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“This is getting old,” I said, trying to sound totally cool even as fear chilled my guts. Where were my magical friends who could help protect me from him? “What do you want from me, anyway?”
He pulled me even closer against him. “I think that should be pretty obvious,” he said.
Ewwww. “Fat chance,” I replied. “And if that’s what you really want, you’re going about it the wrong way. Try reading a romance novel. They’re full of seduction techniques that are a lot more effective than this. So, come on, what are you trying to accomplish other than annoying me to death?”
“There’s a quick and easy way to get me totally out of your life.”
“Please, tell me more.”
“Quit your job. You’ll never see me again.”
Although I was still scared because a powerful wizard had me in his grasp and I was susceptible to his power—and he obviously knew that—I couldn’t help but laugh. “You’ve got to be kidding. You’re worried about a secretary? Get rid of me, and there are a number of other immunes who’d fight each other over the job.”
It was his turn to laugh. “And you’re supposed to be so smart. Maybe it’s not about you.”
Now I was nervous. There was something in his tone that went beyond his usual teasing banter. I’d never taken him all too seriously as a threat because he was so very ridiculous, but I sensed real menace. Whatever it was he was up to, me being at MSI was getting in his way. Or maybe me being away from MSI would make it easier. Either way, this went beyond taunting me or just stirring up trouble.
As if I were dealing with an angry dog, I tried to stifle my fear. If he sensed it, he’d jump at the weakness. “I can’t afford to quit my job without having something else lined up,” I said. “Do you have any leads?”
That took him aback. He clearly hadn’t thought this through. Come on, this was Manhattan, home of some of the highest rents in the nation. How could he expect me to just up and quit my job?
“Maybe you won’t have to quit,” he said when he’d recovered. “Maybe you’ll get fired when they find out about you.”
“Find out what?” I asked, projecting all the innocence I could muster. His mouth hung open. I had him, and he knew it. Anyone who reported my lack of immunity would be revealing that they knew about it, and at this point anyone who knew about it was probably responsible.
While he processed that, I took advantage of his distraction to slip out of his arms. He grabbed my arm before I could get away, and I stepped back toward him, letting my stiletto heel sink into his foot, right above his toes—and Mom said those shoes weren’t practical. As he hopped up and down on one foot, I broke away and ran for my friends.
Isabel was sitting alone on the sofa. “I guess Ari and Trix are dancing,” I said. I couldn’t spot them on the dance floor, then I remembered that I wouldn’t see their wings, which was how I usually found them in a crowd.
“I’m not sure Ari’s dancing, if you know what I mean. Trix went to get another drink.”
“If you’re ready to head out, I’d go with you,” I said. “I don’t think I can take much more of this.” The truth was, I was totally wigged out and felt like I needed a shower to wash Idris’s touch off me. I supposed I was lucky that he’d been too arrogant not to make sure I knew what he was doing. The thought of what might have happened if he hadn’t said anything was too horrific to even consider. I fought off a shudder. I started to tell Isabel what happened, then realized I’d have to admit that I’d fallen for Idris’s scheme. In my normal state, I wouldn’t have let him get within ten feet of me on the dance floor, let alone get close enough to me to freak me out that much.
I must have looked bad enough not to have to explain, for Isabel said, “When Trix comes back we can tell her, and she can tell Ari. I don’t have the stamina to keep up with this pace.”
“Neither do I.”
“But you were very popular tonight. You must have been having a good time.”
Since the other two were gone, I felt like I could get a more honest answer, so I asked once more, “You really didn’t set this up? I’m not going to see a bunch of men pocketing five-dollar bills as I leave, am I?”
She shook her head. “As far as I can tell, you’re doing it honestly. You’re a lot cuter than you give yourself credit for.”
I looked around the room at all the glamorous model types and exotic-looking girls showing great expanses of skin, then considered myself. There was no comparison. “Okay, I may be cute, but cute doesn’t seem to be what cuts it in a place like this.”
“Or maybe it does. You were cutting it very well. You’re different, and they might find that refreshing.”
I was still pondering that possibility when Trix returned with a pink drink like the one Rick had bought me. “I think I’m going to head out now and make sure Katie gets home okay,” Isabel told her.
“You’re leaving already? But Katie, I thought you were having a good time. You had all those men after you.”
“I was having a good time,” I said, “but my feet are killing me, and I think the whole evening has suddenly caught up with me.” Not to mention my enemy—who had apparently tampered with my magical immunity and who thought I somehow figured into whatever his grand scheme was.
I kept my adventures to myself all weekend, spending more time pondering my unlikely appeal and Idris’s behavior than I did the possible reasons behind that strange attack earlier Friday evening. As a result, it took me a second or two to respond when Owen greeted me Monday morning with a worried, “Are you okay?”
“Huh? Oh yeah, yeah, I’m fine. I guess Sam must have told you. I’m not sure it was anything serious. They gave up pretty quickly.”
“You must be close to something to get them to respond like that.”
