“Again, this was meant to be arescue.” His eyes comb the length of my body, landing on the “Bride to Be” sash that hangs across my chest. He grimaces, as if realizing for the first time that it’s what I’ve been wearing for the duration of this…rescue. “I will send for something more suitable for you to wear.”
“You willsendme back.” I put my hands on my hips, and note the way my claws extend, making tiny slashes into the tulle of myskirt. “Like you just said: it was a misunderstanding. Why would you keep me here if I don’t want to marry you?”
“I’m afraid that will be impossible.”
Why do these paranormal folks have to be so damn dramatic?
“You get how this works, right? You kidnap me, Moth finds me, and you get brutally murdered, ‘kay? Save yourself the trouble and find someone else, preferably someone you don’t have to steal.”
He crosses his arms, staring at the sealed window of the tower, his strong jaw set as he taps a finger on his bicep.
“And what if, this time, your prince does not come looking?” There’s genuine curiosity in his voice. “This is not the first time you’ve disappeared now, is it?”
I flush. How does he know about that?“It’s the week of our wedding.”
“Your last chance to run,” he counters with a click of his tongue. “People talk, sweet Heather.”
“Stopcalling me that.” Only one person gets to call me cutesy nicknames, and if it’s not Moth’s deep voice growling “my flame,”I don’t want it.
“My apologies.” He blinks. “But you are prone to running away when things get too hard, aren’t you? I would make life so easy. You would never want to run again.”
“It’s not like that anymore.” I say,I have a life I’m happy with—friends, a partner, a dog! People with that kind of stability don’t just run…do they?
“And does your prince know that?”
“Yes,” I answer, but there’s no hiding the quake of uncertainty in my voice.
“How many days until your wedding?” he asks.
“Three,”I huff. “So, the sooner you send me back the sooner—”
But he doesn’t let me finish the thought, much less the sentence, before his eyes spark and he raises his chin with defiance.
“Then that is how long I have to win you over,” he says in a way that makes me wonder if he’s talking to me—or himself.
“That doesn’t work for me!” I argue. As if I don’t have a giant list of stuff to do before the wedding!
But the vampire king ignores my protest before glancing back from the doorway, his lips spread in a cocky fang-filled smile. “I don’t typically lose.”
6.
Moth
My throat goes dry at the word.Kidnapped.This is not the first time this has happened, and I swore I would never allow my flame to meet such a fate again.
Whatever is going on here in the faerie realm, it is no longer a refuge for party games and celebration. The humans must be sent home where it is safe—an idea everyone seems to be in agreement with. The party lingers in the garden while Holly and I lead Rosie and Clara to Mother’s portal in the tower.
“Isn’t there anything we can do to help?” Clara asks, looking a little crestfallen. Both women still wear the finery from Widow’s dress shop, and I suppose there will be another bill from the seamstress in the future, but it is not of concern.
“I mean this without offense, but … what possible help could you offer?” Holly asks, as we climb the steps. Once at the top, Mother’s tower is still as unnerving as it was the first day I found it. The collection of broken clocks and items from the mortal realm line the walls and shelves. My human friends are visibly tense; it is further proof that while Holly’s words are harsh, they are not untrue. We do not know the threat we are facing; keeping the pair of them safe is our best option.
I cannot imagine what edge the humans could have in this situation. Then, as we approach the portal, Rosie’s phone begins to buzz.
*buzz buzz*
*buzz buzz*
“I didn’t think you got service over here,” Rosie says, fishing the phone out of her purse.
