Insidious Winds by Rain Oxford

out of my head.”
    “Oh, I have never once needed to see into your brain
to know your thoughts. All humans are basically the same. There is even a type
of science devoted to learning how humans think, which I find to be quite
boring.”
    It was still confusing that he called wizards from
Earth human, whereas everyone in the paranormal world considered us to be
non-human, along with shifters, vampires, and fae. Langril considered everyone
from Earth to be human. Which, come to think of it, was very racist. “People
are boring, or our thoughts are boring?”
    “Both. It’s a bit like watching hamsters play in
their pens. I watch you and wonder how that wheel can be so much fun.
Sometimes, you even do something out of character that makes me laugh, but
after a while, you’re still just a little pet, running around in your little
cage, thinking your little thoughts.”
    “Have I told you how much of an ass you are?” I asked
as he entered his room. The gas lantern lit itself.
    He gestured to the black leather couch and I sat.
“No, but most people here have. If it’s any consolation, you are one of the
most entertaining humans I have met.”
    “It isn’t.”
    “You humans are all about pleasure. You want to be
happy, well-fed, and loved.”
    “What’s wrong with that?”
    “You don’t like pain or suffering. You all try so
desperately to stop it, that you would even hurt others to avoid it yourself.”
He picked up two cups from his desk. The desk had been bare a moment before.
Instead of handing it to me, he set it next to me on a small table. I stared at
it. “Go on, I didn’t poison it.”
    I took it, but I didn’t drink. I did laugh, though.
“Green tea?”
    “Logan likes black tea.”
    “You hate him so much that you can’t even drink the
same tea as him?”
    His eyes widened in surprise. “I don’t hate him at
all. He’s actually one of my few friends in this world.” He took a sip of his
drink and nodded. “In fact, I think I’ve killed all my other friends,” he said
thoughtfully, as if it was an afterthought. “Logan is the only human I know who
can heal himself from my attacks.”
    “So then, you just don’t want to be that British? And
why does Dr. Martin sound German if you’re both from Dothra?”
    “It was the first human language he learned.”
    “And how long did it take him to learn German?”
    He smirked again. “Five days. Silly little---”
    “If you insult people for not being able to learn a
language in five days, I will shoot you.” He sipped his tea. “Why did you take
Astrid to Dothra? If you only wanted me to make a deal with Heather, why not
trap me there?”
    “Because Dothra is not Hell,” he said, his humor
gone. “At least not to people like me and Astrid.”
    “Astrid isn’t like you. You were the one who made her
attack my family.”
    “I saved her from Krechea’s hold over her. She is
more likely to survive in Dothra than Andrew because she doesn’t feel fear. At
least she didn’t until you came along. If she does die there, it will be
entirely your fault.”
    “If she dies there, I will kill you.”
    He shrugged. “It happens. You never listen, do you? I
feel no fear about anything. I don’t fear loss, death, or pain. Astrid never
did either, until you saved her from her loneliness. Now she fears feeling that
again, fears your death, and that makes her weak. It makes her biddable.”
    “What do you care?”
    “I care because if she dies before I get what I want,
you will be useless to me. And if you save her before I get what I want, then I
have wasted my time.” He glared at me. “I hate wasting my time.”
    I set down my still-full cup. “Then I’ll get out of
your hair.”
    “Devon,” he said right before I left. I stopped with
my hand on the doorknob. “I’m not your enemy. I do hope you survive this and I
will help you as long as you help me. Krechea would happily destroy this
world.”
    “What do you care?”
    “This is my