Chapter 12

“Don’t fight. I not want to drop you,” Godor shouted from above me.

“I’m not stupid,” I called back. A fall from this height would kill me.

“I sorry.”

“I assume your master asked you to pick me up?”

“Yes.”

Typical.

I squinted against the cold air, grateful that I’d opted to wear a jacket, wishing I’d also put on a hat because my ears were freezing.

The road below us was a deserted dirt track that widened, spilling into fields and woodland. Not the road Ordell and I had taken to New Town but another leading away from both pockets of civilization toward the shadowy mountains in the distance.

Isolated. Cold. Those were the words that came to mind, and deep foreboding filled my belly. “Am I going to end up in the dungeons again?”

“Master has ordered a feast to be made.”

So he wasn’t lying about dinner.

“Yah! Yah!”

I looked down to see two men on horseback galloping below us, and my heart lifted. Hemlock and Ordell were trailing us.

“Bad,” Godor said. “Master won’t like it if they come to the castle. We go fast and you prepare him. Maybe he not kill them.” Godor swerved away from the road, taking us over forestland. My stomach tightened because was that the Silverwood below?

“Don’t you dare fucking drop me.”

His grip on me tightened so it was a fraction away from being painful. “Never.”

Ezekiel couldn’t kill Ordell and Hemlock. They’d be safe. He might not let them in, but they’d be safe…right? Shit, we were close now, mountains rushing closer as Ezekiel’s epic fortress rose to meet us. Turrets on turrets clawed at the night sky. The building was vast and sprawling. A home and a prison.

There was a drawbridge, an actual fucking drawbridge, but no water beneath. Just a chasm.

“Broken,” Godor said. “No worry. They will cross.”

We flew over the bridge and over the wall, dipping suddenly as we entered a cobbled courtyard. My boots were a meter off the ground when Godor let go.

I landed neatly in a crouch and looked up in time to see him fly away. I could wait out here for Hemlock and Ordell or head inside and let Ezekiel know I’d brought a plus two. He might not be able to kill the hunters, but he could easily have them locked up and tortured. No, I couldn’t be the cause of that. Dammit, I should have considered this possibility earlier.

I took a deep breath and strode toward the main entrance comprised of a crumbling set of steps and tall black double doors set ajar.

I pushed them open, entering to the sound of whispers that halted abruptly.

Weird.

A couple of candles burned on a recess in the wall to my left, barely enough light to make out the hallway, just shadows and shapes. “Hello? Ezekiel?” My voice echoed eerily. “Your minion dropped me off. I need to speak to you. I brought a couple of friends, you know, for moral support considering I’m still suffering from post-traumatic stress from my last visit. I’m going to need some hand-holding…” My voice sounded too loud, out of place in the silence.

A trickle of air kissed my nape, moving around me to ruffle the baby hairs at my temple. I turned sharply to find nothing but gloom. “Who’s there?” Dammit, why was my heart beating so fast? Breathe.

A looming shadow appeared at the top of the grand staircase, and my pulse stuttered. “Ezekiel?”

“So familiar with the use of my name, little silver.” His voice was smooth and velvety against my senses, different from the raspy tones of last night. “And if it’s hand-holding you require, then I am more than happy to oblige.”

Candles flared to life in the entranceway, lighting up the space and the figure standing midway down the wide staircase. Gone was the desiccated monster of last night, and in its place stood a man not built for the clothes of this era, too broad, too tall, too…regal. And once I saw his face, it was obvious where his power lay: not in rage, not in the chase, but in the reeling in and slowly devouring of prey because he was fucking beautiful.

His hair fell about his chiseled face in thick, dark waves that begged to be touched, and his golden eyes rimmed in sable were fringed by dark lashes that turned them into daggers fit to pierce a soul. But it was his mouth that drew me—wide and generous, it was a mouth that demanded to be kissed.

He was perfection, but he was also a trap, a lure, a pretty lie waiting to consume its unwitting prey. The hollows beneath his cheekbones released a dimple when he smiled, and my breath caught at the cunningness of this fa?ade, because that’s what this was, a fa?ade—a mask to hide the true beast within.

The beast I’d seen last night.

Thatwas the truth. That was the image I needed to retain.

I wouldn’t be seduced so easily. I lifted my chin. “You filled out nicely. I guess that’s what draining a few humans does for you, huh?” I arched a brow, waiting for a response, and when none came, I continued. “Thanks for the head, by the way, but I don’t like partial gifts. I’ll need the rest of the body and the others too.”

The air whooshed, and I was suddenly in his grip, his arm snug around my waist, pressing me to his torso in a way that left me in no doubt as to the power that was hidden beneath his velvet waistcoat. He squeezed my jaw, long, cold fingers pressing into my hot cheeks, and forced my head back so he could peer into my eyes, searching, searching.

My stomach quivered, breath hitching as his pupils filled my vision. I snapped my eyes closed, breaking the connection. “What are you doing?” I spoke, fighting the pinch of my cheeks.

His warm breath skimmed my lips. “Admiring the workmanship.”

Huh? Oh. Control, Orina. You are in control. I opened my eyes and stared levelly at him, unaffected even though my primal instincts were screaming at me to fight. To run. “Is that meant to be a compliment?”

His heavy-lidded gaze dropped to my lips, and when he spoke, his voice filled my mind, wrapping around my thoughts like a spectral caress. “Would you like it to be?”

The urge to fight ebbed. The need to flee…fled, and something else bloomed in its place—a simmer of heat and the beginnings of a submission.

Blessed wings give me strength. The mark on my arm buzzed, and a calm settled over me. “If you’re trying to seduce me, don’t bother. I’m unseducible.”

He studied my lips again, a small smile playing on his. “Is that a word?”

“It is now.” I jerked out of his grip and shoved at his chest, fighting the hummingbird that wanted to take flight in mine. But he pulled me back and pressed his palm to my breastbone before closing his eyes.

I was frozen. Immobilized as a slow-burn smile bloomed on his luscious lips. “Ah, there you are, little bird…”

I tried not to breathe too hard, not to push up against his hand, to ignore the strange heat that emanated out from the contact to ripple over my breasts and threaten to tighten my nipples. He was doing this…this thing to me.

“Let. Me. Go.”

He obliged immediately, leaving me to stagger back in surprise. “What the?—”

“I am nothing if not a gentleman.” He gave me a mock bow. “And your guests are welcome to dine with us tonight. I’m feeling…magnanimous.”

Who the fuck was this guy?

The clatter of hooves registered, and a moment later, the doors behind me flew open, letting in a gust of wind that extinguished the candles, plunging the entranceway into darkness.

Ezekiel’s laughter echoed around us. “Make your way to the dining hall on the left.” His voice drifted away, leaving me standing in the dark with two hunters at my back and a tremor in my limbs.

“Are you all right?”Ordell cupped my shoulders with his large hands, running his gaze over me. My knees shook, but I held my ground, resisting the urge to lean into him.

“She looks fine,” Hemlock said.

I shot him a sharp look. “You sound disappointed.”

“No. Just wary. What did he say to you?”

“Nothing much. He was acting…hospitable…” I winced. “He’s playing a game, obviously. He said you could stay to dine.”

“We’d stay regardless,” Ordell growled.

Hemlock rolled his eyes. “Of course we would. Look, we’re on his turf, so let’s play by his rules, and we can get the fuck out of here.”

I hadn’t told them about my plan to live here, and now wasn’t exactly the time. And to be honest, I was having second thoughts. No. It was a solid plan. The only plan, and I needed to raise it with Ezekiel tonight while he was feeling magnanimous, and I didn’t want it to come as a shock to the guys. “Look, guys, I was going to tell you on the drive here before I got batnapped. So I’m telling you now, and I need you not to make a big deal about it.”

“What is it?” Ordell asked.

“I’m going to ask if I can live here.”

They both stilled, and then Hemlock let out a bark of laughter. “Perfect.” He turned away, reaching into his pocket and retrieving his silver coin.

“Why would you do that?” Ordell asked, looking genuinely confused.

I glanced around the hallway, a prickle skating over my skin. “I feel it would be easier to do my job if I was here.” I met his gaze when I said it, hoping that he’d read between the lines and know it wasn’t something to be discussed in Ezekiel’s vicinity.

His frown cleared, and he nodded. “If that’s what you think is best, then we’re with you.”

“What?” Hemlock snapped.

Ordell shot him a quelling glance, and Hemlock’s jaw ticked dangerously.

Ezekiel’s voice filled the hallway. “If you’re done confabulating, dinner awaits.”

I’d been right to keep my peace here. It was obvious now that the walls had ears, and all ears led to the master of the house.

I adjusted my holster and headed toward the dining hall. “Let’s eat.”