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But as he approached the table and pulled out a chair, I had no doubt he was something more than human.
I brushed my hair away from my face and tucked it behind my ears, more to give my hands something to do than to look good for my new guest.
“Ms. Gunter. How are you feeling?”
I didn’t want to start this interrogation off on a hostile foot, but it was hard not to reply to that with sarcasm and vitriol.
I decided on honesty instead. “I’m stressed and want to go home.”
He nodded. “I want you to go home as well. I think that you have been sucked into something that is too dark for the likes of someone good like you.”
He sat comfortably, leaning back against the chair with legs splayed. Not like a military man at all. Like someone who knew they were about to get exactly what they wanted.
And he knew my name, even though no one had asked me.
“I’m happy we agree. Can you call me an Uber? I don’t have any credit cards with me. But I can also contact some friends at the university. I’m sure they would help me.”
“Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. I have a lot of questions for you still.”
Before he could ask any of those, someone came into the room and set down a tray full of meats, cheeses, and fruits. My mouth watered at the sight, but something held me back from devouring the spread.
When was the last time I’d eaten?
I clenched my hands into fists and looked at the man. “You never gave me your name.”
“You can call me Seran,” he said, without missing a beat.
I tensed and my eyes widened, obliterating any chance I had of hiding my recognition.
“You’ve heard of me. Interesting.”
“I wouldn’t say that. I mean, Seran is such a common name.”
He chuckled and the static in the air seemed to crackle. I felt more in danger now than I ever had in that burning forest.
“If you’ve heard of me, then you know exactly how formidable I can be.”
I might not have been read my rights, but I knew silence was my best option. I didn’t have any information to help Seran no matter what, but fae were tricksters and it would be so easy for him to turn my words against me or trap me into some sort of deal.
“How much do you know about the men you’ve been spending time with?”
Being silent was easier said—er, not said, than done. I reached over to the platter of food and picked off a piece of lettuce that was used as a garnish and started to pull off little chunks as I mentally went over the various equations for quantum uncertainty.
Seran let this stretch out for a few minutes before he slammed a fist on the table. When he picked it up, there was a bowl-shaped indentation. “You might think you’re clever, but I promise you that my patience is very finite.”
“No one’s patience is infinite. We’d wither and die if that were the case.” I caught my smartass response and mentally cursed myself. “I’m sorry if I appear difficult,” I said with more civility than I felt. “If you get me a lawyer, I—” I broke off before I offered a deal I didn’t mean. “It’s custom to not speak to authorities without a lawyer present.”
His golden eyes sparked and with a flick of his wrist, the table flipped over and slammed into the wall with enough force to shake the room. Then a column of air forced me and the chair I was on back into the wall, hitting with so much force that my head whipped back into the hard surface.
Even though dots swarmed in my field of vision, flashes of Seran’s true face flashed in and out of my field of vision: higher cheekbones, pointed ears, and a ruthless glint to his eyes.
This was it. I would never make it out of this room alive. I didn’t share this mate bond or whatever with Jaiden. I knew nothing that could help Seran, nor would I work as leverage he could use in his favor.
The question was how much he’d torture me before he realized I was useless.
He knelt on the floor, his human visage back in place. Even though he was on his knees in front of me, I was fully aware that I was the vulnerable party.
“Raina—I can call you Raina, right?”
I didn’t answer; he wasn’t really asking. One of his big hands landed on my sweatpants-covered thigh. I started to tremble, unable to hide my fear.
The evil fae smiled. The son of a bitch was getting off on my fear. He didn’t move his hand at all, though he tightened his grip. Enough that his fingers dug into my flesh but not enough to actually hurt.
Then I couldn’t help it. I laughed in his face. Not because I wasn’t scared. I was terrified.
But I’d just spent the last few days being carted around the East Coast by a fae king. So Seran would have to try a lot harder to get me to crack.
And until then, I’d just daydream about equations and a certain fae king.
