Robin shimmied into the dress. The dusty blue fabric slid down over her, and as she zipped it up, she knew it was going to be skintight. Not that this was a surprise. She felt like a desperate housewife, or was it a Stepford housewife? She could never remember. A vicious longing in her whipped around, demanding she put on some sweatpants and an oversized T-shirt. It had been her uniform once upon a time, when she worked from home as a cyber security engineer.

The deep V of the dress’s neckline meant that her breasts were front and center again, which she didn’t understand. It wasn’t like she was blessed in that area. Growing up, her mom had told her to stuff her bra if she wanted to get boys to notice her. Trouble was, Robin didn’t want boys to notice her, which her mom didn’t understand at all. She was quite happy to be quiet and pursue her passions, no man necessary.

She shook herself out of her thoughts and straightened the dress in the mirror. Even she had to admit that the blue brought out her eyes. She tried to examine the dress without prejudice. The neckline was high, aside from the deep V in the center, and the cap sleeves were actually quite nice. The piping that ran down her torso flared at her hips, making them look bigger than they were. There were pockets, exactly as Randall had said. They were teeny tiny, though, and couldn’t really fit anything. Robin was tempted to bring the flash drive, just in case there was something for her to tap into, but she also knew it could be a big risk in this situation.

When she slipped it into one of the pockets, the outline was clearly visible, making it impossible to sneak anything anywhere in that dress. She sighed and slipped into her heels. She would have to stash the little piece of plastic that was her life boat before she saw her boss. A last once-over confirmed that the flash drive wasn’t visible before she headed up to Randall’s office, with a pit stop at her own.

She knew the rumors about her were getting worse. Whenever she passed someone in the hall, they openly sneered at her now. It took all her self-control not to beg them to take her place, but she knew that would only get them both in trouble and nothing would change. At least, not for her. Plus, depending on Randall’s mood, he could be quite vindictive.

She’d heard the whispers about the assistant before her—the woman had tried to make a run for it. She didn’t make it. Not only that but she was never seen again, and that made Robin hold her tongue.

Randall would see anything she did to get away from him as a betrayal; he’d said as much when they’d first got back from The Farm. If he was angry at her and there was someone else involved, he was more likely to take his anger out on that person than on her. She was lucky that way. Yeah, right.

By the time she walked into Randall’s office, he was standing at his desk, waiting for her. She had never been more thankful that he couldn’t see her desk from his.

“Right on time, just the way I like it.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Now, rules. Going forward, only speak when you are directly spoken to. No ‘yes, sir’ or ‘yes, ma’am’ unless someone is specifically requesting an answer. Don’t flash your tits at anyone, except me, of course.” He leered at her when he spoke. If Robin didn’t know better, she would say he was tipsy. “And try not to be too surprised by anything. Although, I should warn you, what you are about to see will blow your mind.”

“Yes, sir.”

Randall’s gaze drifted lazily down her body. “By the old ones, I can’t wait for you to ask me to bed.”

He didn’t seem to realize that he’d spoken aloud, so Robin thought it was probably in her best interests to ignore it.

“Ready?” He smiled, and for the first time, she could see how women found him attractive. When he was playful and slightly tipsy like this, there was something endearing about him. Not that she still wouldn’t bolt if given half a chance, but at least she could see where they were coming from a little more now.

His hand was outstretched, waiting for hers, and as she took it, he pulled her much closer than she needed to be. One arm was a steel bar around her back, pressing her against him, and the other was making strange gestures at the wall. She could smell the liquor coming off him in waves.

Fire blazed in front of her eyes for a few seconds before turning into the sweeping black hole she had seen at The Farm. Out of instinct, she started to push away from him. More than anything, she didn’t want to go through that thing. The memory of what it felt like before was too fresh in her mind.

“Stop struggling.” The liquor on his breath surrounded her.

“I don’t want to go through there.”

“You don’t have a choice.”

She pulled and pushed against him, until he gave up and swung her over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes.

“Here we go!” he said as he smacked her ass.

The blackness crushed in on her, making it impossible to draw breath. She felt like she was being peeled, as though someone had put sandpaper to her skin. Her blood boiled and her body melted, and just when she was sure death was imminent, it all stopped.

“Here we are.”

As Randall set her down, she had to turn away to retch.

“Well, that’s just lovely.” He almost hiccupped. “I used to be like that. Now, I just have a few glasses of gin and I’m fine.”

She took a step forward and ended up almost face-planting on the floor, not that it could even be called a floor, really. A floor implied a certain level of flatness, at least to Robin, and this was not flat. She felt like she was walking on the rubble from an explosion. They were underground—that much was obvious—but how far underground, she had no idea. She couldn’t see any other way into the tunnel they were standing in, except for the portal, which had conveniently just closed. An eerie light spread through the passageway. It was just enough for them to see with no indication of where it came from. It was almost as if the rocks themselves were emanating light.

“Come on. This way. If you follow my footsteps, those are the best places to walk.”

“Yes, sir,” she said, before mumbling to herself, “Not wearing heels would have made this easier.”

“For you, yes. However, then your ass wouldn’t look the way it does, and with that dress, it needs a little perking up. Now, remember the rules.”

His comment stung. And she hated that she cared.

Randall seemed to be sobering up, which was good, because they were approaching a massive doorway. Two giant statues flanked the keyhole arch. On the left was a virile young man, clearly just over the cusp of adulthood, and on the right was an old man hunched over his cane. As Robin drew closer, she realized just how big the statues were. They towered over her, her head just coming to the knees of each sculpture. The detail in the stonework was phenomenal. Passing under the archway, Robin realized it was more of a tunnel. At the end was an intricately carved door, which stood at least four times as tall as she was. As they approached, the doors swung open.

An ambient light filled the revealed area, not that Robin could see the source of it, because the ceiling was so high. She couldn’t even see the edges of the room. There seemed to be a mist or haze covering everything more than twenty feet away from them. As they walked forward, voices drifted toward her, all kinds of accents, men and women, old and young. A set of stairs became visible in front of them where the room narrowed into a tunnel. They climbed to a central platform, which opened up into an area that was more like a cavern than a room. The walls were lined with figures that had been carved out of the stone itself. Each figure had a solemn expression, and its eyes were directed at the center of the platform, which was, of course, right where Randall stopped.

Not only did Robin feel completely out of place but now she felt like the statues were judging her, as well. She tried to focus on the people in front of her, rather than the giant stone heads a couple hundred feet above her.

It was as if she had just crashed a swanky cocktail party and everyone knew she wasn’t supposed to be there. The whispers. The looks. It was all making her skin crawl.

Randall’s possessive hand on the small of her back didn’t help, either. All she wanted to do was shake it off and move away from him, but in this crowd, who knew what that would mean.

“Randall, darling, introduce us to your new protégé,” a slender woman called from the side. There wasn’t a hair out of place. She was perfectly coiffed and practically reeked of money. Robin had to clench her hands together to prevent one from going up to her frizzy red locks.

“Brothers and Sisters, this is Robin Murphy. I bring her before you today to offer my sponsorship to bring her into our family. She has many distinct talents that will greatly benefit our organization and our goals.”

“I can see a couple talents from here!” a low voice called out, but Robin couldn’t see who had spoken.

“How long has he been boinking you, darlin’?” another voice joined in.

Heat rose on Robin’s face. They thought she was his toy. The latest in a long line of playthings.

“Brothers, you know I would not bring sullied goods before you. Robin has been in my care since she was a young girl. I have nurtured and protected her from a family who would have brought her nothing but pain. She has blossomed under my care, and I feel that her talents can now be put to use by the group.”

She felt completely humiliated. Shame stained her cheeks red even though she had nothing to be ashamed of. Besides, Randall didn’t know what he was talking about. She may have been young when her father had made the deal with him, but she was old enough to have lost her virginity. Ken Brown, at a friend’s birthday party. It hadn’t been anything romantic, more just the both of them wanting to get it over with. Either way, her maidenhead was long gone.

“Robin, has Brother Randall inappropriately laid a finger on you?”

She shook her head no.

“I bet you want him to, though, don’t you?” a woman’s voice called, clearly wishing she was in Robin’s shoes.

She vehemently shook her head no again. Why were they talking to her as if she was a child? Did they think just because she’d been under his employ for a few years she was mentally stunted?

“What are the skills you possess, my dear?” An older woman came forward and stood in front of Robin, holding glasses up to her face as if she was attending the opera, as she looked Robin up and down. Her wispy gray hair was done up in a chignon, and her long sapphire dress drew out the color of her eyes, just as her own dress did.

“I’m good with computers, ma’am.”

“Is that all? Turn for me.”

Robin glanced at Randall, who shook his head ever so slightly, probably only noticeable to her since she was turning toward him, putting herself on display for this strange old lady. Her banshee side was to remain his secret weapon.

“Good strong genes there. She’d make a good wife.”

“Sister Harriet, she is not here to be matched with someone. She’s here merely to gain approval to begin the joining process.” Randall sighed.

“Be that as it may, my comment still stands.” The woman sniffed at Randall, turned on her heel, and faded into the sea of onlookers.

“Does anyone have any objections to me moving forward?”

“What is her parentage?” The old lady called from her place in the crowd.

“Drunken father and absentee mother.” Randall waved his hand. “They aren’t important. She’s been mine for a while now.”

He seemed to wait for further questions. When none arrived, he seemed stuck.

Robin glanced around. Everyone stared at her as though they were trying to see into her very soul. It felt as if they could sense there was something supernatural about her, but they couldn’t put their finger on it. The tension in the room increased with every breath she drew.

“I don’t trust her. She doesn’t belong.” A young man walked toward them, his three-piece suit mostly hidden by an overcoat that came down to his knees, flapping behind him. When he arrived in front of her, his gray eyes studied her face. “You can see the fear in her. She’s tense. Scared. Yearns for her freedom.”

Randall sighed as murmurs rippled through the crowd.

“She is simply nervous. This is a big day for her; meeting all of you can be quite intimidating.” He chuckled, and the tension dissipated slightly.

“And where are Brothers Norman and Leonard? Usually they accompany you, no?”

“They are indisposed,” Randall said as he looked back at the crowd.

“Brother Randall, you know lying in the circle is frowned upon.”

“I am not lying.” He ground out each word, his fingers digging into Robin’s back. As she looked away from her boss, she realized that they were in fact standing on a large mosaic circle. The crowd obscured the image, but it looked like the tattoos she had seen on Randall’s arms at The Farm.

“Well, you are withholding something, then. You’re easy to read, Brother, especially for those of us who know you.”

His fingers clenched, pulling her dress even tighter, his nails digging into her skin through the fabric. She tried to lean slightly away from his hand, but it didn’t work. He had her locked in place.

“You are hurting your ward,” Gray Eyes said in low tones.

Randall’s hand immediately loosened as he glanced at her. She hadn’t felt a kind touch since she started working for Randall Fields, yet it still surprised her when he managed to bring tears to her eyes.

“Tell us what’s going on.”

“Leonard has been taken, and Norman is looking for him but has been unable to locate him so far.” He sounded like a sullen child.

She was surprised Gray Eyes had been able to extract a confession. It must have shown on her face, because Randall scowled at her.

“And?”

She looked at the man speaking. He was younger than Randall, or at least appeared that way, so why was Randall giving in to his questioning?

“The Farm has been destroyed. All the data has been lost. Leonard was not prepared for the eventuality of a fire.” Gasps of horror sounded all around them, as though the data was more important than the torture and the loss of life that occurred at the facility.

“There it is. That’s what’s been eating at you since you walked in.” Gray Eyes sighed. “How was it destroyed?”

“We were attacked by supernatural forces, who kidnapped one of the test subjects. During the attack, a fire was started. I’m not sure what caused it, but it destroyed the building and everything inside, including at least two security officers.”

Gray Eyes nodded thoughtfully. “Do we know who exactly attacked us?”

“Not yet. However, I have people looking into it.”

“And were you going to tell us any of this voluntarily?”

“Of-of course. I simply wanted to get the matter of Robin out of the way first.”

She had never seen him stumble over words before. Gray Eyes threw Randall off his game. The only question was, why?

“The Farm is gone. There is no more we can do about that. How do you plan on correcting the problem?”

“We will rebuild. Expand our facilities and keep them more secure. Maybe somewhere underground like this? I haven’t decided yet. The plan is in motion, though.”

Robin scoffed in her head at the idea. There was no plan in motion. He was simply trying to survive this meeting. The meeting may have been about her to begin with, but now it was all about Randall and his screw-up.

“We will need to see plans for the new facility as soon as they are ready. At least three of us must approve the proposed location. And you will bring Brother Leonard to us as soon as he is found. We will advise him appropriately on how to back up data in the future.”

Something about the way Gray Eyes said “advise” made Robin’s skin break out in goosebumps. She knew Leonard would be punished.

“Yes, High Brother.”

Now it all made sense. Gray Eyes was the leader, or at least higher ranking than Randall within the group. She hadn’t seen anyone outrank him since she had started working for him. It felt as if the world had tilted on its axis.

“Brother Randall, you and your initiates will need to make these losses up to the group. We cannot overcome the threat of the supernatural without the resources The Farm had provided.”

Panic flooded Robin’s system. They were against the supernatural, yet they used magic. What would happen if they found out she was a banshee? Nothing good was probably the answer. She needed to escape. Soon. As soon as they got back to the office, she would send out a second message. It was her only hope of finding anyone who could take on Randall Fields and stand a chance of winning.

“I have no objections to your ward becoming an initiate. Does anyone else?”

Gray Eyes looked around the room. When all the other guests remained silent, he nodded at Randall.

“Thank you, High Brother. Your benevolence is always appreciated. I will contact you as soon as the plans are drafted.”

“Do that.” As he walked away, he addressed the group. “With the news of the attack on The Farm, I want you all to check in on your Keys. Make sure they are still contained and stable. I expect a report from each of you by the end of the day.”

He opened a portal in the middle of his path and disappeared in an instant. The tension in the room vanished with him, and people began to chatter all around them.

“That went well,” Randall said as he exhaled. He smiled at Robin. “Time for you to meet our Key.”