***
Cassie actually slept fairly well on the flight to London. She hadn’t completely given up hope of escape, but she didn’t have the energy to try to pull anything while Celeste and Lindsey were guarding her. She was sure Cordley had considered any obvious means of escape, and she didn’t feel mentally awake enough to come up with any non-obvious ones; apparently, the magically-induced sleep she’d had in the limo wasn’t very refreshing.
Periodically, she would wake up and inhale the smell of Sam’s jacket, which she was increasingly glad she had taken; somehow, the scent of him reassured her that she would find a way back.
When they reached London, after a brief wait, Cordley joined them, and he served Cassie, Celeste and Lindsey cookies and small cakes in the limo on the way to his home. Cassie briefly considered refusing to eat for about half a second, but it seemed incredibly pointless; besides, she couldn’t hate Cordley, and she didn’t see the point of trying. She didn’t forgive him for kidnapping her, but that wasn’t the same as hate.
In several respects, it would be easier if she could hate him. She wasn’t sure what would happen to him if she did manage to get away, but she was sure it wouldn’t be pretty; it would probably be a contest to see if the Western Court would kill him for betraying them before the Eastern Court could kill him for failing to procure her successfully. It almost made her apprehensive about trying to get away, but then she thought of her family— and even the crew at the Daily Grind, who were becoming more like a second family to her every day—and she wanted out. She might have sympathy for the man, but he’d brought this on himself.
Thinking of her parents brought tears to her eyes; the last thing she did was take off without telling them. If she couldn’t make this right, they would think she ran away. She dried her eyes and sniffed, telling herself she would find a way. To his credit, Cordley didn’t ask her why she was crying, but did offer her a tissue.
As she had expected, Cordley’s house was sumptuous without being ostentatious in the least. Located in a rural area an hour or two outside of London, the dark wood paneling, old-fashioned lamps and numerous plush couches appealed to Cassie’s aesthetics. If she had to be cooped up in a place against her will, at least it wasn’t hideous.
Celeste and Lindsey bid her a civil goodbye and disappeared down a dark hall; she assumed he had separate quarters for his servants. Or familiars, or whatever they were. She didn’t think they had any magic, but she didn’t know if she could trust her senses with the white amulet around her neck.
Cordley led her to a large bedroom done up in blond wood and soft pinks; obviously a girl’s room, there were dolls on the windowsill and series books on the bookshelf. She assumed it was his daughter’s bedroom.
“I’m staying here?” she asked, feeling awkward. This would normally be the part where someone would put down their suitcase, but given that she’d been kidnapped, she had no belongings other than her clothes. Even Sam’s cellphone was gone from her pocket, but she would have been shocked if Celeste and Lindsey had missed that. That was probably rule one for kidnappings these days: secure all cellphones and mobile devices.
“Just temporarily,” said Cordley. “They’re scheduling an emergency meeting of the court right now, and I assume they’ll have assigned a master for you by this time tomorrow. I hope this will be adequate, just for one day.”
“I see,” she said, running her hand over the cold surface of the computer desk. It was weird being treated like an honored guest when they both knew the truth.
“You must have jet lag; feel free to take a nap and I’ll send someone up with a meal in a few hours.”
Cassie shrugged. “Not tired; I slept for the whole plane ride.”
“Oh,” he said, looking somewhat uncomfortable for the first time. “Well, as you can see, there are books. If you can’t find anything to read, I’m sure we can make other arrangements— movies, video games. That sort of thing.”
Cassie couldn’t help but smile; he genuinely cared whether or not she was comfortable. It was almost sad. “Thanks but reading is fine; a cup of coffee would be awesome though.”
Cordley smiled a dazzling smile, like he was so pleased he could do something to accommodate her. “I’ll go tell Rosa; you’ll have it in three minutes.”
With that, he left. She was slightly disappointed, but not surprised, to hear him lock the door behind him.