I moved away from Cole's touch and he grinned down at me. "Are you here to kidnap me?" I asked.

"First of all darling, you came to my club. Secondly, must we use the kidnap word?" He asked smugly. His accent would've been charming if he hadn't done what he did.

"It's what you did, so yeah," I said dryly as I turned to him. "But why?"

He looked into my eyes but made no move to answer my question. I turned back to the drink in my hand and rolled my eyes as he continued looking me up and down. "I believe I owe you a dinner," he said.

"You actually owed me a trip to your shop."

He laughed at my joke and grinned. "What can I say, sweetness? I'm a bad liar."

I scoffed at him and downed the remaining liquid in the glass. I needed the drink to calm my nerves right now.

"Let's have dinner."

"Let's not."

"I wasn't asking." A grin remained on his face, but his eyes were threatening. He pointed toward Cleo, Caspian, and Xavier on the dance floor and I looked in their direction. "There are several guards on that floor, one word from me and they're dead."

My eyes spotted the scattered men in black suits surrounding them all as they danced completely aware of the danger around them. As strong as they were, the three of them alone couldn't take on almost ten men. I took a shaky breath and turned back to him.

"Text them and tell them you'll be stepping out," he said. With a breath to relax, I typed Xavier a text message.

Me: I'm not feeling well. I'm going to go get some air.
10:57 p.m.

"Before you send it, let me see," he said. I rolled my eyes and held the phone to his face, letting his eyes scan it. After a few seconds, he nodded to show me he was satisfied and I sent it.

"Let's go," he said as he grabbed my phone and slid it into his pocket. Grabbing my hand he led me out of the club through a back exit. I practically ran behind him in my heels to keep up, but he didn't seem to care. As we left the club we ended up in an alley and I froze as I thought about what he was going to do.

"Are you going to hurt me?" I asked.

He looked down at me and grinned. "Not today if you do everything I say. I don't want to hurt you, Queen. I actually like you quite a bit."

Yuck.

"Follow me," he said.

He walked ahead of me and I followed behind him as we emerged from the alley into a busy street. We walked along the crowded sidewalk for a few minutes until he pulled me into a small restaurant.

When we walked inside he directed us towards a table and snapped his fingers for a server. He ordered us both drinks when the waitress came and I held my hand in my lap nervously. When the server left he picked up the menu and looked at it casually- like he didn't force me here.

"What are you going to order?" he asked me.

"I'm not hungry."

"What are you going to order?" He asked again, this time in a more demanding voice that made me swallow my words.

I picked up the menu and picked the first thing I saw. "I'll have the steak, I guess."

"Great," he said. He snapped his hand once again making a waitress put down our drinks as he whittled out our order. It was apparent that customer service- better yet, common courtesy or hospitality were not things he was accustomed to. Everything was so rushed with him. Most would've been kind and patient with the staff but he was a complete dick. I guess that was expected from a kidnapper.

When the waitress left he moved forward onto the table and looked at me. His gaze made me shift in my seat and I looked away from him. His smug face dropped in color as my eyes returned to him and I frowned. "Where did you get that necklace?"

I reached for the necklace laying on my chest and shrugged. I didn't want Syn to be involved in this like I was.

"Did Syn give it to you?" He questioned quickly. Wow. When I didn't answer he sat back in his seat and shook his head. "He's smart, I'll give him that," he scoffed, taking a loud sip of his drink before sucking his teeth.

"What do you mean?"

"Nothing, but I'm going to need you to give me that necklace. My boss has been looking for that spell for centuries," he said.

"Who's your boss?"

"The same person who ordered me to take you," he replied. His boss? His boss was the woman who's been watching me? Did she want him to take to me to dinner here as well? I suddenly realized that he couldn't hurt me. The woman wanted me alive so that alleviated a lot of my stress, but there was still the matter of my friends in the club so I didn't want to piss him off.

"Give it to me," he spat. Cleo told me how powerful the necklace was. If everything she told me about the necklace was true, then it could really hurt Syn. I couldn't let that happen.

"No."

He scoffed and reached out his hand to snatch the necklace from my neck, catching me off guard. I jumped when I heard him scream and recoil his hand. "What the hell?!" he screamed. I watched as steam came from his hand and when he laid his hand on the table, I saw a large burn that made me smile. "What spell did he add?!" he spat.

"I don't know."

He banged the table with his unharmed hand making people in the restaurant turn to us and I kept my eyes trained in front of me. He immediately took his phone from his pocket and furiously tapped on it.

He held the phone up to his ear and a few moments later he began speaking. "Boss," he spoke. "She has a necklace with the spell we've been searching for." He kept glaring at me and I avoided his eyes. I pretended I was focused on something else, but I avidly listened to their conversation.

"I can't take it...it burned me...I have no idea," he said in frustration as he closed his burned hand. He remained quiet for a few moments when suddenly his eyes widened and an angry expression cast over his face, making me freeze. "Are you serious?" He hissed into the phone.

Seconds later his jaw clenched and he rolled his eyes. "Fine." With that, he ended the call and slammed his phone onto the table. I looked back at him to see him staring at me and shaking his head. "I don't know her fucking obsession with you, but soon I'll stop following orders." I remained quiet with my brows furrowed as he took a deep breath. "She told me to let you ask me one question."

"What?" I asked puzzled. It was as though a new man was sitting in front of me. Gone was his threatening act and now he looked stoic as if he was some soldier following orders.

"You must have questions," he said through gritted teach. "I'm told to answer just one."

I nodded and thought about what to ask. It wasn't hard though since there was only one pressing one. "Who is she?" I asked.

He smirked at me and shook his head. "I can't answer anything that will reveal her identity."

I crossed my arms and rolled my eyes. What else was there to know? I fiddled with the gem on my necklace when Cleo's conversation with me the other day filled my mind.

You're oozing human.

I already knew what I was and it made no sense to ask, but I was still a bit curious after Cleo's adamance. Especially now after seeing Cole get burned by the necklace that once again left me unharmed. "I'm human, right?" I asked in a joking tone. I wasn't serious, but I was wondering what he would say.

"Seriously?" He asked dryly. "That's what you want to know?"

His boredom with my question made me relax and I shook my head as I let out a breath I was holding. "I guess not. I suppose your reaction answered it. I'll ask ano-"

"What do you think my reaction told you?"

"That I'm human. You seemed like I already knew the answer and it was stupid," I said.

"Then my reaction gave you no answer," he said with a smug smile.

"What?" I asked cautiously.

"You are not human. Not even close."

My heart dropped and my mouth went dry. I wasn't expecting his answer...I didn't even want it. I looked up at Cole dumbfounded and more confused than I was before. "Then what am I?" I asked.

He pushed back his seat and stood up as he pulled cash from his jacket. He threw it down onto the table and looked at me. "She said one question."

That couldn't be it. Cole was now another person telling me that I was more than I believed. Maybe relief is what I should've felt at the thought of that, but there was only fear and sadness. "But-"

"One question," he reminded me. "You're done."

"You can't just say that and then leave!" I snapped.

He sighed before crouching down to my level and looking into my eyes. "Put the damn pieces together. Why are you missing memory? Why are you able to wear a necklace manufactured for a goddess?"

My mind began racing along with my heartbeat and my throat went dry. "What..."

"I will be seeing you soon, darling." He squeezed my shoulder tightly as he stood up and walked out of the restaurant.

As soon as he stepped a foot out the door I got up and rushed to the restroom. My heels clicked on the floor as I rushed into the stall and before I knew it, I was breaking down. My entire life I thought I knew what I was. I was always ostracized for being the only human in many parts of Heaven and now here I was finding out that wasn't even true. Did my dad and mom know? Did I want them to know?

I had holes in my memory- like Cole said...especially from before I turned eleven, but I never truly questioned them as I did now. I began sobbing all over again once I thought about every detail of my life. Every possible lie anyone had ever told me.

I heard the sound of heels entering the restroom and I held in my sob. I didn't want anyone asking me questions. I watched the heels walk into the restroom and I expected them to walk into another stall, but I froze as I saw their feet stop directly in front of my door.

"Why are you crying, little one?"