“So it’s King Cypher, correct?” she asked him, regaining her composure.

Cypher nodded once.

“Okay, just a small question here, but why would you want me to be your mate? You don’t know me from Eve.”

Cypher cocked his head to the side and his brow furrowed. “Who is Eve?”

Lilly and Mona both let out a snort at the same time, then both stopped to glare at the other.

“It’s just a saying.” Lilly waved him off. “The important part of the question is ‘why me?’”

“I didn’t pick you, Lilly.” Cypher watched as her lips tightened and her forehead wrinkled in thought. “Desdemona brought you to me.”

“Who is Desdemona?”

Mona bowed dramatically. “Allow me to properly introduce myself. I am Desdemona, the last witch in this world. My power is beyond anything you can comprehend and Cypher has information I need. We made a deal, a mate for him and the information for me. It’s just an added bonus that you are who you are.”

Cypher looked at Mona, trying to decipher what her words meant. Who was Lilly to her? What did she know about Lilly?

He looked at Mona and his face became a blank slate.

“Two days,” he told her.

“Yes, yes, as we agreed.  You have two days with her. Then I want you ready to go to the veil.”

“Wait!” Lilly yelled as Mona turned to go. “What about my daughter?”

Mona shrugged. “I don’t know anything about your daughter.”

“Why do I get the feeling you are lying?” Lilly asked through pursed lips.

Mona’s smile turned sly. “I have no idea, Lilly Pierce. I would never be dishonest.”

Lilly snorted. “Right, and any second now you are going to bust out in Mary Poppins These are a few of my favorite things.” She let out an exasperated breath. “Can you at least tell me if she is safe?”

“As much as I would love to give you some heart breaking news about your flesh and blood, the truth – and it nauseates me to even think that word – is that I don’t know what she is up to at the moment. The last time I saw her she was furry and running on a battle field.”

Lilly’s mouth dropped open. “What?”

“Hey, I’m just calling it like I see it. She was furry and ripping through my army. As far as I know, she lived through it. So that’s a plus, right?”

Lilly stared speechless at the witch and then in the blink of an eye the witch was gone.

She looked around as if Mona was going to pop up and yell “boo”.

Cypher let out a deep breath. “She can be very dramatic at times.”

His voice drew Lilly’s attention back to him.

Cypher stood and stared at her, unblinking and unashamedly. It had been avery long time since he had spent any quality time with a female and he couldn’t remember if he had ever been with a female of such beauty.

Lilly cleared her throat, trying to not worry about Jacque because she knew that there was nothing she could do about it at the moment. She could only deal with the situation before her.

“So are you going to throw me in a dungeon or something?” she asked the tall, handsome king. She really wished she hadn’t thought of that last adjective, but truth be told, he was a looker. Jacque would call him eye candy and Lilly would agree.

Cypher smiled and it transformed his hard features. “I don’t have any plans to throw you in a dungeon. I thought you would prefer a room with a bed and human amenities.”

“Huh,” Lilly said, lifting a single eyebrow. “Well, that does sound better than a dungeon.”

“I know you must have questions, and I’m willing to answer them. But I would really like to take care of your immediate needs. Are you hungry?”

Lilly nodded. “But first, can I use the ladies' room?”            

Cypher pointed down the hall. “Third door on the right. I’ll just wait here for you.”

Lilly walked to the bathroom, only looking over her shoulder once. Cypher was still watching.

Lilly stepped into the restroom, finding the light on the wall and flicking it on. She closed the door and turned the lock. Letting out a deep breath, she looked in the mirror over the sink. Her face was pale and haggard. She turned on the water and splashed her face with it. A towel hung on a hook and she used it to pat her face and hands dry. She hung the towel back up, laughing at herself for being so cordial in her captor’s house. She shrugged. Might as well be neat.

She closed her eyes and sighed, knowing she had to stay calm, no matter how badly she wanted to scream for someone to show her where Jacque was.  From what she could tell so far, she didn’t think this King Cypher meant her any harm, but Mona had called Lilly his mate. The way she understood “mate” meant a long-term relationship, as in the rest of your life long time. So at this point she needed to assume that Cypher had no plans to let her go. He didn’t seem evil, but then again he was working with Mona, and she was most definitely evil.

She jumped when there was a soft knock on the door.

“Lilly,” she heard his voice speak through the door, and the way her name rolled off his tongue sent shivers down her spine.

That’s just rich, Lilly.  Your crushing on your warlock captor. Nice one.

“Is everything alright? I know you must be distressed and I will explain all that I can if you will please just trust me when I say I don’t mean you any harm.”