Close Obsession (The Krinar Chronicles 2)

this time. An unusual cream-colored structure stood in the middle. Shaped like an elongated cube with rounded corners, it had no windows or doors – or any visible openings at all.

“This is your house?”

Mia had seen structures like this one on the three-dimensional map in Korum’s office earlier today. They’d looked very strange and alien to her from a distance, and that impression was even stronger now that she was standing next to one. It just looked so incredibly foreign, so different from anything she’d ever seen in her life.

Korum nodded, leading her toward the building. “Yes, this is my home – and now it’s yours too.”

Mia swallowed nervously, her anxiety growing at the last part of his statement. Why did he keep saying that? Did he really intend for her to live here permanently? He’d promised to bring her back to New York to finish her senior year of college, and Mia desperately clung to that thought as she stared at the pale walls of the house looming in front of her.

As they approached, a part of the wall suddenly disintegrated in front of them, creating an opening large enough for them to walk through.

Mia gasped in surprise, and Korum smiled at her reaction. “Don’t worry,” he said. “This is an intelligent building. It anticipates our needs and creates doorways as needed. It’s nothing to be afraid of.”

“Will it do that for anyone or just you?” Mia asked, stopping before the opening. She knew it was illogical, her reluctance to go in. If Korum intended to keep her prisoner, there was nothing she could do about it – she was already in an alien colony with no way to escape. Still, she couldn’t bring herself to voluntarily enter her new “home” unless she was sure she could leave it on her own.

Apparently intuiting the source of her concern, Korum gave her a reassuring look. “It will do it for you as well. You’ll be able to go in and out whenever you want, although it might be best if you stayed close to me for the first few weeks . . . at least until you get used to our way of life and I have a chance to introduce you to others.”

Exhaling in relief, Mia looked up at him. “Thanks,” she said quietly, some of her panic fading.

Maybe being here wouldn’t be so bad after all. If he really did bring her back to New York at the end of summer, then her sojourn in Lenkarda might prove to be exactly that – a couple of months spent at an incredible place that few humans could even imagine, with the extraordinary creature she’d fallen in love with.

Feeling slightly better about the situation, Mia stepped through the opening, entering a Krinar dwelling for the first time.

The sight that greeted her inside was utterly unexpected.

Mia had been bracing for something alien and high-tech – maybe floating chairs similar to the ones in the ship that had transported them here. Instead, the room looked just like Korum’s penthouse back in New York, right down to the plush cream-colored couch. Mia flushed at the memory of what had taken place on that couch just a little while ago. Only the walls were different; they seemed to be made of the same transparent material as the ship, and she could see the greenery outside instead of the Hudson River.

“You have the same furniture here?” she asked in surprise, letting go of his hand and taking a step forward to gape at the strange sight. She couldn’t imagine that furniture stores made deliveries to K Centers – but then he could probably just conjure up whatever he wanted using their nanotechnology.

“Not exactly,” Korum said, smiling at her. “I set this up ahead of your arrival. I thought it might be easier for you to acclimate if you could relax in familiar surroundings for the first couple of weeks. After you feel more comfortable here, I can show you how I usually live.”

Mia blinked at him. “You set it up just for me? When?”

Even with rapid fabrication – or whatever Korum had called the technology that let him make things out of nothing – he probably still needed a little time to do all this. When would he have had a chance to even think about this, given the events of this morning? She tried to picture him making a couch while capturing the Keiths and almost snickered out loud.

“A little while ago,” Korum said ambiguously, shrugging a little.

Mia frowned at him. “So . . . not today?” For some reason, the timing of this gesture seemed important.

“No, not today.”

Mia stared at him. “You were planning this for a while? Me being here, I mean?”

“Of course,” he said casually. “I plan everything.”

Mia took a deep breath. “And if I hadn’t been in danger from the Resistance? Would you have still brought me here?”

He looked at her, his expression indecipherable. “Does it really matter?” he asked softly.

It mattered to Mia, but she wasn’t up to having that discussion right now. So she just shrugged and looked away, studying the room. It was somewhat comforting to be someplace that at least looked familiar, and she had to admit that it was a thoughtful thing to do – creating a human-like environment for her in his house.

“Are you hungry?” Korum asked, regarding her with a smile.

Making food for her seemed to be one of his favorite activities; he had even fed her this morning when she’d been afraid he would kill her for helping the Resistance. It was one of the things that had always made her feel so conflicted about him, about their relationship in general. Despite his arrogance, he could be incredibly caring and considerate. It drove Mia nuts, the fact that he’d never truly acted like the villain she’d thought him to be.

She shook her head. “No, thanks. Still full from the sandwich earlier.” And she was. All she wanted to do was lie down and try to give her brain a rest.

“Okay then,” Korum said. “You can relax here for a bit. I have to go out for an hour or so. Do you think you’ll be all right by yourself?”