His smile vanished at my words. "You think this is punishment?" he asked and stepped closer, almost forcing me to take a step back but I held my place. "Punishment would be dragging your name through the mud and getting you expelled. Punishment would be telling the Council exactly who you are. But I haven't done that. Not yet."
I swallowed hard.
"I'm here to learn," I said quietly. "Not to fight with you."
"You're here to serve," he corrected. "You'll fetch reports, attend meetings, write summaries, and stay out of the way. That's all I require."
"And if I say no?" I challenged.
He shrugged. "You won't. Because this internship matters to you. Because you're trying to build something, aren't you? A future. A new life. And you're smart enough to know that making me your enemy won't get you there."
He was right.
Damn him, but he was right.
