AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“You did it?” Startled, I watch her closely.
With a lopsided grin, she winks at me. “Oh, yes.”
“And she gave you ...?”
“Protection.” Her smile fades to something small, something that tells of memories long buried, but finally unearthed. “She made a deal with the household that I would be unharmed for the rest of my service. That extends to the guards.”
“How long ago was that?”
“Two years in this world.” She shrugs and looks out to the misty mountains. “Who knows how long back in our world.”
“You’re not a kuri?” I blink, surprised. I always thought ... with how beautiful she is, how captivating her beauty is...
“No.” She shakes her head. Wet tendrils of blonde hair sticks to her temples. “But by the time I’m finished my service here, my family will be gone. I’ll inherit the cottage and hopefully, I can make a life there when I return.”
“When is that?” I ask, my voice a whisper. It’s a touchy topic, the return home, the length of service in this part of the realm. Not many of us want to talk about such things.
“Years to come,” is all she says, a distance glaze settling over her eyes as she looks out at the mountains.
I ache to ask her why she is here for such a long term, but I bite my tongue to stop the question from spilling out of me.
“So what do I do?” I ask instead.
“Well that depends.” She looks at me. “Whatexactlydoes he want?”
“My body.” Shame floods my cheeks. “He ... He has already ...” I pause to clear my suddenly thick throat. “He cornered me once and—”
Her face falls. “No...” she whispers.
I shake my head the moment the realisation sinks in.
“He didn’t force himself on me,” I’m quick to tell her. “But he didtouchme. And I ... Well, I didn’t fight it.”
“You wanted him to?” She finishes her question with a gesture of the head, her ocean blue eyes washing me over.
“A part of me did, yeah.”
My face is redder than the blood gathered there, pumping hot.
“So do it.” Her face hardens. “Do whatever you need to in order to survive here. But make sure—and I can’t stress this enough—you make a bargain. He’ll barter with you, things like how many times, or how he can take you, but you just make certain that the bargain protects you from harm while you are here. The guards can’t touch you, you are released at the end of your term, that sort of thing.”
“I’ll be released in two months anyway,” I say, blinking stupidly. “Won’t I?”
Her eyes home in on me. “According to the bargains, yes. But new ones can be made, loopholes for our kind to fall into. Even punishments can extend our time here.”
I nod with false confidence, but in reality, she’s only rattled me more.
Talk of bargains and dark fae fade away when Hilda comes out of the double doors at the tip of the stairs and calls for us.
I wait for Terry as she pulls on her murky brown dress—a spare one, not meant for service—before we head to the kitchens.
That’s when I learn that he’s back. And so soon, too.
That glaring red dot of his blinks at me from the map. He’s in his office again.
My heart flutters at the thought of his offical clothing he normally wears in there when he just arrives home. A buttoned up coat, split at the neck; firm cotton breeches that hug his leg muscles; silver-toed boots; his hair combed into a side-part that lets a stray strand here and there fall over his forehead after a long day.
My stomach is in ruins as those images flood me.
