4
Suddenly the doors opened before we reached them, and warm light spilled across the stone steps. A man stood just inside the entrance. Tall, broad-shouldered, and ark hair falling loosely around his collar. His sleeves were rolled to his forearms and he leaned casually against the inner doorway like he’d been waiting for something entertaining to happen.
His gaze slid slowly over me. “Well now,” he drawled, pushing away from the frame. A slow grin spread across his face. “Looks like dear brother brought home something interesting tonight.”
I stiffened slightly. Brother.
Redakai didn’t respond, simply stepped inside.
The entry hall opened around me in a sweep of marble and shadow. Candles burned along the walls in tall iron brackets, their flames wavering as the doors shut behind us. Portraits lined the walls in gilded frames, generations of unfamiliar faces staring down with solemn expressions. My footsteps echoed softly across the polished floor while the air carried the faint scent of candle wax and old wood.
I slowed without meaning to, my eyes flicking from one portrait to the next. How many people had walked through this hall who didn’t belong here? I wondered.
Redakai continued forward as if the house itself moved around him. Aunt Javaleen remained close behind me, and the brother with the grin fell into step beside us, clearly enjoying himself.
At the far end of the hall, a pair of tall double doors stood open. Firelight spilled through, stretching across the marble floor in long golden bands, and as Redakai led us through, I couldn’t help the small gasp that left my lips. The room was enormous. Shelves of dark wood climbed the walls from floor to ceiling, filled with books and scattered artifacts I couldn’t identify from where I stood.
Heavy velvet curtains framed the tall windows, their dark glass reflecting the blaze of the fire roaring in the hearth, and deep leather chairs sat arranged near the flames. It was only then I saw the others.
One man sat comfortably in a leather chair near the fire, one ankle resting over the opposite knee while he watched us with quiet interest. Dark hair fell across his forehead, and there was something unsettling about his stillness.
Near the tall windows stood the third. He’d been facing the glass when we entered, but turned slowly at the sound of our footsteps. His gaze swept over me once before moving to Redakai. “You taking in strays now?” he asked.
Redakai walked into the room as if he hadn’t felt the sudden tension that had sprung up out of nowhere. “She belongs here.”
The words settled heavily in the space, and the man beside me let out a low whistle. “Well,” he murmured, glancing between me and Redakai, “that’s new.”
The man by the door pushed away from the frame and crossed the floor in a few long strides until he stood a few feet in front of me. Up close he was even larger than I’d thought. Not bulky, just powerful in the effortless way of someone who had never doubted his own strength.
Tilting his head slightly, he studied my face. “What’s your name?”
“Kaisha,” I replied.
His grin widened. “Pretty name.”
Behind him the man in the chair rose slowly. “You bought her for a reason,” he observed, his gaze sliding toward Redakai.
Removing his gloves, Redakai set them neatly on a nearby table. “Yes.”
The man folded his arms. “What reason?”
Instead of answering, Redakai looked toward me. “Show them.”
The request tightened something in my chest and I hesitated.
The large man noticed immediately. “Easy,” he murmured, lifting one hand slightly. “Nobody here’s going to hurt you.”
That was an interesting claim, I couldn’t help thinking as my gaze flicked briefly to Aunt Javaleen.
She remained near the door, hands folded neatly before her, her posture calm, but I knew her well enough to see the uncomfortableness in the way her shoulders held. She was watching the brothers carefully, the way a hawk watched snakes.
Slowly I lifted my hand, the familiar heat stirring at once, and curling through my chest before sliding down my arm. The air sizzled, then the flame appeared: though small it caught the eyes of the men watching.
The room went still. “Well,” the large one murmured. “That explains a few things.”
The man near the window stepped closer now, his expression stoic.
Redakai moved beside me. The firelight painted bronze across the sharp lines of his face while the silver of his eyes reflected the flame hovering above my palm. For a long moment he simply watched it, then he spoke quietly. “Yes.”
The man who had risen from the chair folded his arms. “You’re certain?” he asked.
Redakai didn’t look away from me. “I am,” he replied.
The man by the fire tilted his head slightly as he studied the flame hovering above my palm.
“Well,” the broad-shouldered one murmured again, glancing between me and Redakai. “That does explain a few things.”
The man who had been standing near the window moved closer now, his dark eyes narrowing slightly as he watched the flame dance above my hand.
Recognition flickered across his face, slow and measured.
Redakai stepped forward then, the movement subtle but enough to draw every eye in the room.
“Drayton,” he said, nodding briefly toward the large man beside me.
Drayton gave a casual salute with two fingers.
“Syrus,” Redakai continued, his gaze shifting to the man near the window.
Syrus inclined his head slightly.
“And Corton. My brothers,” he ended.
The man who had risen from the chair near the fire smiled faintly. I glanced between them, suddenly very aware of how small the room had begun to feel. Four men and me standing in the center of them with fire dancing in my hand.
My fingers curled slightly and the flame shrank, flickering lower before fading out entirely.
“Well,” Drayton said lightly, rubbing the back of his neck. “I can’t say the time has been boring.”
Syrus didn’t look away from me. “Where did you find her?” he asked quietly.
Redakai’s gaze shifted toward him. “The auction house.”
Drayton blinked. “You went to an auction?”
Redakai ignored the question. Instead he looked back at me, then turning toward the door on the far side of the room, he ordered, “Come with me.”
For a moment I didn’t move, not because I didn’t understand the order, but because every instinct I had screamed that walking deeper into this house might be the worst decision of my life.
Behind me, Aunt Javaleen shifted slightly. I glanced back at her, but her expression remained calm, however, her eyes were sharp.
Finally she gave the smallest nod. Stand straight. Don’t show fear.
I turned back to Redakai. “Alright,” I said quietly.
He didn’t respond, simply walked toward the doorway, and after a brief hesitation, I followed him.
Drayton’s voice broke the silence just before the door closed.
“Well,” he muttered. “This should be interesting.”
The door shut behind us, and for the first time since the auction ended, I realized something important. Whatever Redakai Laraque wanted from me…he’d already decided I was staying.
