Page 34 of Rule the Night

The building was quiet, either because of the brick facade or because the neighborhood was so deserted.

Maybe both.

The staircase stood in shadow, but the light got brighter as I approached the top of the stairs. Poe was surprisingly quiet behind me for such a big man, the metal treads barely making a sound as he ascended with my suitcase and tote bag.

Finally, I emerged into a brightly lit, wide open space. I blinked against the light, Poe at my heels.

He set down my suitcase and I looked around, trying to get my bearings. I’d started last night outside the Orpheum, had ended up being hunted through the tunnels under Blackwell Falls, and had emerged into the bright light of day twelve hours earlier.

Now I stood in a massive sun-drenched space with soaring ceilings and concrete floors layered with an assortment of beautiful rugs. Late afternoon light poured in through the original factory windows, which extended from the floors to the ceiling where the metal beams and ductwork were exposed.

“This is the main living area,” Poe said behind me. “You’re welcome to make yourself at home.”

“This is your place?” I asked, walking deeper into the room.

“Our place. There’s another staircase at the back that leads to the bedrooms on the third floor.”

A sectional sat at one end of the room in front of the biggest flat-screen TV I’d ever seen.

At the other end of the room, an open kitchen gleamed dark and utilitarian, with poured concrete countertops, dark wood cabinets, two glass-doored refrigerators, and appliances that looked like they’d been copped from a fancy restaurant kitchen.

A sleek retro dining table separated the living area from the kitchen.

The whole space was immaculately designed, if a little cold, and I walked to the big windows and took in the view of Blackwell Falls. It was a vantage point I’d never seen before: we were at the very edge of town, the windows situated well above the surrounding buildings, the dense forest of Blackwell Preserve beckoning from beyond the brick and concrete of the industrial part of town.

It was like being in a tree house with a view for miles.

There was an outdoor space too, a balcony with a black metal railing that looked like an extra-large fire escape.

“You can go outside.” Poe walked to one side of the room and opened a door I hadn’t noticed.

Curious, I walked cautiously toward him and through the open door. I found myself standing high above the street below, the waning summer sun warm on my face, the scent of concrete and gasoline mixing with the faint scent of spruce and pine from the preserve.

“It’s nice out here,” I said, taking in the chairs and small tables situated on the balcony.

“Don’t sound so surprised.”

I turned to find Poe leaning against the exterior of the building next to the open door.

And I had to say, he made the lean look good.

He was a man who was comfortable in his own skin, a man who owned the space around his body, and I had to force myself not to stare.

“Sorry. It’s just… not what I expected.”

“What did you expect?”

I thought about it. They’d hardly seemed human in the tunnels. “A cave?”

He threw his head back and laughed, and my god, if he was beautiful before, his whole face transformed in laughter. Now he seemed less like a brooding demon and more like a benevolent sun god, a realization that only made me more nervous.

I was here to do my time and move on to the next Hunt. That was all.

“At least you’re honest,” he said when his laughter had died down.

“I am.” They would have to get used to it. I’d agreed to live here for three months, to follow their orders. I hadn’t agreed to lie, to be something I wasn’t.

He studied me and I forced myself not to shrink from the heat of his gaze.