Page 137 of Seduce Me in Shadow

“How? How will obtaining the Doomsday Diary help? Will he simply write that as a wish?”

“What else would he do?”

“I don’t know. You’re familiar with him. All I’ve heard are the…rumors.”

“They’re crap!”

I’m tired of Zain’s coy answers. “Are they? I understand the opposition telling lies and whatnot, but if you’re anything to go by… What you did to my friend Aquarius was unforgivable. And you threatened to kill me, too!”

“Worthless pawns, both of you,” he spits. “Just like your wizard lover.”

Zain’s remark is meant to get under my skin. I refuse to show that it does. “Why should anyone get behind your ‘cause’ if you simply intend to kill people?”

“Mathias is brave enough to challenge the establishment. He should be hailed as a hero.” Zain lunges at the bars.

They rattle and clink. Dirt and grit fall from the ceiling. Is the plaster disintegrating?

I glance up to where the bars join the ceiling. They’re working free.

Biting back a gasp, I wonder… Has Zain noticed, too?

Chapter

Sixty-One

Quickly, I realize yes. Zain has noticed.

He might not be able to do magic, but he can use his brute strength to escape. Fear laces my veins as I turn to run.

Two steps later, the bars rattle. Then they thud to the ground. I keep moving, but Zain grabs a fistful of my hair and whirls me around.

“The delicious energy from your determination and anger was just what I needed.”

He wears a sick, almost sexual smile that turns my stomach. I look away, my mind racing. What the hell have I done? How can I alert Bram and the others?

“Look at me,” Zain snarls, yanking my hair until I have no choice but to meet his gaze. His eyes gleam with malice in the dim light. “Now, be a good girl and fetch the Doomsday Diary.”

“Why?” I ask, my voice barely above a whisper.

“For Mathias, of course.” His lips curl into a cruel smile.

“But he’ll take it and kill me.” The words tumble out before I can stop them.

Zain pulls me close, his breath hot on my cheek as he strokes it with mock tenderness. “Think of yourself as an important sacrifice for a very worthy cause. You’ll make the news.”

Ice floods my veins, fear clawing at my insides. I have to fight, but how?

“Don't even think about trying anything,” he hisses, his grip tightening painfully. “Or I’ll make what I did to Aquarius seem like a mild sunburn.”

He’s too weak for that. I refuse to be bullied. “Do it. I won’t give up the book.”

His eyes narrow dangerously. “Then I’ll kill everyone you work with at that silly human tabloid. Do you want all those deaths on your conscience?”

My heart plummets. With that threat, Zain has me cornered, and he knows it.Bastard!

As he shoves me up the stairs toward Bram’s office, my mind races. But I can’t think of an escape. Holly and the others are all human, defenseless against the horrors Zain could unleash.

With shaking hands, I set the video camera on Bram’s desk, then retrieve the hidden book once more. My fingers tremble as I hold it, the weight of my failure crushing me. Tears sting my eyes as I hand it over, silently praying for a miracle I know won’t come.

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