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begin to comprehend. “If anyone outside of my family found out what you were to me…” His voice smoothly trailed off.
    Most days I didn’t know what I was to him, but I got what he was implying—mostly. There were still a million questions. “It would be bad,” I supplied.
    “Bad doesn’t begin to cover it, princess. If you thought your life was in danger before, it would be Hell on Earth if the other sectors found out our souls resonate. They would take advantage of what they saw as a chance for new management. We need to be careful. No accidently merging souls.”
    Duly noted.
    The thing was, I didn’t know how to do it, so not doing it should be pretty simple. Excellent logic. But what I really wanted to know was where did we stand? I wanted him to give me a sign of hope, something worthy of risking everything for. I fiddled with the mark on my wrist, tracing it with my fingernail. “Can I ask you something?”
    “Depends,” he replied coolly.
    “Do you feel any…different when you’re around me?”
    A half smile played across his lips. “You mean do I still want to lock you up in a tower for all eternity?”
    “Zane,” I sighed. “You know what I mean.”
    He ran his hands through his hair. “It doesn’t matter if we’re together or apart. Since the day you came to Raven Hallow I’ve felt different. A cool tingle starts at the base of my neck, and the shadows I manipulate quiver. The closer you are to me, the more intense it becomes. Is that what you mean?”
    Gulp.
    Yeah. And then some. “Glad it’s not just me. Does your mark ever—?”
    “Feel like it is going come alive and fly off my wrist,” he finished. “Whenever you’re near.”
    Heat swamped my cheeks, and I totally blamed Zane. It was hard to stick to my resolve of duty first when he was actually nice…and charming…and so good-looking. “Is there no other way? Is my only option really to marry Zander?”
    One second he was sitting on my bed and the next he was beside me, eyes frosted. “What you want and what I want doesn’t matter. You’re no good to me or to any of us if you’re dead. So yes, your only option is to marry my brother.”
    Hope shattered.
    There was anger in his expression, but was it directed at me or the injustice of our bleak situation?
    It didn’t matter, because he ruffled my feathers. “I take it back. You’re a complete asshat!” I yelled, but it was a waste of breath.
    He was gone.
    I gave the shadow where he had stood a big fat middle finger. Suck on that, Zane Hunter.

 
    Chapter 5
     
    I was having one of those days where I wanted to break crap, hoping it would make me feel better. I stared at the lavender vase on my dresser thinking it would do nicely, and that was when I knew I had to get out of there.
    I was going stir-crazy.
    Rolling off the bed, I quickly changed into a pair of spandex shorts and a sports bra. Running was not my favorite thing to do, but there was all this excess energy buzzing inside me that I didn’t know what else to do with. Calling Zane was out of the question.
    So I laced on my Nike’s, strapped my phone to my armband, and trotted down the balcony stairs. The heat of the sun hit me in a wave, guaranteeing I was going to work up a sweat. Perfect. Maybe I could ooze this outlandish need to scream Zane’s name right out of my pores.
    Looping around the gardens, I headed for the gates leading to the beach access. I punched in the five-digit code, and as the doors slide open, two of the security detail appeared behind me. I stopped and turned around. “What are you doing?”
    Backs rigid, their eyes were hidden by the dark sunglass. “We’re instructed to discreetly follow you,” informed the taller of the two, although they were both over six feet.
    “Uh, okay.” I let the idea simmer for a minute. “By who?” I asked.
    Neither of them appeared dressed for a run in business type suits. They looked at each other before the one on the left said,