Six

My mind was racing. If my mom was trying to bind a demon to her or my father, she had to have known someone was after them. They both did. There was no other explanation I could come up with for it.

My parents weren't evil. They wouldn't be dabbling in black magic if they weren’t desperate.

Then again, I also didn't know that at least one of them had magic until now. It seemed that I had a lot to learn about them and a lot to learn about myself. Why was I just now discovering that I had powers?

I pulled away from Demetri, placing one hand on his chest to push him backward and out of the doorway. Having his body so close to mine was making it hard to breathe, let alone think.

"It is obvious you were not the creator of this casting." His voice seemed to darken with curiosity and suspicion. "It seems my little witch has secrets. What were you doing with another witch's spells?"

My head shook on its own as my mouth tried to find the words. I had yet to vocalize the truth past the statement for the police report. "It was my mother's."

I leaned forward just enough that I could take the paper from his hands without him being able to pull me back toward his body and returned it to its rightful place on the podium. It was going to take some time to get this room back in order, especially when I had no idea what half of this stuff was or did.

"I see." Demetri's black eyes watched me cautiously as if expecting me to break down in a flood of emotions. His tense shoulders and back were evidence that he was ready to run at a moment's notice to get away from the tears that I had been holding back. "And what, my little witch, was she in need of that casting for?"

I shook my head as I shrugged my shoulders but otherwise, did not turn to face him. Perhaps it would be easier if he were to just stab me in the back or cut my throat right now. It would save me a lot of pain and anticipation.

When he did not speak, I bent down and picked up a rather large crystal from the ground, placing it on one of the shelves to my right.

Call me a terrible host, but I spent the next two hours picking up the room and trying to organize it to the best of my ability. I was disappointed to not find any recognizable personal items belonging to my parents. While I knew everything in this room was theirs, I had no memory of them with it and was honestly a little scared of it all.

Demetri stood in the doorway, not wavering for even a moment as I flittered about the room. He never once gave a sign or word that he was hungry or thirsty, and I never offered. After the kitchen and what happened when he was explaining the spell, I was terrified to interact with him.

Everywhere I went in the room, I felt his eyes on me. It was like two magnets being held apart but desperately wanting to come together again. The draw to him was abnormal, yet exhilarating.

After the room was in decent enough order, I turned to face the demon in the doorway. It amazed me that even without the whites of his eyes, I could still tell what he was feeling by the way his eyelids narrowed or widened. The downward pull at the corner of his mouth also made it apparent that he was concerned.

Why a demon who was forced here would be concerned for their alleged kidnapper, I would never know.

"I don't know anything about magic, but I promise to do what I can to free you as quickly as possible." I made my way over to the book on the podium and pulled out my phone once more.

The book was several inches thick. I tried not to groan, knowing this would take forever. But, it was my mistake that had forced Demetri here away from his home and responsibilities, and it was my job to fix it.

"You have done enough for today, Seraphina." The use of my name had me looking up. I loved the way each letter of my name rolled off his tongue. "You don't seem to be in a hurry to be released."

His broad shoulders moved up in a casual shrug, but his wary eyes seemed to remain on me. "There is nothing to be done today that can't be done tomorrow."

My eyes narrowed at him, and I knew that there was more to it than he was letting on. "Why? Why are you not wanting to go back? If I were being held against my will, I would want to be on the first plane out of here."

His eyebrows pulled together, and I realized it was probably due to my referencing a piece of machinery that he was not familiar with. Yet, even as adorable as his look of confusion made him, I was still highly suspicious. The word 'mate' echoed through my head, and my stomach formed into a confused knot of butterflies and dread.

"I am in no hurry to return to my realm. There are several matters here that need to be addressed first." He stated calmly as I walked toward him, intending to move past him. I wanted to return to the kitchen to make lunch since I had missed breakfast in the chaos of finding out I was bound to a demon.

"Such as?" I asked as he surprised me and turned on his heels to walk down the stairs before I could approach him. I sped up, wanting to stay close enough that I could hear his response, even with his back to me. The door closed on its own behind me, making me jump, and I eyed it with irritation before chasing after Demetri.

It was going to take some time to get used to things like that happening, but hopefully, I would be able to control it a little better now that I was aware of the magic running through my veins.

"Such as the newfound knowledge that you are in danger." He turned when he reached the end of the staircase and continued down the next flight. "With your inexperience with magic, it is not certain that you will be able to break the connection just by breaking the bond. It would be a terrible shame for me to return home, just to drop dead because someone decided to end you."

His words sent a shiver down my spine, and I stared at his back wide-eyed as I followed him into the kitchen. The black markings on his skin seemed to vibrate against the surface, pulsing like a heartbeat.

While I wasn't happy about his answer, I knew there was more to it than that. "Someone decided to end me, or you decided to end me? And, that is only one reason. You said there were several. What else?"

As he reached the breakfast bar, he pulled out one of the stools and took a seat, his eyes returning to me as I joined him in the room. "I’ve have already told you, that I will not be killing you. The other is that I still need time to convince you that I would also be a worthy and powerful mate."