“That’s a lie, and you know it.” Peter Pan was standing beside them, rapier still held high. His voice had now changed as well, though Sasha didn’t recognize it. She assumed it was now whoever Vile’s counterpart was. “You abducted Sasha first.”
Hook-Vile, or whatever he was, took a step forward. His shape shimmered, and like a mirage, the form of Captain Hook was gone, and the no less bizarre form of Vile remained. “That’s a technicality and you know it.”
And like a dream, the world around them fell away with it. Soon, they were standing in a library—the library Sasha had woken up in.
Sidney clung to her. Their clothes had changed. Sasha was no longer the pirate Mr. Smee, and Sidney was wearing what Sasha assumed her twin had been wearing before falling into the other book.
The man who had been Peter Pan was now who she assumed was Vile’s “brother.” And just like Sasha and Sidney, they were twins…kind of.
More like mirrored images of each other. Exact copies, but inverted. One light, one dark. One golden-yellow, one purple. One tanned, one pale. One good, one…evil.?*
“Dang,” Sasha muttered, and lost the fight to not stare at Vile’s sunnier twin. She might not like to date, but that didn’t mean she didn’t appreciate a handsome man when she saw one. And the one she was looking at could stop traffic.
“Right?” Sidney muttered back. “Scenery’s nice.”
“Can you two focus forone moment?”Vile rolled his eyes as he stormed away from them. “We are all quite well aware that Virtue over here is the shining example of all things handsome andprincely.It’s the whole damnablepointof hisexistence!”
“He’s just jealous he’s the unlovable one.”Virtue smiled at them both with a sad, sympathetic air. “You have to be patient with him. Being the monster can be hard for him sometimes.”
Vile growled in abject rage. His form seemed to—there wasn’t a good word for it besidesmelt.His humanity leaked away as his anger seemed to take over. Darkness overcame half his body, as though drawn on by some invisible force. It began to spread onto the world around him, up the bookshelves and onto the table. Just like the tendrils that had come from the book.“Do not speak of me as if I am some kind of child, you blundering half-wit.”
Sasha went rigid and clung to Sidney, feeling her twin do the same to her, as she watched dozens of inhuman, horrifying purpleeyesblink open in the darkness that was once Vile’s human form.
“Brother. Stop scaring them.” Virtue moved to stand in front of them. He was protecting them. The Hero and the Villain.
The hero and the monster.
Of courseshehad been abducted by the villain. Of course, that was her luck.
Turning his back to them, Vile audibly cracked his neck. His form shrank, and once more resembled something human. Well, in as much as he could probably manage. It was still a little off in parts.
He turned to face them, smoothing his hands down over his coat. “Hard not to scare them when that is the whole point of my existence. You have your role, I have mine.” Adjusting his tie, he let out a breath. “But, yes. Let us start at the very beginning. Which is, as someone has said before, averygood place to start.”
Lifting his hand, he snapped his fingers.
* And always over the wrong parts of them, it seems. Graphic murder? Why, suitable for children’s fables. Graphic consensual sex? Out, you Whore of Babylon! -V
* I do so much love that word… -V
CHAPTER FIVE
The moment Vile snapped his fingers, the world around Sasha rushed by as if on a very fast-moving treadmill. While they didn’t move, it didn’t stop her from feeling like she had. She flailed her arms out and yelped in surprise.
Virtue was standing closest to Sidney as her twin had a similar reaction. He caught Sidney, but he couldn’t catch them both. Sasha was the lucky loser, and she hit the ground with a groan.
When everything came to a screeching halt, she was face-down on more marble.
Vile, whocouldhave caught her, merely shook his head andtskeddown at her.“You really are quite the klutz.”
“Andyoureally are quite the ass.” Sasha lowered her head and sighed. She probably shouldn’t be insulting the eldritch monster demigod of fiction, but her nerves were frayed and she was running short on patience.
“It comes with the job, sadly, yes. I am what your kind made me.” Vile was standing next to her with that faintly amused smile that he always seemed to wear.
As though everything around him were the antics of children, and he was above it all.
“You thought it, not me.” He chuckled.
Pushing herself up to her knees, Sasha straightened her glasses. Stupid mind-reading antics. The library around them was dark—all the lights were off, except for one light directly over them. It was impossible to see where they were. “Please stay out of my head.”
