Fuck it. I pushed on the doors and spoke into the crack. “Ansin?”
No one replied.
Cautiously, I stepped into the room, which was what I imagined a castle should look like—tall domed ceilings and stained-glass windows on each side of the room. In the center were two red velvet sofas and a chocolate brown armchair. Off in the corner, by a large fireplace, was a grand piano with an unlit candelabra overhead.
The room was huge, but comfy. Elegant and immaculate, too. Not the home of a psycho killer with a fetish for mason jars and kidneys.
I tiptoed through the room, keeping my eyes and ears open for any sign of life. Where was Ansin? Where was that bedroom I’d seen in my visions?
Almost to the next doorway, Ansin and a tall brunette strolled in, both holding snifters of something golden, whisky or brandy. The woman wore a green silk gown and had the longest and shiniest hair I’d ever seen.
“Ah, here she is.” Ansin extended his hand in my direction. “Sage, allow me to present Miss Jeni Arnold. Miss Arnold, this is Sage Wellesley.”
Ansin seemed awfully friendly with this Sage monster. Was I being set up?
“How do you two know each other?” I asked Ansin, trying not to sound shaken up. “Did you meet in Ten Club?”
“Sage and I go way, waaay back.” Ansin swiped his free hand dismissively through the air.
Sage batted her thick black eyelashes at him. “Yes, we do,” she sang out. “So many wonderful memories, too.” She shifted her gaze to the domed ceiling and smiled as if reliving some great memory.
“Well, unfortunately,” Ansin said, “this visit won’t be as extensive as my prior ones, Sage. I’m on a tight schedule with my next project.”
“Project?” Sage clapped one hand on her glass. “Do tell, Ansin. You know how I love all your debauchery and ventures.”
“I would,” he said in an overtly charming voice, “but it would ruin the surprise. I know how you love surprises.”
“Oh.” She chuckled sadistically. “I do.”
“Good. Because this one is,” he pushed his fingertips together, kissed the tips, and motioned toward the sky, “delicious! It’s also why I’m here. I have something you’ve been craving. Something exotic and rare. Something that will not disappoint, and I’d like to make a trade.”
Her dark eyes widened into joyful orbs.
Shit. My blood pressure hit the ancient stone floor. I was the only “thing” he’d brought with him. Ansin was about to betray me.
He continued right on cue, “I would like to trade Jeni here for what you have behind door number one. And, yes, I’m referring to King. I know he’s in your bedroom, Sage, so don’t pretend otherwise.”
My knees began to shake. My heart knocked inside my chest. I needed to get the hell out of here, but I had no clue where I was.
Does it matter? Ansin is about to give you to Princess Chop-Chop.
“Ansin, you fucking asshole,” I seethed out my words.
He gave me a stern look and wrapped his hand around my wrist, dropping his drink. Glass shattered on the floor.
“Ow! Let go!” I struggled, trying to pull away, but his grip was a vise.
“If you run, Seer,” he snarled, “it’ll only make things worse. Sage gets excited by a good chase. Makes her especially violent.”
“True.” Sage gloated with a smile that melted away. “But, Ansin, why would I trade King for her?”
“Sage, Sage, Sage.” Ansin shook his head of black locks. “I’m hurt. Have I ever steered you wrong? This is the only living Seer, and she’s powerful. Imagine what you could do with her heart and ovaries. All I want is to kill King. It’s a fair trade.”
Jesus. This was why Ansin didn’t want to tell me his plan. He wanted to trade me for King—the man he wanted to kill. And what better way to do it than grab King while he was incapacitated.
“A Seer, huh?” Sage sized me up, her sinister gaze scanning my body. “What can she do?”
“Fucking let me go!” I protested.
Ansin held onto me tighter, and Sage ignored me. I was nothing more than a squeaking mouse.
“She’s still green, but look at her,” Ansin urged. “You can taste the power wafting from her organs. Even at this early stage in her development, she’s already more gifted than any Seer I’ve ever met. Imagine what she’ll be like if you allow her to ripen ten or twenty years.”
My terror now matched my hate for Ansin. I’d rather die, here and now, than “ripen” with Sage for a decade or two.
Sage pushed an index finger to the corner of her mouth. “I don’t know… Seers are so erratic. My guest upstairs lost everything because he underestimated them.”
“King didn’t know how to control them.” Ansin waved another dismissive hand. “King’s a fool—bit off more than he could chew. But Jeni’ll be easy-peasy for you, Sage.”