“Are you in charge?”she asksall businesslike.“I would like to speak to Queen Hurvan and inform her –”
“We’ve already talked to her.”The scarred mandoesn’tglance at her, his eyes still locked on mine.
My cheeks heat as I realise Ican’thold his gaze.My eyeskeepwanting to roam over his face, to take in everymorbiddetail.I want to ask him what happened,but mystomach twistswith something that makes me feel sick.
Looking down at my feet, I shuffle back a bit.Fabia instantlytakesmy place.
“Well,wehaven’t.And I’m sure if we did, she’d be able to clear up this mess and –”
“Your queen agreed to sacrifice you to save everyone else.The treaty between our people is quite clear.If a brownie ever breaks one of our laws, the treatyis voided,and we go to war.We’vealready breached your territory.”
Fabia shootsme a pointed look.Ipretendlike Ican’tsee her.Like Ican’thear the memory of her arguing for us to build a wall around our kingdom.I mean, it’s not like it wouldhave worked anyway.The thing about fairies is they havefourwings.And the thing about brownies is we leteveryonein if they just ask nicely.
“The terms of our new agreement include handing over any brownies that’ve committed acapitalcrime.”He looksat Fabia.“Entering our landsillegallyisa misdemeanour.”His gaze turnsto me.“Buttrying to sneak through the portal tothe human realm…” He pauses.
My heart hammering, I lift my gaze to his, trying not to cringe in preparation of his words.
“Is punishable by public execution.”
I cringe.
“ButArienna wasn’t trying to go through the portal!She doesn’t even know where it is!”Fabia protests.
His eyes bore deeply into hers.“And Iwasn’t trying to upset my wife,but she stillburnedhalf my face off.”
I gasp.Fabia turnspale.
“Did she say sorry?”I whisper.
Sorry fixeseverything.My tummy twistsas I studythe deep grooves cutting across his face.For the first time, I start to doubt the power of an apology.His own wife…
Ican’timagine being married to someone so cruel.
When Fabiadoesn’tsay anything more, he turnsto me.I swallow hard and dig my fingers into my thighs so Idon’ttake a step back.
“Do you know what afairypublic execution entails?”he asks.
I glance at Fabia.Shegrowspaler by the second.“No?”I squeak.
“You will be smothered in honey to be feasted on by ants.Once they eat off all your skin, we will release pregnant wasps so they lay their eggs inside your body.You will be kept alive, force fed omini, until the maggots eat their way out.You’ll scream thefirst few days, but eventually your vocal chords will snap.You will be cut open from shoulders to wrists, from thighs to ankles.And then your bones will be snapped inside you.Your ears will be cut off as will your tongue.Your ribs will be cracked open and spread apart.And as you are struggling to breathe, your intestines will be pulled from your anus and strung around your neck.Only then will you be granted mercy.”
My mouth opensand closeswordlessly.Ican’tspeak,can’tthink,can’tfocus on anything other thanthe cruel,gruesome picturehe’s painted.Of my soon to be fate.
Hunching forward, I vomit all over his shoes.
Whatever Iatelast night was chunky and red, andit nowlookslike –
I vomit again.
Brains.
“Uhhh,” I moan as I spit out the lingering bits in my mouth.My heart’spoundingso loudly, I barely hear the man’s next words.
“Luckily for you though,” hesaystightly as heshakeshis right foot, “King Morningstar is feeling generous today and would like to offer you a deal.”
“What kind of deal?”Fabia askswarily.Her voiceissmall, nothing like her normal self.
I tremble as I wrap my arms around mywaist, trying to hold myself together.They’lldo everything he said they would.I’m going tobe tortured for weeks, maybeevena month.I’m going tospend the last of my days crazed and in pain.I’dbe lucky if I remember my own name, let alone Fabia, my dearest friend.I look at her and she at me.Icansee the worry in her eyes.The heartache and the guilt.
