My breathing grew erratic as we came to a halt and I saw three men in suits standing in front of a black Mercedes. The back of my neck prickled even before I registered that the center figure was Caspian Werther. He regarded me coolly. The two men with him had the same creepy, shiny air of otherworldliness. All three stared at me like they might stare at a mildly interesting bacterium on a microscope slide.
Werther’s flat green eyes locked with mine, glowing faintly in the darkness. A slow smile crossed his lips then, and I swear every nerve in my body shivered into full alert.
The two men beside him wore suits almost identical to his. Both had dark sunglasses on despite the late hour, and stood with their hands clasped behind their backs in nearly identical poses. The one on the right broke formation to take off his glasses, revealing green eyes with the same dead expression as Werther’s. He was scary disturbing, just like Caspian. The guy on Caspian’s left did the same thing, his movements nearly identical, and every nerve in my body screamed at me to run.
I tried, setting my feet and fighting as hard as I could, but truth was, my body was spent. There wasn’t much energy left in me.
I was so screwed.
My flesh crawled with the same instinctive aversion I’d felt in the restaurant... in the MMHA office... as though my skin was trying to peel away from my bones an inch at a time. Without a word, the cops shoved me, sending me crashing to the asphalt. Grit and bits of gravel bit into my knees as I landed with a cry of pain.
“No,” I begged. “Take me to the police station! Don’t leave me here! Please!” My plea fell on deaf ears. The two officers ignored me and simply walked away, not looking back.
I forced myself to look up at Werther, who was still staring down at me with that self-satisfied little smirk twisting his perfect mouth. Judge. Jury. Executioner.
One of the other suits stepped around me and grabbed my zip-tied arms. He used the grip to yank me to my feet, sending a wave of squirming repulsion racing across my body.
“Get your hands off me!” I growled, rage twisting and merging with my terror at the idea of any of these men touching me. My feet tangled together, exhaustion and weakness threatening to send me right back to the pavement. Only the punishing grip on my arms kept me upright.
“I’m impressed at your efficiency, Liege,” said the one holding me. “You found this creature only a few days ago, and already, it is captured.”
“Creature?” I hissed in outrage. “You’re the ones acting like animals!”
“It put up something of a fight, I’ll admit.” Werther’s voice was dismissive. Contemptuous. “But I’ve been at this for a very long time, guardsman. A part-bred mutt is no match for my network of watchers.”
“This could be quite a coup for us,” the other shiny guy said.
Werther made a considering noise. “The other side has been careless, but so have we. This creature has been wandering around the human realm for more than two decades, with no one the wiser. It should have been found and destroyed long ago.”
I drew breath to say something—I didn’t know what. This whole thing was so surreal that if it hadn’t been for the raging pain and sickness in my body, I might have been able to convince myself it was all a bad dream.
The one that was holding me cut off any protest I might have made. “Let’s get this thing locked up. I feel disgusted just touching it. As it is, I’m going to have to bathe.”
“The feeling’s mutual, asshole,” I ground out. “If it bothers you so much, then get your fucking hands off me!”
Werther stepped closer and backhanded me across the face, the movement almost casual. My head snapped to one side, pain exploding in my cheek. I tasted blood where my teeth had cut into flesh.
“Get it into the vehicle,” he said, making a production of removing a handkerchief from his pocket and using it to wipe his hand.
I knew one thing for certain. If I let them get me into that car, I was a goner. I would disappear and never be heard from again. As the one behind me shoved me toward the black Mercedes, I inhaled and sent a silent prayer to the powers that be. Please, please give me enough strength to escape before these guys take me away to who-knows-what kind of fate.
I gathered every ounce of energy—every trace of adrenaline remaining in my body—and made a last-ditch attempt to get free. Slamming sideways, I hip-checked the guy on my left, then lifted my foot and kicked the guy behind me as hard as I could in the kneecap.
My captor snarled, his grip never loosening. My heart sank. Clearly, I was too weak to pose even a mild threat to them at this point. Caspian Werther stepped in front of me and grabbed me by the chin, using the punishing grip to push me to my knees once more.
“If you know what’s best for you, wretch, you’ll stop fighting and accept your fate. You don’t belong here.” His voice sent shivers up my spine. “This is our realm. You are not welcome. Your very existence is a criminal abomination.”
The last bit of hope drained from me. “I don’t understand what’s happening,” I said, hating the defeated tone of my voice. “Why are you doing this?”
Werther made a dismissive sound. “Why does one swat a fly?” he asked.
The guy behind me grabbed the hood of my jacket and used it to pull me upright, then he and his buddy were hustling toward the car again. Toward a fate I could barely imagine.
The roar of a motorcycle engine cut across the background of city noises, growing louder by the second. It sounded like it was moving fast—far too
