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“I’m going to try,” I say, pushing myself off the couch. “If I’m not back soon, come find me.”
He forces a dry laugh. “Not funny. I’ll see you tonight.”
I cup my hand under his chin and bend to kiss him, my lips dancing against his perfectly the way they always do.
“It’s a date.”
I make my way up the stairs to the third floor in a blur, and I pause on the landing.
My heart is beating in my throat, my hands trembling.
Only a hallway and a wooden door separate me from Rafe, and while I doubt he’ll hurt me considering he went out of his way to save my life, the fear of the unknown still sends an icy chill over me.
He’s unpredictable.
A loose cannon.
There’s no telling what he will say or do to me now that we’ll be alone.
Not to mention I’m tracking him down to talk to him, when he clearly doesn’t want to be bothered.
Forcing my feet across the floor, I pass the first set of doors and make my way closer to the third, my breaths becoming shaky.
I still have time to change my mind.
I can turn around, head downstairs, and forget about this whole plan.
But as tempted as I am, I know I can’t.
I have to thank him, even if it’s only to appease my conscious.
My hand shakes as I raise it to knock on the door. Every tap against the wood resonates through my body like a beacon of warning, but I swallow my fear.
“Enter,” Rafe calls from within.
Well, at least he’s alive. That’s a positive.
I tentatively reach for the doorknob and push the door open, revealing what is by far the most opulent room in the entire mansion.
I should have known he’d save the best of everything for himself.
All the flat surfaces in the room are black, but flecks of silver that shimmer in the light are sprinkled across the floor. A glossy four-poster bed draped with an emerald green canopy and rich green bed linens takes up the center of the room, waiting like an open invitation.
There is a sitting area to my right, comprised of a wide emerald sofa and a plush black rug in front of a fireplace. The walls are donned with paintings in silver frames, and a life-size marble statue of a woman with horns occupies one the of corners.
Rafe stands staring out a wide window to my left. He’s dressed in one of his pressed black suits with his back to me, and as I step farther into the room, I hear him take a slow, deep breath.
“Did Azarius send you?” he asks without turning around. My scent must have given me away.
“No. He didn’t.”
“I bet it was Elio.”
“Nope. Wrong again.”
I stop near the middle of the room and my eyes travel toward the ceiling where an elaborate chandelier hangs. Strips of detailed trim explode out from the middle of the ceiling and run their way down the walls, resembling a birdcage. A dark, ominous birdcage.
My eyes do another lap around the room, taking it all in.
