Adam simply gave her a slow, wicked half-smile. “Fortunately for you, lass, I already know what he wants. What they both want. More than controlling you. More than torturing me, even.”
“Then why in blazes haven’t you used it to secure your own freedom?” Eliza blurted out.
“I’m only alive because they cannot break me into revealing where this item might be.” The belligerence burning in his eyes was gone in a blink, replaced by a look of pure cunning. “However, I might be persuaded to help you use the knowledge. All I require is —”
“Fine,” she snapped, irritation getting the best of her. “I’ll kiss you.”
Silence fell, and Adam stared at her with those eyes of his. Devil’s eyes. Eyes that made a woman forget herself. Heat rose up over her breasts and crawled along the back of her neck. Eliza grasped her skirts, her fingers twitching. She would kiss him. Kiss a man who had brought her nothing but irritation. Maybe she’d bite him to boot.
His chest, gleaming with sweat, rose and fell in a soft pattern. A bead of perspiration broke free from the top of his shoulder and ran down along the firm rise of his pectoral muscles, straight toward the dark nub of his nipple. All this time arguing with him, she’d forgotten his state of undress. Not so now. She’d have to press up against those hard muscles, touch his skin. Eliza wrenched her gaze back to his face, and his sinful lips curled in a knowing smile.
“You know,” he said casually, “I believe I shall pass for the moment. I’d rather it be when you aren’t wearing such a sour face. Kills a bloke’s ardor, you realize.”
Eliza blinked. And then his meaning hit her. “Why you… rutting… cheap, trickster…”
He laughed, a flash of even teeth. “Come now, Eliza, fret not.” He stopped then, that obnoxious smile growing and heating with promise. “I’ll take that kiss soon enough.”
She rose to her feet in a rustle of skirts. “And I’ll be sure to bite that wicked tongue when you do!”
She marched out of the cell, slamming it behind her, as he began to laugh again. Bastard. She might just leave him here to rot after all. His laughing taunt echoed through the dark. “Now that I know tongues are involved, I’ll be sure to collect.”
Chapter Four
Eliza climbed the stairs, irritation with Adam still so high that she did not take proper heed. Not until she walked directly into Mab’s path. They locked eyes, and Eliza’s skin prickled in utter terror.
“I… I heard a dog howling.” Not a lie. “I thought…” Eliza gave Mab what she hoped was a shocked look. “I did not expect to find the demon.”
It seemed an eternity ticked by as Mab’s gaze bore into her. Eliza did not flinch but let herself show the confusion and the questions that she’d first felt upon finding Adam. She’d learned long ago that, when telling a lie, walking as close to the truth as possible was the best course of action.
The silence between them grew as taut as corset boning. And then Mab spoke. “And what did you feel when you saw your tormentor trussed up like the pig that he is?”
Horror. Sorrow. “Satisfaction.” It was the emotion Mab wanted, and Eliza was going to give it to her.
Mab’s unmoving expression broke into one of pleasure. “Ah. And did you express this satisfaction to our guest?”
“No. I left.” Eliza straightened her spine. “The very sight of him sickens me.”
“Hmm…” Mab flicked a glance toward Mellan, who’d strolled up to her side, his gaze narrowing darkly on Eliza. However, Mellan merely gave Mab a nearly imperceptible nod and slipped past Eliza, going down to the cellars. Eliza’s heart pounded in protest. What would he do to Adam? Guilt hit hard. Adam had warned her. And she hadn’t listened.
Mab linked her arm through Eliza’s and guided them across the hall. “There was a time,” she said, “when humans believed in the fae. They feared. Superstition wasn’t to be mocked but to be heeded. And because of that, we grew strong.”
“Strengthened? By superstition?” Eliza couldn’t see how.
The corners of Mab’s plump lips curled. “Superstition led to vigilance. Humans took precautions. They protected themselves from the likes of us. They thought of us constantly. Now?” Her slim shoulder raised a fraction. “Science and logic have turned us into nothing more than silly myths. Something to be ignored.” Pansy-purple eyes flashed with irritation. “And our power fades.”
Despite her stern inner lecture not to react, a shiver ran through Eliza. Mab felt it, for she gave her a gentle, encouraging pat on the hand as they walked up the stairs, their skirts rustling. “But all that will soon change. We shall regain our glory.”
“We shall?” Eliza wanted to keep Mab talking of things other than Adam. But she did not like the idea of Mab having any more power.
Perhaps it was written on her face, for Mab gave her another pat. “Do not fear power, my darling. Once you learn how to wield it, it shall become your greatest joy.”
“Mab, are you truly my grandmother?”
Mab’s lips tightened. “The demon told you that, did he?” She sighed. “ ‘Grandmother’ makes me sound so very old.” With a moue of distaste, Mab touched her flawless cheek. “I do not look old, do I, dearest?”
“Not at all,” Eliza murmured by rote.
With a pleased expression, Mab shrugged. “Well, all right, then, I am your grandmother. Though I rather liked being your Auntie Mab. It had a lovely ring to it.”