It was now my turn to tilt my head as unease prickled on the back of my neck and Silas's words echoed through my head. Fae can't lie.
With his answer, Rowan decided the conversation was over. His eyes gave me another once over before he turned and left, not giving me a chance to fish for more information.
Like what the hell they had planned for me.
Nothing good, I was sure. The locked doors in the room I woke up in were good indicators of that.
As I watched Rowan exit, I wasn't sure if the unease I felt originated from learning I had no clue where Silas was or how to find him, or if it was due to the memory of words that surfaced unprompted. It was evident they had loopholes that allowed them to twist the truth. I would too if I was held to a similar rule. But luckily, I wasn't.
Lying had played a key role in making my life a little easier than it would have been if I lacked the ability to.
But he had no reason to lie to me about Silas. I was too insignificant; a prisoner; a problem, trouble. One he was probably eager to hand over to the Winter King while Silas was likely roaming the streets looking for me, wondering where I had managed to hide myself so well all while trying not to set things on fire or cause bottles of liquids to explode in frustration.
On the plus side, I didn't have to worry about having to find him in a castle that I had little hope of successfully escaping. But I had little choice other than to try. The only other option I had was to wait and hope that Silas realized I was caught and knew where to find me, but I didn't have enough hope to hold out for that, nor did I want to since it would just mean leading Silas to more... trouble. I didn't want to give Silas another reason to wish he had left me for dead and I wasn't going to place my hope in another's hands. It always led to disappointment in my experience. And Ash's. But I wasn't going to disappoint him this time, even if it meant risking consequences. The thought of failing Ash was scarier than the price that failing to escape could hold.
My eyes lingered on the doors Rowan had left open while my mind took me back to our previous two encounters. He seemed even more apathetic than before, not even a hint of anger or annoyance despite what he didn't want happening, happening. I was officially his problem.
Hopefully, not for long.
But until then, I couldn't let the insouciant help he had previously provided for his own benefits let me forget that he was now the threat.
The soft sound of a door closing in the other room pulled me from my thoughts. Moving quickly, I stepped into the bathroom and took care of the most pressing matter at hand first, my bladder. Gawking at the excess of luxury surrounding me, I relieved myself with a sigh.
Done, I washed my hands and my face before making my way toward the star feature of the room- the clawfoot tub that stood in the center of the far wall. Above it, hanging from the ceiling was a crystal chandelier that had me doing a double take at the rainfall shower head it concealed.
Not sure how to turn it on, I turned the knobs on the tub, pulling and pushing until a spay of steaming water began to drop from above. I was sure a bathroom this size came with a set of staff to clean any water that fell onto the marble floor. A curtain would cost far less.
With the water running to create an illusion that I was following the instructions Rowan had left me with and washing up, I made my way back to the door and cracked it open. Finding the bedroom still empty, I silently slipped into it and shut the door behind me. It muffled the sound of falling water enough for me to hear the soft click of a door in the other room.
