The story didn't sit well with her. It explained his and Kris's palpable animosity, but it didn't explain why Rhyn was a prisoner. Or how Sasha swayed Jade. Or how Andre died.
Or why Rhyn kept her around, unless it was purely for her ability to make him immune from the magic of other immortals.
She drank more brandy, a familiar sense of panic deep in her chest. It and impending doom had been with her since meeting Gabriel. Her headache pulsed and she felt hot from alcohol.
"Think I'll go for a walk," she murmured. "Thanks for the talk. Mind if I take this?"
Daniela filled her glass with two more shots and smiled. Katie raised the glass in a salute and left. It was muggier than she was used to, the air clinging to her already hot skin. It was near dusk, with the sky growing dark in the distance. She made her way to the wall, needing to feel the cool ocean breeze. Rhyn was gone, and she leaned against the wall.
A hand took her brandy and flung it and the glass over the wall. He wasn't gone after all. She glared at him.
"You're not allowed in here," she told him.
"You're not allowed alcohol."
"If I didn't keep learning how insane this world is every second of the day, I wouldn't have to drink!"
His eyes glinted rather than flashed, his copper skin tight across perfect, chiseled features. He didn't have Kris's noble look or Andre's delicate features. Rhyn was a wild animal with a wild beauty, harsh angles and planes, a body built for survival. He said nothing, and she offered her good wrist.
"You're weak," he scoffed.
"So are you."
She dropped her arm and gazed up at him, troubled and lightheaded.
"You don't look like someone who could kill millions," she murmured. "Then again, I saw what you did at the Arch." She shivered involuntarily. "Did you really almost annihilate the human race?"
He said nothing and mirrored her position, leaning against the wall in what she knew was irritated mockery.
"I don't believe it," she went on.
"You're a fool. I killed over a hundred of Sasha's creatures at the Arch with only a fraction of my power. You think I can't do the same to a bunch of weak humans?"
"You can't hate humans so much if you chose me as a mate. Why did Sasha send his creatures after you?"
"I took you from him and escaped. He's pissed and wants us both back. Probably heard you're my mate."