Page 31 of Prince of Darkness and Deceit

I bite my lip.

“I don’t know how to help him.” I glance at the cot. “I’m not familiar with magic.”

Liar.

He doesn’t falter. “That is unfortunate, but irrelevant.”

“Please,” I whisper. “Let me go home. I can’t do anything for your friend.”

“You will return home this evening.”

My lips part slightly.

“But that doesn’t release you from the deal.”

I snap my lips closed then frown. “But I just told you I can’t⁠—”

“Fae deals aren’t undone because of regret or lack of skill,” he says coolly. “You made one. You’ll see it through.”

“Or wh⁠—”

Before I can finish, heat sears the base of my throat.

My hand flies to my neck.

His dark gaze tracks the movement with an almost bored expression. “Or the deal will be broken, and you and your beloved town will pay the price.”

The burn intensifies.

Tears prick the corners of my eyes, but I hold the Fae’s stare—his cold, cruel stare. “This isn’t fair.”

“Perhaps not. But it is your fate.”

Bastards. The lot of them. All Fae. Every single one in existence.

They’ve trapped me with an impossible task. And when I fail, everyone I love will suffer for it.

I drag in a shaky breath and drop my hand. I have to warn Ferria. I have to warn everyone.

I’ll play along for now. I’ll attempt to treat the injured Fae. I’ll stall for time so the others can run.

The Fae lifts a hand. My hip digs into the table as I lean away from the shadows slithering off his fingertips, twisting into a symbol—beautiful, intricate, and sharp.

It floats toward me, and I gasp when it hits my throat, sending a burst of tingles over my skin.

“What—” I press my fingers to my neck. The burning is gone, but an unsettling pressure sits on my chest, burrowing deeper into my flesh, nestling itself just above my heart. “What was that?”

His dark eyes flash. “Insurance.”

My mouth opens, but he speaks again, his voice taking on a powerful, otherworldly cadence.

“You, Elara Stonebloom, are now bound. You cannot speak of our friend’s illness or our agreement to anyone in Verdanthia.”

Bound?!

The weight of his words adds to the pressure in my chest, searing into my soul.

Tremors wrack my body. “What in the hells did you just do to me?”