“I don’t understand why you’d come looking for me,” she said, sitting back and keeping her knees covered with her dress. It had been the plan, but she hadn’t believed it. The Kurjan leaders had noted that this male kept showing up in different attacks, and he took ridiculous risks for a soldier with his experience. They’d known he was coming. Why would this male put himself in danger for her? “You let them take you hostage?”

“Yes.” Benjamin’s voice was low and rough, with a hint of what must be demon ancestry.

She rested her hands on the thin material over her knees. “I don’t understand.”

A bone snapped loudly into place somewhere in his body, but he didn’t even flinch. “Let’s start here. I’m Benny Reese.” He held out a hand the size of a frying pan, as if they were meeting at a village game instead of in a cell.

She hesitated and then slid hers against his. “Karma.”

His hold and shake were gentle, and he released her before the mating allergy could hurt either of them. She’d been mated centuries ago to a Kurjan, and no other male could touch her for long without both of them developing terrible rashes.

“What’s your last name?” he asked. Another bone popped into place.

She jerked at the sound. “I do not have a last name.”

“Oh.” He looked beyond her at the steel bars securing the cell. “I was out for a while. Where are we?”

“We are at a temporary holding area before you are transported to a more secure location.” She coughed. “For questioning.”

His smile nearly knocked her over. Even the slight tipping of his lips turned his rugged face from dangerously hard to nearly boyish with charm. Amusement, real and true, glimmered in his metallic eyes for a moment. “Darlin’, I’ve been tortured before. You don’t need to worry yourself about that.”

She had bigger things to worry about than the life of this massive hybrid. She allowed herself one moment to stare into his unusual eyes. Oh, many immortals had metallic silver eyes, gold eyes, even copper or purple. But his were a combination of all metallic colors, mingling into a hard-edged glint, even with the humor lurking there. In another time, she might’ve thought him beautiful. She’d learned long ago that beauty masked the darkest of evils.

Vampires were bad, demons were bad, and this male was a hybrid of both. When he decided to kill her—and he would at some point—she wouldn’t stand much chance of surviving. Yet she still couldn’t comprehend why he’d come for her. “Why are you here?”

“For you. To rescue you because I couldn’t last time.” He stretched out his arms and healed a broken finger in his left hand.