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I open my mouth to speak, ready to explain, to beg, whatever it takes to keep him from breaking the world I’ve created to keep him safe. When I planned this, I didn’t believe there was anything capable of slicing through the watch from the inside. Once again, Kai proved me wrong. Though, if there was anyone who could weasel his way out of a magical prison, I’d place my money on him.
In a flash, Kai teleports, placing his body directly in front of me. I gasp, jolting backward, but his hand threads into my hair, holding me at his mercy. “Oh no you don’t. You don’t get to run away this time.” His voice is menacing as he cranes my neck. His dark eyes search my face, then dip to travel over me, pausing on the dried flaky blood that streaks down my chest. Then his narrowed-slit scowl meets mine again, glaring into my very soul.
Something about the motion makes my heartbeat skip. Even with rage worming through every cell in his being, he’s still worried about me and mine. My lips pull up just a fraction until I remember the deal. Of course he’s worried. He has to be.
“Why are you here?” The power behind his demand sends goosebumps pebbling across my flesh.
“If you–” I swallow down the nerves. “You have to stop. If you break the watch, the spell is permanent.” It’s a lie, but maybe it will be convincing enough to give him pause. The last thing I need is him stabbing me until I cave and let him out.
His grip relents as he takes a step back. “This is an argument between us. It’s our obligation to hash it out. Our disagreements shouldn’t put the lives of the dozens you trapped in here with me in jeopardy.”
“I trapped them to help you. You needed to talk to the lords alone, without your father. As for the castle staff, I knew you’d need some kind of civility. It’s not going to be forever, just a couple of days. A week tops.”
“We don’t have the food for them to survive that long, Alice. We have three days until we run out. Six if we ration it–and that’s a long shot.”
“Okay then,” I turn, looking over the garden. Lifting my hands, I close my eyes and let my magic flow. When I open them, threads appear, whisking around the domed ceiling of the sky, and through the glassy curved edges of the watch. Kai waits impatiently while I alter the spell, unable to see the magic at work. As I let go of it, silk like spider webs disappear, like they’ve never existed.
Spinning to face him once more, I find the darkness that surrounds his demon side is gone. All that remains are the amber eyes I love so much, and the body of the man I crave.
“Done.” I offer a quick smile.
“Done with what?”
“You can teleport things in, but nothing besides me goes out.” He holds out a hand–it’s the only thing he’s moved since my little show ended–and an apple appears. Next, a whole crate pops into existence near his feet. “Problem solved. I have no interest in harming anyone within this boundary. It was simply a way to buy time we didn’t have.”
“I’ll leave the boundary alone,” he says, stalking past me toward the castle.
“That’s it? No questions? No‘let me out’?” I do my best to mimic his voice.
“No.” He turns toward me as he reaches the door. “What good would it do? The fact I can now summon apples doesn’t make anything between you and me better. Nor does it change your position.”
For a long moment we stand, unmoving, without a word spoken.
“Obviously, you’ve already managed to get hurt.” He waves at me, referring to the blood dried on my chest. “You’re not immortal, Alice. At least we don’t know for sure, and there’s a possibility that you’ll never be. We don’t know how much of your father’s blood runs in your veins. What happens to us if you die? Did you even consider that?”
“The spell is linked to my life. So, if I die, it’ll be broken and the castle will return to Hell Hold with all of its occupants.” I drop my gaze, hating how little faith he has in me. For once, I wish he’d freaking believe that I’m capable. I know the deal our parents made has a lot to do with his obsession, but it doesn’t change anything.
Kai tips his head back, looking up at the artificial sky. I’m not sure if the safety clause I wove into the spell makes him feel better or worse, but I had thought it through. I thought there would be more rations in the castle, but that was an easy fix.
“Have you been to see your mother?” I ask, gnawing at the inside of my lip. His back stiffens, but he doesn’t respond. “That was the other part of this. It gave you time to see the truth. If you do that, we can talk about breaking the spell.”
Shaking his head, he pulls open the door, and disappears inside the fortress we’ve called home without a word.
Well… That went swimmingly.
3
Kai
Who does she think she is? In the years my mother has been dead, I can count on both my hands how many times I’ve seen her glass coffin. Two of those times have been with Alice’s company.
Seeing my mother brings me no pleasure. It doesn’t smooth over the fact she’s gone, that I’ll never talk to her again, or hear her speak. Why would I drudge up those memories on a whim? Sure, Alice claims to have seen something damning, but head diving is an art. It takes practice and it’s very possible that she saw what she wanted to see.
It doesn’t make her theories real.
I can already feel the headache coming on from the hours of hitting, beating, and trying to blow up the barrier. None of which are quiet acts. But I’ll do whatever it takes to keep the people she trapped here safe, even if it means breaking my word to Alice and flaying the damn thing open. For now, I’ll play nice and we’ll see how it goes. I’ll give her a chance to prove herself, as long as no one else suffers because of it.
I stuff my hand in my pocket, retrieving the whiskey, and march down the long stone hallway. Torches blaze to life as I near, sending a dull scent of burnt oil wafting through the air. Reaching the foyer, I haven’t seen a single person.Not one. On a normal day, this would be my dream come true, but not when people are scared. Fear makes others act irrational, and the welcoming silence causes my gut to twist with suspicion.
