“Cain?” I yell.
“The one and only, darling.” Cain sounds a bit like he’s been hit on the head and is wincing his way through it. “You all right?”
“I’m fine. I mean, I kind of felt like shit when I woke up, but that went away. I just have a bit of a headache now.”
I can hear North banging against his door. “They’ve got steel or iron keeping us in.”
From where their voices are, I think they’re not too far away from me. We’re not in cells next to each other, but we’re not all the way down the hall, either.
“Raven?” I call out. He’s the only one who hasn’t answered. “Raven, are you okay?”
There’s a long pause as we all listen, and my chest goes tight. What if Raven’s hurt? What if he’s not here? What if he’s dead?
At last I hear Raven’s voice. “I’m fine.”
Raven’s not really a talker by any stretch of the imagination, but he sounds stressed. More than the rest of us do. “Are you sure?”
“I’m sure.” Raven’s voice sounds a bit terse. He’s never gotten terse with me before.
Out of the three men, Raven is the most into this whole fated mate thing. He’s devoted to me. Sometimes I have to remind him that this is about what he wants, too. I don’t want a mate or a partner of any kind who’s subservient to me. I want someone who is my equal.
I know that Raven can be that. I see him as an equal to me. I just want him to see himself that way.
But this doesn’t sound like Raven’s just being taciturn. It sounds like he’s upset.
“Are you hurt? Did he do anything to you?” If Donovan hurt Raven, I’m going to tear him limb from limb. I don’t care what it takes.
“I’m not hurt. I’m fine.” Raven sounds like he’s lying, but he also doesn’t sound like he’s hurt, so I don’t know what to do. Maybe he’s claustrophobic? Being put in a cell isn’t exactly fun. I sure would like to get out of here.
I don’t want to push. I can’t push, anyway. Not when I’m secretive and unsure about trusting people. I don’t exactly open up like a flower about myself. I can’t expect everyone else to be forthcoming about all of their shit and then be a hypocrite by not sharing my own. So I drop the subject.
“I can’t do any fucking magic,” North growls. I can hear a dull pounding sound, and I realize it’s North throwing himself against the door, trying to literally bust it open.
North is strong, but I don’t think he’s quite that strong. Not even Raven as a gargoyle can just bust through however many inches of metal this is.
“We have to stay calm,” Cain reasons. “There has to be a way out of here. North, for fuck’s sake, we’re not going to literally bust out. Try the floors, they’re padded, maybe we can use that somehow.”
Underneath the padded floors, there’s just more metal, but I appreciate Cain for trying.
North finally stops banging on the door, and then a moment later I hear, “Guys.”
A second after that, I hear a door open down the hall.
North must’ve smelled or otherwise sensed whoever it is. He’s got some incredible abilities, despite the fact that he’s really tough on himself. He’s half shifter, half fae, but he can’t phase out like other fae or use the Sight, and he can’t shift into a wolf form like most other shifters. He thinks that makes him less-than, but so far, he’s been nothing but a strong, good leader to us. I wish he wouldn’t put himself down so much.
Like right now. He might not be able to shift, but he could sense someone coming when the rest of us couldn’t.
I wait by the door, breathless with worry. I wouldn’t put it past Donovan to take just me or one of the men and drag us out away from the others. I still don’t even know why we’re imprisoned. I gave Donovan a powerful magical item, possibly the most powerful he’s ever owned, and he can’t let me go?
He said something about my blood being pure. And sure, vampires have hunted fae to near-extinction for years, but I can’t possibly be this special of a feed.
My cell door opens, and I can hear the other doors opening as well, smooth and oiled, with only a slight click as the locks disengage. How often does Donovan use these cells?
In front of me are two guards. Looking over their shoulders, I can see two guards each for the men as well. One of the guards in front of me steps up. “Hold out your hands.”
Shit. I know where this is going. I can try attacking him, but that would probably just end in disaster. The men might get attacked in retaliation, and I can’t have that. And I’m sure the guards are prepared for me to resist.
I’ve just got to stay smart and alert. Wait for my opportunity.