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flapped them once, lifting him high enough to
reach the top of the bed. It tucked its wings in, turned around in a circle and
curled into Araya’s side. She absently stroked its head. “I’m afraid I’m about
to pass out,” she said. Regret stained her words.
    “That’s okay. I’ll entertain myself.”
    Her eyes fluttered closed, her voice soft and small, “Kean?”
    “Yeah?”
    “I enjoyed our picnic tonight,” she said without opening her
eyes.
    “Me too,” he said. He meant it too. He’d enjoyed her company
and wished she had enough energy to stay awake and spend more time with him.
    “Kean?” She called to him again.
    “Yeah?”
    “My bed is huge. You don’t have to sleep in a chair.”
    Oh how he wished that was an invitation for more, but he
recognized it for what it was. She was simply being nice. “You already have a
bed buddy.”
    “There’s still plenty of room. He really won’t hurt you.”
    “Okay. Sleep well.”
    Kean waited for Araya to drift off before striding to the
intercom at the far end of the room. He pressed the “call” button.
    A male voice answered almost immediately. “Yes?”
    “I need to speak with Talith. Now. Privately.”
    “I’ll inform her of your request.”
    The door to Araya’s room opened five minutes after he told
the voice on the intercom he wanted to see Talith. She didn’t even glance at
him as she made her way to Araya’s bed. She looked at her daughter, then turned
to him and crooked a finger for him to follow.
    A guard stood outside the room.
    “She looks better,” Talith said, “but she hasn’t submitted
completely. She’d have more color in her face and more energy if she had. What
did you do?”
    Kean shifted uncomfortably and avoided answering. “I’d like
to talk to you,” he looked down at the towel that barely wrapped around his
waist, “privately and preferably with some clothes on.”
    Talith stared at him for a long moment then nodded to the
guard. “Balcony.”
    The guard disappeared ahead of them and Talith said, “Follow
me.”
    By the time they arrived at the end of the long hallway, the
guard had reappeared. He handed Kean a blue robe. He shrugged into it and
belted it around his waist. Comfy .
    “You stay here,” Talith said to the guard as she opened the
door leading to a balcony off the opposite side of the mansion.
    They sat opposite one another on wrought iron chairs similar
to those where he and Araya had picnicked.
    “What’s on your mind?” Talith asked.
    Kean didn’t really have a plan and picked his words
carefully. “After talking to Araya tonight, I found out there have been others
in my current position . However, I’m the only one who was not given a
choice about being here. Why is that?”
    Talith leaned back in her chair, her cool expression didn’t
falter. “Perhaps I was tired of asking and decided to simplify the process.”
    “I don’t think so. Why would you waste your time on someone
who might not be interested? Had you asked and I refused, you could have simply
moved on to someone else. Why me?”
    This time, her composure slipped a bit but only for a
moment. “What are you getting at?”
    He leaned forward, no longer intimidated by his situation or
the fact that he knew she could kill him or have him killed easily. “I think
you know what I’m getting at.”
    “Perhaps I do,” she said. “Perhaps you shouldn’t concern
yourself with it.”
    “What?” Kean couldn’t believe she’d said that. “I’m a
prisoner here and I shouldn’t concern myself with it?”
    “I will do what I have to do to save my daughter. If you are
inconvenienced in the process, that’s too goddamn bad,” Talith spat at him and
her eyes turned black.
    Okay. That bitch was scary when she got angry. He still wasn’t
ready to come out in case she didn’t actually know what he was so he said, “How
inconvenienced will your daughter be if—” He stopped to regroup but there was
no need. Talith already