Corded (Corded Saga #1)(30)
I jumped as a cool hand touched my neck from behind. "Kayla, is it?"
I turned after taking a few seconds to compose myself, fearful of whoever the male was. "Yes."
A man I recognized from the lounge, but had never met, stared at me. "I didn't mean to startle you."
"Oh. It's okay." I glanced back at the elevator door that was still closed. Why was it taking so long?
He ignored my question and instead asked one of his own. "How are you enjoying Sray so far?"
"It's been fine." I struggled to keep my expression neutral.
"Ready for your Cording?" He stepped closer to me.
"Whenever Mason says it's time." I averted my eyes in case he could somehow read there was more to it than a normal Cording.
"Allen will be back soon." He licked his bottom lip.
"Oh. Yeah." I tried to act calmer than I really felt.
"Where are you headed?"
"The Hydros."
"Why?" He furrowed his brow.
"Because they interest me."
"The Hydros? The ones producing food?"
"Are there others?" Had I missed that on my tour?
"No, but I can't imagine why a girl like you would want to go there." He narrowed his eyes. "Unless it's to see someone." His confused look became one of annoyance.
"I'm from the Rurals." I assumed that would explain it well enough.
"And?" He gestured with his hand for me to continue.
"Meaning I have spent my whole life on a farm."
"Oh." Understanding crossed his face. "Feels closest to home than anything else."
"Yes." I nodded, grateful he understood.
"But the Hydros are nothing like the kind of farms you know."
"I know that. But they still interest me." It was the only thing at the Sray that interested me. Everything else was tainted with sex and alcohol, two things I knew nothing about and had absolutely no interest in.
He hit the elevator button as if it weren't already lit because I'd pressed it. "I'll take you down there."
"I can find my own way." I didn't know who this guy was, but he made me incredibly uncomfortable.
"I don't mind." He ran his arm down my arm.
I pulled it away out of instinct. He frowned but didn't try to touch me again.
After another few moments the elevator appeared. I stepped on, knowing full well the man was following. He'd never introduced himself, but then again I hadn't asked his name. My omission hadn't been an accident. I didn't care what his name was. It didn't matter because it wouldn't help me achieve my goal. If I could focus on my goal, everything else would be okay.
I stared at the buttons on the wall trying to remember for sure which floor the Hydros were on. How could I have forgotten that detail?
"You want the third floor." His voice came from right beside me as the elevator doors closed. In the large elevator, he'd chosen to stand right beside me.
I started to press the three, but he pushed my hand away. "If you aren't in a rush, how about we take a detour?"
"A detour?" I met his eyes. "What do you mean?"
"Surely you cannot be that innocent." He smiled, revealing two rows of unnaturally white teeth.
"I need to get to the Hydros."
"You're going there because they interest you. That doesn't mean you need to get there now." He pressed an unlabeled button. The elevator stayed in the same place.
"Ok, but I want to get there now."
"I want to take a detour first. That way we both win."
I shook my head. "That's not how this works."
"Oh, you sure about that?" The man laughed. "You think you know how any of this works?"
"Yes." I pretended to have far more confidence than I actually had.
"Do you have any idea who I am?" He moved closer.
"No." I tried to step away, but the result just had me pinned to the wall of the elevator. "You didn't give me your name."
"I shouldn't have to give you my name because you should know it."
"I just got here." I hoped that qualified as some sort of defense.
"I'm in the Circle." He leaned a hand on the wall beside me. "I assume you know what that means."
"I've heard the term." My heart rate accelerated, but I tried to stay calm.