“Why are you trying to destroy the Variks?” Winter demanded.
“Look, I have no idea who the Variks are, and I’ve got no beef with them. And I definitely have no idea why they think I’m the witch mentioned in this stupid prophecy. Trust me, they’ve got the wrong guy.”
Winter didn’t miss the tremor in Fox’s voice or the growing desperation. Beneath his earlier joking and bravado was a thick wall of fear that he was doing his best to hide. There was a good chance that, just like Cara, Fox was entirely innocent and had been grabbed by Damon’s goons.
And Winter didn’t kill innocent people if he could help it.
“Man, come on. I don’t know what all that commotion was about earlier, but we got to get out of here while the getting is good!” Fox lifted his bound hands as much as he could, pulling at the rope.
Winter’s eyes skimmed over his slim form and muscled forearms straining against the rope. There were fading bruises on his arms and face. A dried trickle of blood cut across his temple. Damon’s men likely knocked him out so they could kidnap him more easily.
Clenching his teeth, Winter nearly snarled at the swell of need inside of him. He didn’t want to kill Fox. He wanted to protect him. This man was too like Cara and all the other dead haunting Damon’s grounds. People he couldn’t save, but Fox was right in front of him, wide green eyes begging Winter to set him free.
“Please, man. They’re gonna kill me, I know it,” Fox pleaded. His hands shook as he held them out toward Winter.
Winter wasn’t sure if Fox was telling the truth about his involvement with the prophecy, but he did believe that. Whether Fox willingly helped Damon or not, he was living on borrowed time while in this house.
“Fuck,” Winter swore softly. This wasn’t supposed to be the hard part.
Time was ticking down, and they were going to lose their window. If he took Fox with him now, it meant he was away from Damon and his goons. That was a plus. He didn’t know what the fuck he was going to do with him afterward. But if they could escape Damon’s place and return to his own house, then he could question Fox safely, find out what he knew about the prophecy.
Winter hurried across the last few feet separating them and pressed the knife to the ropes, but he didn’t cut. “I set you free, you come with me. You do exactly what I say, or we’re never going to get out of here alive.”
“Sure. Of course,” Fox agreed eagerly. Winter figured the guy would at least behave until they were away from Damon’s.
Grumbling silently in his head, Winter sawed through the ropes, setting the witch free. For a second, Winter held his breath, waiting for it all to blow up in his face. But nothing happened. Fox let out a grateful sigh as he rubbed his red wrists.
“Thanks!”
“Silence,” Winter hissed.
“Anything you say, sexy.”
Winter rolled his eyes and ignored the unexpected flutter through his stomach as he grabbed Fox’s arm and pulled him to his feet. Sexy was not a term anyone had ever used to describe him. Evil, frightening, and bastard were all common terms, but definitely not sexy.
He quickly released him again and rushed to the one window in the room. Checking it for alarms, he disabled them with the knife and thrust open the window. Heat and the scent of sweat pressed close as Fox looked around him and out to the back lawn.
“That’s a bit of a drop,” Fox observed a bit nervously. “You don’t happen to be one of those vampires who shapeshift into things, do you? Like maybe a giant bird.” They were only on the second floor. Not an impossible drop. Winter had made plenty from this height and managed just fine. He wasn’t as sure about the witch.
“Vampires don’t shapeshift, witch. Besides, we’re not going this way,” Winter announced as he stepped back from the window.
“But…” Fox started, looking from him to the window. A slow smile spread across his lips. “Oh, a red herring. A bit of misdirection.”
“Exactly. Now, shut up.”
Grabbing Fox’s arm, he pulled him in until the other man’s elbow brushed his side and they moved to the exit. Carefully, Winter opened the door and peeked out. The hallway was still empty. He tapped his power, also opening up the veil between worlds.
“Whoa…” Fox whispered.
Winter glared at him and Fox snapped his mouth closed with a wide smile. He even made the motion of zipping his lips shut, locking it, and throwing the imaginary key over his shoulder. Winter internally groaned and pulled them both through the opening. As he sealed the rift, he also grabbed the knob behind Fox, closing the door as well.