don’t come, he begged, sending his thoughts into the ether. He was under no illusion that he and Riley had a telepathic connection, but maybe if Seth thought hard enough—if he really begged with all his might—Riley would sense it.
Please, please stay away. Don’t let them get you. Stay safe. I couldn’t bear it if you were hurt.
Seth wished he hadn’t sent Riley away yesterday. Wished he’d gotten one last day with his sweet, sulky vampire before everything turned to shit.
But then again, if Riley had stayed, he might have been caught too.
No, it was better he hadn’t been there.
Maybe if Riley let it go—if he letSethgo—the facility would lose interest in him over time. And then what use would they have with boring, mortal Seth?
