Caged Kitten (All the Queen's Men #2) - Rhea Watson Page 0,47
the cold sweat on the nape of my neck, the blaze in my cheeks, the numb tingling that had engulfed my fingertips, I sounded strong. Good. At least I could pretend. Xargi was starting to teach me how to fake it.
Lloyd smirked, amusement glittering in his stony greys. “But do you know who I am?”
“I just said who you are,” I offered without thinking. It had just tumbled out, punctuated by a silent Duh that was probably akin to signing a death warrant under different circumstances. In all my research, I had never stumbled upon anything concrete—just rumors and hearsay, Lloyd Guthrie, warlock mobster, defined solely by his reputation.
But as we stared off now, his smirk blossoming but the mirth dying in his unflinching gaze, I had a feeling his reputation was all he needed. That smile made my blood run cold. Frigid. Elijah had set me on fire every day for the last month; a smile from Lloyd Guthrie extinguished the flames I had come to crave and chilled my blood to ice.
Elijah’s fire made me feel alive. It made me feel strong and capable, in control in a place where I had absolutely none from the time I woke up to when I crawled back into my cot after the lights-out siren.
Lloyd’s ice made me want to give in to the fear—
“You…” I tightened my trembling hands to fists, hoping he couldn’t see and knowing he did anyway. The warlock oozed predator before he’d even said a word; he probably missed nothing. “You’re a criminal… running a prison.”
“A criminal?” His curt chuckle made the hairs on my neck stand up, and he eased back into his chair, the delight shimmering in his eyes again. “Am I?”
I faltered, second-guessing myself, my dad, the cursory searches I’d done on this man over the years. Clearing my throat, I dropped my gaze to my hands, to my white knuckles. “Unless I’m mistaken, you’re the Lloyd Guthrie associated with the Guthrie crime syndicate that runs out of New York City… A crime family of warlocks who partake in, er, illegal activities, and…”
“Go on.”
I stared up at him, knowing that I should stand my ground even when I would rather look anywhere else right now—anywhere. Or, even better, jump up and take a running leap at one of those windows to my right. Crash through. Plummet to the gravel grounds outside—meet some of the wolves I heard howling come nightfall.
“And now you’re a warden,” I told him. “That’s it.”
My breath snagged there for the first time. Lloyd’s smile sharpened, and he stabbed at the desk’s top with his pointer finger as if to drive the point home.
“No, you know there’s more.”
My stomach twisted and knotted, the measly breakfast I’d had hours ago and the bit of bread I had munched on in the proofing pantry this afternoon suddenly a little too present. The churn brought with it a rush of acid creeping up my throat, the sensation infuriatingly familiar, but I pushed through and hoped the nausea didn’t read on my face.
“Shall I say it, then?” Lloyd offered in a tone beyond patronizing. I just shook my head.
“I think I’d like to go back to my cell now—”
“Do you know why you’re here, Katja Isabella Fox?”
Oh gross. Hearing my name coming from his mouth kicked the nausea up a few notches, and I bit at my cheeks, willing my insides to settle.
“Because someone lied,” I gritted out, “and said I sold love potions.”
“False.”
I frowned, waiting for more, hating to have finally heard the truth from him. No one but the other inmates believed me. Processing staff, the guards… I was just an ingrate to them, another criminal who had been found guilty. And now this? Just like that—false.
Lloyd dragged it out like he enjoyed making me wait, edging me for knowledge—staring at me with eyes like slate, like steel, just the shade to match his metal heart.
You know… If all the stories were true. If Dad really was telling the truth.
And from the look of him, this smirking man, my warden, it was impossible to say otherwise now.
“You’re here because I ordered it,” he said at long last, his voice even and calm, as if we were having the most casual of conversations. “Because…” After fidgeting with his diamond cuffs, Lloyd leaned over the desk again, swooping closer to me and bringing with him a rush of sharp peppermint that almost made me gag. “Because you were mine before you were even born.”