Аманда Хокинг - Torn

“Sir, I really think that’s unwise -” Ludlow tried to interrupt, but Loki glared at him and he shut up.

“What about my friends?” I pointed at the cell.

“They’re not going anywhere.” Loki smiled at his own joke, and I resisted the urge to roll my eyes.

“I know that. But I’m not leaving without them,” I said firmly.

“You’re in luck. You’re not leaving.” Loki started taking a step back, still facing me. “Don’t worry, Princess. They’re perfectly safe. Come on. Talking to Sara would be in your best interest.”

“I’ve already met Sara,” I said, attempting some kind of a protest.

I looked apprehensively at the door, but Loki took another step back. I sighed, deciding that talking to higher ups would probably be the only way I could barter Matt and Rhys’s release. Even if I couldn’t ensure my own.

“How did you know?” I asked as I fell into step with him.

He walked next to me down the hall as we passed several more doors like the one on my cell. I didn’t hear much of anything or see any other hobgoblins standing guard, but I wondered how many other prisoners were here.

“Know what?”

“That I was… you know, trying to persuade you,” I said. “If it wasn’t working, how did you know?”

“Because you’re powerful,” Loki reiterated and gestured to his head. “It’s like a static. I could feel you trying to push your way inside my head.” He shrugged. “You’ll feel it, too, if anyone tries it on you. I’m not sure if it’d work, though.”

“So it doesn’t work on Trylle or Vittra?” I asked, doubting he would give me a straight answer. I wondered why he was telling me anything.

“No, it does. And if you were doing it well, I wouldn’t have felt anything at all,” Loki explained. “But we’re harder to control than mänks. If you do a sloppy job of digging around in our heads, we’ll feel it.”

We reached concrete steps, and Loki bounded up them, barely waiting for me.

He showed no concern for me escaping, and he divulged more information than he had to. As far as I could tell, Loki was a really terrible guard. Ludlow should’ve had more authority over him.

He pushed through the massive doors at the top of the stairs, and we stepped out into a grand hall. Not a hallway kind of hall, but hall as in a large room with vaulted ceilings. The walls were a dark wood with red accents, and an ornate red rug lay on the center of the floor.

It had the same kind of opulence that the palace in Förening had, but the tones were all deeper and richer. It felt more like a luxurious castle.

“This is really nice,” I said, not hiding the surprise and awe in my voice.

“Yes, of course it is. It’s the King’s home.” Loki looked at me, bemused by how stupefied I appeared. “What else would you expect?”

“I don’t know. After the downstairs, I assumed something creepier and dirtier.” I shrugged. “You didn’t have electricity down there.”

“It’s for dramatic effect.” Loki gestured widely. “It’s a dungeon.” He walked on down a corridor leading away, decorated the same as the hall, and I followed him.

“What would happen if I tried to escape?” I asked.

I didn’t see anyone else. If I outran Loki, I could probably get away. Not that I knew where to go, and I still wouldn’t be able to free Matt and Rhys.

“I would stop you,” he replied simply.

“The same way Kyra did at my house?” A pain flared up in my rib, as if reminding me of the damage she caused.

“No.” Something dark flickered across his face for a second. He quickly erased it and smiled at me. “I would simply take you in my arms and hold you there until you swooned.”

“It sounds romantic when you say it that way.” I wrinkled my nose, remembering how he’d made me pass out by staring into my eyes. It hadn’t been painful, but it hadn’t exactly been pleasant either.

“It is when I envision it.”

“That’s a little twisted,” I said, but he shrugged in response. “Why did you kidnap me and take me here?”

“I fear you have too many questions for me, Princess,” Loki said, almost tiredly.

“You’d do better saving them all for Sara. She’s the one with the answers.”

We walked the rest of the way there without saying anything. He led me down the hall, up a flight of stairs carpeted in something red and velvet, and down another hall before stopping at ornate wooden double doors. Vines, fairies, and trolls were carved into the doors, depicting a fantasy scene in the same vein as Hans Christian Anderson.

Loki knocked once and with a dramatic flair, opened the doors without waiting for a response. I followed behind him.

“Loki!” Sara shouted. “You are to wait to be let into my chambers!”

Her room was much the same as the rest of the house. A large four-poster bed sat in the center, with crimson sheets unmade on top of it.

A dressing table sat on one side of the room, and she was in front of it on a small stool. Her hair was pulled up in the same firm ponytail I had seen her with before, but she’d changed out of her clothes. A long black satin robe hung around her.

When she turned to look at us, the fabric moved as if it was liquid. Her brown eyes widened with shock at the sight of me, but she hurried to compose herself.

A hobgoblin stood next to her, the same kind as Ludlow. He had attempted to dress, wearing a small butler’s uniform, but he had the same horrible skin and haggard appearance. Long necklaces, layered in diamonds and pearls, hung from his hands. At first, I didn’t understand why, but I realized he was holding them for her, like a living jewelry box.

A yapping ball of fur jumped off the bed when we came into the room. It stopped just short of us, and I saw it was only a Pomeranian. The majority of its rage seemed directed at me, and when Loki told it to be quiet, it fell silent. Eyeing me warily, the dog walked towards Sara.

“I didn’t expect to see you so soon.” Sara forced a smile at me, and her eyes turned icy when she looked at Loki. “I would’ve been dressed if I had known you were coming.”

“The Princess was getting restless.” Loki lounged on a velvet couch sitting near the end of the bed. “After the day she’s had, I thought she deserved a break.”

“I understand that, but I’m a tad unprepared at the moment.” Sara continued glaring at him and gestured to her robe.

“Well, then you shouldn’t have sent me to retrieve her so soon,” Loki said, returning her stare evenly.

“You know that we had to do-” Sara cut herself off and shook her head. “Never mind. What’s done is done, and you’re absolutely right.” She smiled at me, her expression leaning towards something warm. Or at least something far warmer than my mother Elora ever managed.

“What’s going on?” I asked.

Even after all they’d done, I still had no idea what the Vittra really wanted with me.

I knew only that they refused to stop coming after me.

“Yes, we should talk.” She tapped her fingers on the table for a minute while she thought. “Can you give us a minute so we can talk?”

“Fine,” Loki sighed and got to his feet. “Come on, Froud.” The little dog ran happily to him, and Loki scooped him up. “The grown-ups need to talk.”

The hobgoblin set the jewelry carefully on the table, and then headed towards the door. He walked slowly, his gait wobbly thanks to his stature, but Loki meandered so that the troll made it out of the room before him.

“Loki?” Sara said when he reached the doors, but she didn’t look at him. “Make sure my husband is ready for us.”

“As you wish.” Loki made a small bow, still carrying the dog. When he walked out, he shut the doors behind him, leaving Sara and me alone.