“Oh, do you?” he asked, sounding like he was privy to an inside joke I’d never heard before. “We’ll see.”
There was an audible click and no more words came through the speakers. I sat down on the bed, trying to stop my anxious movement before Kylan made himself known. Then again, he’d apparently been watching me the whole time, so he knew how I’d been channeling my anger.
Ten minutes passed and my knees were bobbing up and down from the effort of not moving. I reminded myself this was a six story building. Moving around it took time, and he hadn’t been on this floor. He’d be here.
At the opposite end of the floor, out of view but audible due to the lack of most walls, the elevator dinged. My back went straight and my fidgeting stopped. Every one of my senses was on high alert while I tried to look less prepared than I was. I didn’t want to be seen as a threat.
Three sets of footsteps came down the hall, one set with the distinct clomp of a high-heeled shoe. The witch, I assumed. The other two would be Kylan, and possibly the tattooed shifter man who’d brought me in. When they turned into the doorway, my assumptions were confirmed.
The witch woman looked less tired and was wearing a different outfit. A less practical one. She was wearing a skintight dress in sky blue with heels in the bright orange shade of her hair. Beside her was the tattooed shifter, in the same outfit as before but different colours. Taking up the back of the group was a man who didn’t meet even a single one of my expectations.
Ginger hair topped his head, all dishevelled and fluffy and cute, a smattering of freckles across his cheeks cementing the cute description. He was the shortest of the group, shorter than me by a couple of inches, and soft in a strong way. I wasn’t entirely sure what that meant, but it was my first thought and the description fit him. His clothing was reminiscent of what a suburban dad would wear on a tropical vacation, with a floral button-up shirt and beige cargo shorts. There were tattoos running up both arms, but they somehow did nothing to make him look more intimidating. My gaze trailed up to his face, skipping over his full, kissable lips curled into a cheerful grin, and to his soft green eyes also filled with mirth.
But what stunned me was the scent that hit me on my next inhale.
Fresh baked pastries and cinnamon. Tantalizing. Delicious. And distinctly Beta.
“You’re not Kylan Jitara,” I accused, forming my slow perusal of him into a glare as the group stopped in front of my cage.
The guards quietly filed out of the room, leaving me alone with the three. Apparently, there would be no letting me out of this cage at the moment.
“Surprise!” he said, ruffling a hand through his hair. “What a pleasant surprise it is, isn’t it?”
“Not particularly,” I said. “Where the fuck is my cousin?”
“Unavailable at the moment.”
He was grinning like this was a game to him. I’d expected a cold and emotionless man, and I was feeling like this was worse. What was there to be happy about? I was a prisoner, a captive, and my cousin was in a similar position.
“Make her available. I’m not going to cooperate until I have proof she hasn’t been harmed. And tell me who the hell you are.”
“Because you’re so cooperative in general,” the shifter man muttered under his breath.
I levelled my glare at him. “I didn’t try to kill you. In my mind, that’s plenty cooperative.”
“You wouldn’t have been able to,” he said.
Oh, I was tempted to tell him how I would have killed him if I wanted to, but to my knowledge these people weren’t aware of my abilities. I shouldn’t show my cards early. “Maybe not,” I said, “but some damage would have been done and I doubt it would have been pretty.”
The woman rolled her eyes at the shifter man, giving me a secretive smile. “Clement, you need to stop underestimating women. If she’d wanted to, she could have put up one hell of a fight against you.”
Before the banter could continue, the other man laughed again. He found everything funny. It was bothering me. “While this banter is thrilling, I’ll answer one of your questions for you. This lovely woman is Amabella, my second hand woman. The grumpy one is obviously Clement. And I’m Nolan.”
He paused long enough for me to lift my eyebrow. There was another word on his lips, I knew it from his cheerful grin.
“Nolan Jitara. Kylan’s cousin.”
I looked him over, not sure I believed him. How could there be any relation when Nolan had the appearance and mannerisms of a puppy? “And why does Kylan have his cousin speaking with me first?”
“He doesn’t. I hate to break this to you, darling, but you’ve been willingly kidnapped by the wrong criminal enterprise.”
ChapterTwo
EMMETT
Her magic took seconds too long to wear off, and when I sprinted in the direction they’d vanished, they were gone. She’d been whisked away through a portal. I threw a curse at the gods as if any of them would listen, and turned on my heel to head back to the club. As a shifter, I couldn’t follow her through the portal. My limited magic capabilities were hardly enough to sense the energy lingering in the air.
When I approached the club again, my body was no longer fighting against me. The curse had lifted. All my memories were back.
