Page 31 of Heart of Mischief

You will make yourself strong.

You will find Elias.

You will kill Elias.

You will never trust a boy with your heart again.

Her plan was falling apart. Now that Sophie had tasked her with finding the person controlling Rattatosk, her priorities wouldhave to shuffle. She’d have to put aside destroying Elias in favor of saving this town.

It wasn’t just that, either. It was also this moment. It was standing there, under the trees of the forest where they met, staring into the green eyes she’d come to know so well. She’d seen them light up with laughter. She’d seen them sink into despair. She’d seen them harden with rage and sharpen with lust and sparkle with amusement. And while she knew that those emotions were fake, a set of clay statues modeled after true feelings… it had all looked soreal. His eyes had looked like the eyes of a human.

And Charlie knew, as she stared into those same eyes, that she could never be the reason they stopped seeing.

She couldn’t kill Elias. Not even after he tried to kill her first. Because while Elias might be a mare who didn’t feel the consequences of murder—the guilt, the shame, the self-loathing—Charlie wasn’t. She was only human. She would feel everything.

And it would destroy her.

The realization was like a pickaxe plunged into a hot-air balloon. Charlie felt herself deflate. The air of motivation rushed out of her all at once, leaving her as little more than a pathetic heap of nylon.

Those four promises had been the only things keeping her from falling victim to the panic that swelled whenever she considered how much danger she was in. Now, she would have to let them go…

Or would she?

The idea came to her in a strike of clarity. All the pieces of the puzzle connecting in her mind, showing her the right path forward.

What if death wouldn’t be the best revenge on Elias? What if there was something else she could do, something that would leave him far more miserable while keeping her hands blood-free? And what if working with him to find Rattatosk’s master was the best way to carry out that revenge?

Oh, this was going to begood.

“Fine,” she said at last.

Elias’s black eyebrows jumped up his forehead. “Fine?”

“Fine. We can work together—but only because I need the information you have.”

“Excellent.” He grinned. “Investigation starts tomorrow morning. I’ll pick you up at six.”

“For the record, you’re still an ass.”

“For the record, you look absolutely stunning when you insult me.”

Heat crept up her neck. She turned away, making a show out of studying the trees around them. She knew Elias didn’t mean any of the flirtatious things he said. He couldn’t. He had no emotions. It was just another one of his tricks, another way to get under her skin.

Unfortunately, it worked.

She kept her eyes on the trees, praying he wouldn’t notice the color on her face. “So,” she said, “how do I know this isn’t some elaborate ploy to get me alone so you can sic Rattatosk on me?”

“Everything I do is a ploy to get you alone, Charlotte,” he said. “But not to kill you. Not this time around, anyway.”

Her face started to flush again, but thankfully, when she darted a glance at him, Elias was looking elsewhere. Squinting his eyes at the trees behind them.

“Hey,” he said. “Isn’t that your brother?”

Charlie whipped her head around, panic kicking up in her chest.No.Mason couldn’t find her here. Not like this. Elias was standing far too close to her. Mason would make assumptions. He’d hate her even more. He’d never trust her again—

Except Mason wasn’t standing behind her. No one was.

She blinked at the empty space. Was Elias hallucinating?