Seth smirked at her and seemed amused. Slowly he shook his head and turned his gaze to the top of the stairs. “Lady Yasny led the dragons for two thousand years before Lady Nerathane betrayed her. I was old before Yasny was hatched. I have forgotten more knowledge than most people in Sanctuary will learn in their entire lives. That’s one answer and I could leave it at that.” He paused and adjusted his dagger before shifting to more of a slouch against the wall. “I will give you a better one, though. I knew Uindraely Merrodin far better than most, and you are not the first Undrae I’ve known. The ones she raised were brutal creatures with less personality than you have. They were like the Blights; their thoughts revolved around survival alone.”
“And you are going to help me just to find out who created me? I don’t understand why it’s so important. I don’t see how a single soul could mean so much to Lord Death. He has thousands of souls outside his city.” Zoelyn’s words were barely a mumble. Her mind was still fully awake and filled with questions, but her body was failing her. She knew she was exhausted, but didn’t expect her body to surrender this quickly to rest. It was taking everything she had just to keep her eyes open.
“It may not be important to Finn, but it is very important to me. Uindraely’s magic was supposed to have died with her. The fact that it didn’t, is a matter I’m afraid I will obsess over.” Seth spoke quietly, his amber eyes still watching her every move. “You really do have incredible stamina despite your current weakness. You should have passed out by now. I have been dusting the stairs with Dreamsweet for the past two flights and I know you must have absorbed enough of it to knock out a horse. Yet you are still talking.”
“Why?” Zoelyn managed to gasp as she struggled to keep her eyes open once more. His words made her want to panic, but her sluggish body refused to respond to her demand to stand.
Seth grinned at her coldly. “Because I want you to be dependent on me, little Undrae. I intend to replenish you, but I won’t let you know how I did it. If I give you the secret, you have the power to help yourself. We haven’t reached that point yet. Until I decide otherwise, you need me if you want anything resembling a normal life.” He pushed off the wall and leaned toward her.
Zoelyn shook her head and tried to force her eyes to focus. Her tongue was thick in her mouth and she wasn’t sure she could even talk. “You said you would help,” she mumbled as her vision blurred further. Her thoughts were racing with a thousand words, but just the few she had spoken had been nearly impossible to voice.
“I will, but in my own way. I’m not doing this for you, little Undrae. I’m doing this for me. In time, you might even understand what I mean by that,” Seth whispered. “That’s a good girl. Take a nice long nap,” he murmured as her body surrendered at last and she slumped forward against him.
Zoelyn struggled to open her eyes once more, but it was taking everything she had just to remain conscious. Seth’s arms wrapped around her and she felt him lift her carefully. Her head lolled against his chest as he began climbing the stairs slowly.
“I was beginning to think she had a poison resistance,” a woman’s voice echoed from above them on the stairs.
“This one is strong despite her current condition. When I am done with her she will be nearly unstoppable,” Seth replied. “And yet, still under your control,” the woman purred, sounding entirely too pleased with the idea.
“This is my project, Yasny. Don’t waste your time attempting to decipher what I have in mind. This girl isn’t a tool for the sunlit world. She is mine and that is all you need to know.” Seth’s voice had grown cold with the words.
“I can help you, Seth. Don’t be so hasty,” Yasny pressed.
“I have never needed anyone’s help. Not now. Not ever,” Seth replied stubbornly.
“Fine. Be that way,” Yasny sniffed indignantly. Her voice was much closer now. A hand brushed across Zoelyn’s face, moving her hair back and the faint smell of roses mingled with Seth’s spicy scent. “She will be a pretty little thing when you get her fixed. I thought you said she was from Glis, though. She doesn’t look Shifter at all.”
“She has about as much Glis blood as I do,” Seth replied and Zoelyn could hear the smirk in his voice. “I don’t know where she is from, but I will find out,” he added as he shifted her once more in his arms.
Zoelyn didn’t struggle at all in his arms. She didn’t think they realized she was still awake. If she remained limp and silent they might continue to talk. The more she learned of Seth’s plans, the better chance she had of pleading with Finn later.
Seth balanced her for a moment with one arm and the faint click of a key turning in a lock sounded clearly in the hall. “Goodnight, Yasny,” Seth murmured and Zoelyn wondered if he had read her thoughts. It seemed too much of a coincidence that he had ended the conversation at the exact moment she had been hoping he would continue it.
“We will talk tomorrow,” Yasny said in a tone that suggested the words were closer to an order than a request.
“Most likely,” Seth replied nonchalantly. The air grew warmer around them as he stepped into the room and closed the door. He shifted her once more in his arms and chuckled faintly. “Give up little Undrae. Give in to the Dreamsweet and admit I’ve won. I know you can still hear me, no matter how hard you try to pretend. If I wanted to hurt you, I wouldn’t have used Dreamsweet. That particular poison is a royal pain in the ass to gather. All I want from you is sleep and you have my word you won’t be harmed.”
“Bastard…liar,” Zoelyn mumbled as he lowered her to a chair. The soft velvet seemed to cradle her and her body screamed for her to listen to Seth and give in to rest. Sleep crept closer as she slumped farther into the cushions.