Page 28 of Great Service from Top to Bottom
Shifting onto my side, I got a look at the smooth, tiled walls around us. Cold air blasted from a vent near the ceiling. A few stacks of boxes were our only company. A low, glittering mist blanketed the floor. My teeth chattered, body shivering.
Zee rushed in, scooped me up, and tucked me under his arm. His right wing came around me, like a warm, leathery blanket.
“W-what is this place?”
“Some kind of meat store, I think. It’s warded. I can’t poof out.”
“Oh.” Shivering, I folded my arms tighter across my chest, and heaved my knees closer. My toes and fingers ached. “How long was I out for?”
“Not sure, Kitten. But it’s fine. We’ll try that door in a second, once you’re warm again. I tried it already, but with two of us, we’ll be out of here in no time, and then imma hang Kris upside down by his balls. I gave him the best fucking blow job of his life and this is how he repays me? Asshole.”
It did seem a bit rude. “Do you think Jim told him we were coming?”
“Maybe. But this is some hardcore kidnapping shit. Something about us poking around about Tom Collins has Kris seriously spooked.”
On the positive side, someone did not want us snooping around about Tom Collins, which meant we were on the right track. “Oh! What about your phone? Call Reynard—”
“Dropped it in the car, remember? When you got all weird about us. It’s still there.”
Then we wouldn’t be getting a quick rescue. “I was only weird about us because you were being weird about us.”
“It wasn’t the right time to tell you about the magic sperm. I was building up to it. It’s a sensitive issue. I’m sensitive about it. I couldn’t just blurt it out.”
“That’s exactly what you did.”
“Because of your face.”
“My face?”
“It’s adorable.”
He tucked me closer, brought his other wing around, and wrapped us up like a human and demon burrito.
“Maybe the syndicate always tranquilize their guests? Do you think that’s why the restaurant was empty?”
“I think it was empty because Kris is a dickface. And it’s a front for cons and scams. Fae suck.”
“That’s a shame. The lunch was tasty.”
We fell into a soft silence, that despite the freezing conditions and dire circumstances was kinda nice. Zee’s wings were warm, and his soft breathing lulled my frayed thoughts. It wasn’t long before I’d warmed up again.
“You wanna try the door?” Zee asked, his voice rumbling close to my ear.
His wings unfurled and we clambered to our feet. Cold air immediately nipped at my nose and cheeks. I hugged myself, and made my way over.
The door did have an inside handle, and a tiny frosted window, but as Zee gave the handle a tug, it didn’t move. It had been locked from the outside.
“Can I try?” I asked.
Zee gave me a dry look. “I fucking know how doors work.”
“Yeah, but at Fido’s pies—”
“Okay, fine. We don’t need to relive that, thanks, Kitten. I knew that door had a separate bolt, okay?” He stepped back. “It was a test. I was testing you. And you passed.”
“Right, because that’s a thing you do all the time.” I grinned, and he grinned right back. There were definitely worse people to be locked in a freezer with than Zee. Besides, we’d be out soon enough. I just needed to apply a little non-human pressure.
Zee had considerable demon strength, but I had access to more. I grasped the cold handle, and planned to shove a bit of oomph into opening it. Three, two, one—
