The shifter is so close to me that he leans into it.
As soon as the glow touches his face, the dark power I sensed building inside him suddenly recedes as if it were being sucked into a void, the same way my magic has calmed and…disappeared…
His eyes widen in a way that tells me he wants to step away from us, but that would be a sign of weakness.
He hides his surprise quickly, the momentary fluttering of his fingers his only movement. “What is this?”
Alexei’s gray eyes are cold and hard. “Normally, I’d make you apologize to the lady, but in this case, I’ll be happy to see the back of you.” He leans forward while the soft haze around us merges with the neon lights. Any passerby will think the glow is simply an effect of the lighting.
Alexei lowers his voice. “You will walk away, and we will not see you again tonight. Is that clear?”
The shifter’s lips twist into an angry line.
I sense his power sputter and then stop like an engine that keeps dying, as if he’s trying to access it but can’t make it work.
What is Alexei doing?
Alexei’s hand tightens briefly, and the glow builds, illuminating the shifter’s malevolent eyes…
Then he steps back, snapping at his bodyguard, “We will find a better cube.”
He spins on his heel and stalks away, angrily gesturing for the warlock and witch to follow him.
“We won’t see him again,” Alexei says, and I hope he’s right.
Questions burn inside me about what Alexei just did. Mother Kadris said he doesn’t know the extent of his power and now, I’m questioning it too.
Putting aside my questions for the moment, I sink onto the end of the bed that dominates the cube. My feigned discomfort is becoming real. Standing with my legs at an awkward angle has given me genuinely sore arches and calves.
“Thank you,” I murmur.
Alexei pauses in the entrance, not even attempting to hide the fact that he’s assessing the safety of our surroundings outside the cube as well as its internal layout.
A bed takes up all of the space inside the cube, its sides reaching each wall with only a small space to move between the bed and the entrance. Cushions are strewn across its surface, lending color to an otherwise white space—white leather walls and ceiling.
I bend to slip off one of my heels, not faking the sigh that passes my lips. I love my heels—I wear them all the time—but there’s nothing like taking them off.
As soon as Alexei steps into the cube, the magic takes hold and closes off the cube behind him. I can’t hear anything from the outside now—not the thumping beat or the constant hum of voices. I can’t see anything outside the cube, either. Inside, soft lighting makes the air around us glow, but the silence feels… dangerous.
When I return my focus to Alexei, I find him standing in the only open space between the bed and the closed entrance, leaning up against the wall.
His gaze is steely and determined. The silver haze from his assassin’s ring melds with his muscular silhouette. The assassin’s magic he wields draws me to him, but I force myself to stay seated, two paces from his location.
“What did you do out there when you touched me?” I ask. “I’ve never felt assassin’s magic like that.”
His focus passes over the bed before he levels his gaze with mine in a way that tells me he wants answers too. “Why are we in here, Tansy?”
I won’t answer his question, the same way he’s avoiding mine.
“I’m here,” I say, gesturing to the cube. “To take off my shoes.”
I slide off my other stiletto and rub my aching calf, pushing aside my gauzy skirt to reach my lower leg.
At the same time, I consider all of the spells masquerading as flower petals around my body and which one I should use.
The protection spell will freeze Alexei. It will give me the chance to take the rubies at my leisure. But I would have to speak it very quickly since his reflexes are lightning fast.
I wear another spell that’s a compulsion spell—it would make him give me the ring, but he would be aware of it and come after me as soon as the spell wore off.
