“Later,” Dr. Mallory said. Then she left, her staff following. Mac waved at Kira and hurried after them.

“Why do I feel like I just passed inspection?”

“Because you did,” Zan said with a chuckle. Placing a hand on her shoulder, he gave her a friendly, one-armed hug. “After getting the equivalent of a green light from Melina, the rest will be gravy.”

“If you say so.” Kira paused, recalling something in retrospect. “I sensed a lot of anger in Dr. Mallory. And oddly enough, a feeling of vulnerability, as though she’s not as in control as she’d like others to believe.” She glanced at the men, who were gazing at her intently. “What?”

Hammer crossed his arms over his massive chest. “Does that happen a lot?”

“Does what happen?” she asked, mystified.

“Getting ‘feelings’ from people.”

“No, I don’t think so.” She frowned, remembering. “At least not before I met Jaxon last night. Weird, huh? It’s probably this place and the sudden submersion into all this woo-woo weirdness frying my brain. No offense.”

Hammer looked at his friend and raised his brows, and the two seemed to share the same thought before Zan turned to her.

“Maybe you should mention this to Melina when you meet with her.”

“Why? Other than suffering from delusions because I talk to faery princes and think I see men shifting into wolves, I’m perfectly healthy,” she deadpanned.

Both men gave a quiet laugh, and then Zan answered. “I know you are because I’m a Healer and I’d know if you weren’t. Still, it won’t hurt to tell her and see what she has to say. Since the Institute of Parapsychology was established, Melina has made it her life’s goal to learn what makes every supernatural creature tick. Tell her, and then she can log your information in case it’s important.”

Kira thought he was going overboard, but didn’t see the harm. “Sure. Why not?”

“Have you ever had any leanings toward paranormal ability? Ghosts in your house, seeing things others don’t, anything at all?”

“Not in the slightest.” She frowned, recalling the voice she thought she’d heard when fleeing NewLife with the tissue samples, then dismissed it. Surely that had been her imagination. “But I’m a big fan of Ghost Hunters!” They gave her a blank look. “You know, on the Syfy Channel?”

“Um, we don’t watch much TV. And when we do, it’s probably not going to be anything dealing with the paranormal.”

“Kind of like folks who work in an ice cream parlor not eating the stuff because they’re sick of it,” Hammer put in.

“Exactly.”

“Oh. Well, you’ll have to make an exception in this case. Great show. I’m completely addicted; even follow Jason and Grant on Twitter.” She grinned at their perplexed expressions. “Never mind. Baby steps.”

“What are Syfy and TV?” Sariel asked in confusion. Everyone had forgotten him as he tried to follow their conversation.

“Jeez, what do they do for fun in the Seelie High Court?” she teased.

The Fae prince made a face. “Fun? Very little. My existence there was all about pomp and proper behavior. I believe humans call it ‘kissing ass.’ ”

The three of them laughed and Kira patted his arm. “Goes to prove some things don’t change no matter where you are.”

“I can believe that.”

They walked Sariel to a room just a couple of doors from Kira’s. She and the others did their best to reassure the Seelie that he was safe and welcome.

“I’m staying there,” she said, pointing. “Dr. Grant is there, and Jaxon is across the hall. The others are close by as well. Don’t hesitate to knock if you need anything.”

“Or use the phone,” Zan put in. “There’s a list of extensions beside it.”

The faery stared at them helplessly. “The what?”

Zan smiled. “It’s a communication device that looks like a box. Come in. We’ll show you.” He led the way and Sariel trailed him, taking in his surroundings.

Zan gave a short tutorial on how to use the phone, while Sariel studied the thing as if it were a strange insect and declared that in his world there was no need for such a contraption. They simply used Mindspeak or flashed to another location to talk in person. Then he looked sad and she figured it had reminded him that he’d lost his home and people.

Afterward, the trio spent some time showing the wide-eyed Fae some more earthly devices, like the oven, microwave, and refrigerator. Their new friend began to look more and more dejected.

“I cannot cook,” he murmured. “I don’t know how.”

“No worries.” Hammer clapped his shoulder. “The kitchen and appliances are here only in case you want to eat in private. We have a cafeteria and the cook is real fine. You won’t go hungry.”

“And that reminds me,” she began. “I heard you haven’t been eating.”

A slight flush colored the prince’s pale cheeks. “I wasn’t hungry. But I will not continue to shun your hospitality.”

She figured that meant he had been hungry and was too damned proud to admit it.

“Lunch is in a couple of hours,” Zan told him. “Why don’t you rest and I’ll make sure someone comes to get you right before we eat?”

Sariel nodded. “I would like that.”

“Will you be okay here?” She couldn’t help but worry. When she’d seen him earlier, he’d been the picture of abject misery, and now he was almost too calm. She hoped that didn’t mean he planned to do something drastic the minute their backs were turned.

“This will be most comfortable. Thank you.”

Zan started for the door. “We’ll get out of here, then. If you get tired of being alone, just come on out and go for a walk. You’re bound to see someone who can point you toward wherever you want to go.”

He swallowed hard, and looked to each of them, including them all in his next words. “I appreciate your kindness and I’m indebted. Somehow I will repay you.”

“Let’s not worry about that, huh?” Zan winked. “We’ll let you get some shut-eye.”

As they left, Kira glanced back over her shoulder to see Sariel standing in the middle of the small living area looking very alone. She didn’t really want to leave him but he needed time to adjust. He wouldn’t want someone hovering over him constantly after he’d given his word he wouldn’t harm himself. It would be a breach of trust in his eyes.

In the hallway, she voiced her concern as they walked. “What if he tries to leave?”

“We can’t stop him,” Zan answered. “And we can’t keep him caged. After you got him to open up, anyone could see that wasn’t right. But if he tries to walk out, he won’t get off the grounds without us knowing. We can try to persuade him again to stay.”

“If he translocates, though, he’s gone,” Hammer said. “Nothing we can do about that.”

Zan attempted to reassure her. “Try not to worry. He said he’d stay and he seems like a man of his word.”

She hoped so. The thought of such a gentle soul facing exile by himself was not acceptable.

Kira thanked the guys for their help and they told her to call on them again if she needed to. She said she would and headed in the direction of the recreation room, forcing herself to look on the bright side. Sariel was liberated from that awful cell, and though bewildered, he would adjust. He’d be fine.

What should she do with herself until lunch? Dr. Mallory had made it crystal clear she wanted to speak with Kira before she took on any more of her duties. And really, she wasn’t officially an employee until Nick said so. She wasn’t worried about the background check as it was a simple formality. Not even an unpaid parking ticket marred her record.

Until last night, her life had been critically boring to the point it needed CPR.

In the rec room she froze. Jax was sitting on the sofa, arms crossed over his chest, shit-kickers parked on the coffee table. He was watching a talk show on TV, but from his glazed expression, she had her doubts that he even knew what the topic was.