“And I’m supposed to stay with the grim reaper.” She had no idea who to trust at this point, but the shadow mage ranked pretty low on the list, and she couldn’t see herself going out for Appletinis with the faceless reaper anytime soon. “I’m supposed to just take your word for all of this.”

“You’re supposed to use your own senses and capacity for rational thought. You saw the Brotherhood coming for you, and they shot you.” He glanced away. “I don’t have time for this.”

“How can I trust my own senses when you have the power to warp them?”

His cold gaze slid over her, and as he stepped closer, her heart skipped a beat. “What purpose would that serve? If I wanted you dead, you’d be in the earth right now. If I wanted you to kill people, you’d be pulling out one of those knives and thrusting it into a heart.”

Dread tightened its grip around her chest as she looked up at him. “Tell me why you helped me.”

“Ambrose wants you alive.”

“And who the hell is Ambrose?”

“You don’t need to know that right now.”

She bit the inside of her cheek to stop herself from screaming at him. She needed answers, and he was giving her nothing. She steadied her voice. “Okay, let’s start with this: You know my name. You apparently know things about me. And who, exactly, are you?”

“Caine Mountfort. We’ve met before.” He cocked his head, examining her. “Apparently, I didn’t leave such a lasting impression.”

Recognition flickered in the recesses of her mind—the boy with the gray eyes… “Did I know you in England? Before Mason adopted me?”

“England?” He arched an eyebrow. “Is that what the Brotherhood told you?”

She was ready to scream with frustration. “Yes, because that’s where I’m from. I lived in England until a few of your vampire buddies murdered my parents.”

He took a long, slow breath as if marshaling his patience. Something seemed to have unnerved him. “Look, I don’t have the time or the inclination to delve into this with you. You must go with Orcus.”

His habit of enticing her with hints while refusing to give a straight answer made her want to punch something. Her world had just been shattered, and the mage had answers he didn’t care to share. And there wasn’t a damn thing she could do about—not when he had mind-blowing magic on his side.

A hot tear spilled down her cheek. “Can’t you just answer my questions? What do you know about me? And why are the Brotherhood hunting me down? You and I both know I can’t be a mage if I’ve never chanted a single spell.”

He reached down, lifting her hand. At the touch of his strong hands, she felt a brief thrill from his magical aura, and it surged through her body like a jolt of electricity. What was that?

“Keep this ring on and stay away from the Brotherhood. You’ll be fine.” His gray eyes met hers. “Don’t trust anyone. Not Orcus. Not me. Not your best friends. No one. That’s all you need to know.” He turned to leave.