No malice, but nowords, either.
Not an enchanted, talking cat, then, I thought, feeling stupid. Of course it wasn’t.
I inched closer, aching at the memory of Hannah and Gwen’s beloved pets. Was someone missing this one? A thin, diamond-studded collar hung around its neck.
“Did they steal you, too?” I murmured.
My hand trembled as I reached out. The cat closed the distance, brushing its soft fur against my palm. I couldn’t help but smile as a gentle purr thrummed from the odd creature.
But before I could stroke it again, footsteps closed in on the room. The cat and I both flinched our attention to the door. I swore the purring tapered into a huff of annoyance at the interruption.
Launching into a hover above the bed, I whirled to see the man—Lee—opening the left-hand door. He froze when he spotted me, but his hesitation quickly melted into a charming smile.
“Well, look who’s up bright and early.”
Drowsiness still burned my eyes—from the fight, from the strange and sudden sleep—but I pushed past. I hoped to find the cat arching its back and hissing at Lee, but I felt stupidly betrayed when it lay back down without a care. Glaring at Lee, I whispered a spell and summoned frost that crackled its way up my arms. Frigid air pooled around me threateningly.
“Let me go,now,” I growled.
Lee tucked his hands into the pockets of his slacks. “Seriously, what part of this screamsprisonerto you—the luxury sheets? Come on, you’re not tied down. No restraints in sight, actually.”
“You left acatto guard me.”
“Looks to me like you’re fast friends. We figured you’d have an easier time settling in if you met Delilah first. Animal lover,right? Didn’t even want to kill a screwed-up snake that could swallow you whole.”
My chest tightened at the memory of the serpent taking a bite at Jon’s shoulder.
As Lee approached me at an amble, I took him in with fresh eyes. He was handsome—like,punchablyhandsome. With his suit jacket removed, the blue button-up beneath outlined a toned, lean frame. He had a square jaw peppered with stubble and perfectly coiffed chestnut hair that somehow looked both effortless and expensive. He carried an easy charm, scanning me with those intense blue eyes like I was the only thing that mattered, like he had experience in using that boyish smile to get everything he wanted.
Get ready for disappointment, pretty boy.
“One more step, and you’ll be frozen where you stand,” I snapped.
That sleek metallic cuff was absent from his wrist now, much to my relief. Though I still wasn’t surewhatthat thing was, I was confident that my spellwork would reach him this time with it gone.
“Hey, lay off him. He just helped save your life.” Ben glided into view, apparently having been hovering behind Lee’s left shoulder the entire time. Ben’s timid concealment was entirely out of sync with how he steered his flight in front of Lee protectively. The gesture nearly softened me with curiosity, but I swiftly stamped it down.
“You idiots, you’vekidnappedme!” I aimed my hands toward Ben. “The concept of safety is a joke when you’ve got glamour that can keep me in line better than any chains or cages.”
Ben dropped his gaze to the floor, oddly ashamed.
“Hey, now—” Lee started, looking even more offended on Ben’s behalf.
“It’s fine.” Ben’s mouth pinched as he rubbed the back of his neck. “Here, I grabbed this for you.”
He flitted closer and produced my dagger, flipping it around to offer the jeweled hilt. I hadn’t even noticed my weapon’s absence.Shit.
One hand still bearing ice in warning, I cautiously snatched my dagger with the other and turned it over for signs of tampering. There didn’t appear to be fae runes or binding flowers like he’d tried before. Satisfied, I kept a tight grip on it as extra security.
I narrowed my eyes at Ben. “If you try to drain me again—”
“I-I won’t. I’m sorry. I…I panicked. That won’t happen again, I swear. I understand why you’re scared. There are probably more fairies around here who weren’t as lucky as you.” A steely glint surfaced in his gaze. “I don’t know what those guns-for-hire said to win your trust. Please, you have to believe me. They were going to sell you to the highest bidder.”
More fairies? Highest bidder?I grimaced, tucking this away.
“What gives you the right to assume anything about us?” First Veloria, now this. I was well and trulydonewith people assuming I was the hunters’ unwilling plaything.
“Because you wouldn’t be the first,” Lee said grimly. “Ben’s been through it, worse than you can imagine. I found him in the hands of people who took advantage of his power in every fucked up way imaginable. People like that will say anything to make you believe you’re not as trapped as you are.”
