Page 41 of Captive Hybrid
‘Not for long.’ Aidan marches a little head, beckoning me to follow. ‘You’ll like this.’
‘If there are more people in their underwear being bitten, you don’t know me at all,’ I warn.
‘It’s not that.’ He steps out into a wide antechamber and splays his hands in a ta-da movement. ‘How great is this?’
It takes my eyes several moments to adjust to the light. I hadn’t noticed that we had been walking up a slight incline for what must have been half an hour. We’re at the surface. Looking up through the glass, sunlight shines through, coating the sunroom in watery morning light.
I loose a sharp breath, staring hungrily up at the sky, at least, what the glass allows of it. Part of me wants to rush toward the window, but even now, I can see the sparkle of a spell protecting the glass. Not an exit.
‘You’re not the only one who misses the outside.’ Aidan nods ahead.@
The sunroom is about the size of Evelyn’s apartment set up similarly to a café, with several tables and chairs, many filled with people—human or witch—who smile about, low chatter filling the circular room. There are some, I notice, who wear varying kinds of chokers around their throat, depicting ownership. Some are thick, black leather. Others are no thinner than my finger. It seems the design of it doesn’t matter, only the symbolism.
Is that equivalent to a wedding ring, or wearing your mate’s mark?
‘This is what we call the Dome,’ Aidan says brightly. ‘I miss being outside too. So, when a surface visit isn’t possible or approved, we come here.’ He leads me to an empty table and pulls out a chair for me.
‘You’re right.’ I lower myself into a chair without taking my gaze from the window. ‘I do like this.’ I finally look at him. ‘Thank you.’ For a brief moment, I feel a little less trapped.
