Chapter 5 DAPHNE

DAPHNE

I don't know what he's going to do to me. Is this the moment he kills me? My fingers slide toward the sleeve of my dress where I've hidden a knife, just in case.

Then he speaks. "Come in."

The door creaks open. His red-haired aide walks in and heads straight to the computer. He switches it on and clicks around, his brows rising in surprise.

"She hacked into the system," he whispers, glancing at Ezekiel. "She searched for Good Time Broadcasting and Natalie Jackson."

"Natalie Jackson," Ezekiel repeats the name slowly, like he's trying to recall where he's heard it before. "You may leave," he adds, without looking at the aide.

Once the door shuts, his gaze sharpens.

"Sneaking into my study and hacking my computer is a punishable offense."

I ignore the warning. "How long have you been watching me?"

He narrows his eyes slightly, tilting his head.

"I saw the photos," I press. "Of me. Of Natalie. You know her, don't you?"

"Who?"

"Natalie Jackson," I grit out. "Where is she? What did you do to my friend?"

He doesn't answer right away. His silence makes my blood boil.

"Why would I know this person you're talking about?" he asks, voice cool and unreadable.

"You had a photo of me and her, you creep," I snap. "And her journal had your name in it. Your full name. Ezekiel Hawthorne, with a date. The same day she vanished. She was supposed to meet you."

He pauses again, tapping his foot slowly on the floor, like he's weighing what to say.

"That's not enough proof that I had anything to do with her disappearance," he replies calmly, stepping toward me.

I instinctively step back and draw my knife, unsheathing it with a sharp sound. I point it at him.

"Don't come any closer," I warn.

His lips twitch. "So you came armed."

"You think I'd walk into a den of wolves empty-handed?"

He moves forward again, unfazed.

"I said stay back!" I shout, gripping the knife tighter. "I forgot to mention, my knife is laced with wolfsbane," I tell him, my voice steady. "We both know how dangerous that is to your kind."

But he doesn't even flinch. He stays calm, lets out a sigh, and lazily drags his fingers across his eyebrow. "Put it down," he mutters, his voice low and sharp like a warning.

"Where is my friend?" I demand, standing my ground. "Where's Natalie?"

"She could be lying dead somewhere," he replies without blinking.

My heart drops. "You killed her?" My voice cracks, and a lump rises in my throat. "You monster... how could you..." Tears sting my eyes before I can finish. "You don't even feel remorseful, do you?"

He stares at me with no emotion. "I've killed too many to feel anything like remorse."

"Yeah? Just like you murdered your own father?" I throw the words at him like daggers.

He doesn't react, like he didn't hear me. "Is your missing friend the only reason you broke in here?" he asks instead. "Or are you here for something else?"

"What are you talking about?"

"To spy on us," he replies. "You were sent here as a spy." He starts tapping his foot on the floor again, deep in thought. "I kept wondering why Richard would send his daughter straight into the wolf's den."

"Don't you dare speak my father's name with that filthy mouth," I hiss.

"I could kill you right here," he says quietly.

"Just like you killed my friend?"

His lips curl into a dark, mocking smile. "Seems like you're ready to join her... wherever she is."

My glare sharpens. I can't stand the sight of the monster who hurt Natalie. "I think it's time to send you to hell where you belong," I whisper.

Then I charge forward, fast as lightning, and drive my knife into his chest.

But what happens next shocks me. He doesn't even move. He just stands there, staring at me with empty eyes, like I didn't just stab him.

I yank the blade out and slam it into him again, harder this time. A low groan escapes his lips, and his hand grabs my shoulder in reflex.

The wolfsbane must be working.

Without wasting a second, I stab him again and again, deeper each time, not giving his body any chance to heal.

He groans louder now, knees buckling, head dropping low.

Maybe he's not as powerful as they all say...

But then he laughs. A cold, sharp laugh that freezes my blood.

"What the-"

Before I can finish, his hand flies up and grips my neck.

In one brutal motion, he lifts me and slams my back against the wall, knocking the breath from my lungs.

My head crashes against the wall, sending a sharp pain through my skull. In that moment, I realize he's fooled me, again. This is the third time today. The wolfsbane hadn't worked on him. Those groans? Just an act.

His grip tightens around my neck. I feel the sharp sting of his claws as they break through my skin.

I look up at him, searching for his usual grey eyes but they're gone. In their place are deep, blood-red eyes. Cold and merciless. Like death. Like the end.

Panic surges through me. My heart races. I grab at his hand, trying to pry him off, but he's too strong. I can barely breathe.

"Funny how you thought a little wolfsbane could kill me," he mutters, voice like poison. "How did someone this foolish even survive the human collateral zone?" He gives a low, cruel chuckle. "Then again... you just confirmed what I've been suspecting."

His words barely register, I'm too busy gasping for air. His grip isn't loosening. He really means to kill me.

"I kept wondering," he continues, as calm as ever, "why would you stay with the humans after your time as collateral was over? Why wouldn't you live among your own kind? And your father... why does he keep throwing you into danger? It's almost like he wants you dead, but doesn't have the guts to do it himself."

"Shut up," I gasp, my voice raw and broken.

He pauses, then lowers his face closer.

"Now I know why."

No. No, he can't know. Please, I beg silently. He couldn't have figured it out...

"You," he says, his red eyes burning through me, "you're not a witch."