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I was signing my life away. My freedom. My bodily autonomy. When they cashed in on their bargain, I would no longer be my own. I would become one of thousands of humans or lesser faeries who were reckless enough to interact with the faeries.
The Wild Hunt grew agitated waiting for the princes to make their decision. Feet stomped on the cave floor, knocking dust and small shards of crystals off the ceiling. Several lycinians were snarling, licking their drooling maws, as if waiting for the word to rip into my flesh and feast. The erasu grinned brightly, their gnashing human-like teeth even more disturbing than if they’d been sharp, bloody fangs.
My heart thundered so hard I was sure it echoed loud enough for all to hear as I waited for an answer. Cadoc removed the blades from my throat and pivoted, staring back at Haelo in silence. Again, it was obvious that they were communicating, and I was beginning to believe that they might be twins. They had a strange sort of sameness to them, despite their wildly opposite features.
I was growing impatient, but I refused to rush them. At least I’d managed to get to this point without having my throat slashed open for all of the faeries to feast on.
Then Cadoc turned back to me, and the Wild Hunt went utterly still and silent for the first time since their arrival. Over his shoulder, Haelo moved, dismounting his elhorn before striding over as graceful as fog drifting over a still lake.
He was just as tall and imposing as his brother, and he glowed slightly, carrying with him his own source of light. His smile remained intact, and it was wicked, seductive, and terrifying. Stopping at the edge of the mushroom circle, he held out his gloved hand, palm facing up. My gaze dipped to his hand, then I returned it to his pale eyes, unsure and afraid.
“Don’t tell me you’ve come this far just to back out now,” he said softly. Cadoc moved, reaching up gracefully, and slid his brother’s glove from his hand, revealing strong, yet slender, fingers tipped with sharp, pointed nails. “Take my hand. Make your bargain.”
This was it, the choice I’d already made, and it was time to make it final. Drystan needed me. His life was infinitely more precious than mine, and the empire needed their king. Resolve washed over me, and my heart slowed its frantic pace. I forced myself to take several deep, steadying breaths as I switched my dagger to my other hand.
Warily, I reached out, bridging the gap between us until our palms connected. His skin was smooth like marble, but soft enough to caress. Until his fingers closed around mine and his grip tightened, claws digging painfully into my skin. I yelped as he tugged me forward. I felt a mushroom squish beneath my boot as he caught me around the waist with his other arm.
I watched in horror as his claws lengthened until they were three times longer than they were moments ago. My eyes snapped up to meet his, and I found him smiling broadly, all of his teeth having suddenly sharpened into points. My mouth filled with saliva as my stomach rolled, picturing how easily this faerie could rip into my skin and consume me whole.
Before I could scream or thrash, he flipped my palm over, spreading my fingers wide. Then he placed the tip of his claw against the very center, pushing down until a single bead of blood bubbled up from the puncture.
“State your name,” he demanded in a soft, yet unmistakably wicked, voice. It was musical, lilting, and impossible to disobey. But I tried.
“No,” I said firmly. My tongue tingled at the word, as if the very magic in his words were trying to coax the answer out of me. The creatures crowded around the riders were shifting and murmuring to themselves, mocking me for my stupidity. I stood my ground and shook my head defiantly. “I won’t give you my name. I know what faeries can do with a person’s name.”
I’d heard the legends. The warnings. Faeries collected names the way a reaper collected souls. Once you gave up a name, it was no longer yours. They could use it to wield you however they wanted. They could command you and control you. I wasn’t ready to give that up quite yet.
My whole body leaned inward, as if pulled by a string, but again, I fought it. He was intoxicating in every way, and when I inhaled, I nearly moaned. Haelo smelled like a blend of spiced cider and moss, like the first harvest of the season, fires burning in the hearth and a sunrise walk through the woods.
“I am running out of patience, halfling. I need your oath.” Every word out of his mouth was overflowing with ancient power. The small amount of magic my blood retained surged toward him, begging to obey.
I opened my mouth to give him what he wanted, but the moment my eyes met his again, it was as if I were coming out of a trance. I tried to pull my hand away, but his claw held me in place, drawing more blood. It dripped off my palm and landed on his boot.
“We'll bargain with my blood. That should suffice, right?” I chewed on the inside of my lips, trying to keep myself from trembling in fear.
Some of the lycinians growled, a warning, telling me exactly how stupidly reckless I was for disobeying a prince of the Wild Hunt. I felt Cadoc close in behind me, and soon I was crushed between two massive male bodies. There was no way to escape, and they could end my life in seconds, but I stood my ground.
Haelo sighed, but to my surprise, he didn’t question me, nor did he demand my name again. Instead, he spoke in a language that I could not understand. It wasn’t a faerie language, nor was it human, but something older. My palm began to burn where his claw dug in deep, and a bright-white glow emanated from the puncture.
The light grew hot and bright until I was forced to look away from it, all the while my skin burned. It felt as if I’d shoved my palm into a bed of burning coals, but if I pulled away, it would only make things worse. His words repeated over and over again until the light filled the entire cave.
Behind the princes, the other faeries of the Wild Hunt were going crazy with anticipation and excitement. The lycinians’ howls filled the air, and the scrape of claws against the ground had me grinding my teeth. Soon, all I could hear over Haelo’s voice was the thundering of hundreds of footsteps, as if every faerie in the cave was stomping in unison. The cacophony was enough to drive someone to madness.
All at once, every sound in the cave stopped. It was so sudden that I nearly toppled forward with dizziness. My ears rang painfully as I tried to catch a full breath, while every faerie around me was still. They watched me with hunger in their otherworldly eyes.
“You have one year,” Haelo said, his voice echoing all around me. I snapped my gaze to him in confusion. I opened my mouth to argue, to tell him that Drystan didn’t have a year, but he silenced me with a single glare. “One year to the hour. The Wild Hunt will come for you. Wherever you are, we will find you.” Footsteps sounded behind him, and I glanced over his shoulder to find the silent faerie coming closer, having dismounted without me even noticing.
He took up the empty spot on Haelo’s other side, face stony and eyes impassive. From his riding cloak, he produced a glass vial filled with something that glowed bright blue and handed it to Haelo. Not once did he glance my way before returning to his elhorn.
I stared at the corked vial as Haelo held it up between us. Bright-blue glowing flower petals were inside the glass, though I couldn’t accurately count how many.
“There are twelve petals in this vial. One for every month of one full year. You have until then to cure your brother before we come to collect what belongs to us. One petal on the tongue every month should do it, but your brother will not wake until the very last dose. Do you understand?”
I stared at the petals with hope flaring inside of me. The power they held… If I could only snatch them from his palm and make a run for it… Except they'd catch me, and I wasn't particularly fond of going back on my word.
“What happens after one year?” I asked, voice breathy. I would give him the first dose immediately. Tonight. I couldn’t spare a single second.
“That’s none of your concern,” Cadoc said roughly from behind me. My body tensed. I'd been so riveted on the cure, I’d nearly forgotten he was there. “You belong to the Wild Hunt now. Your life is ours to do with as we wish. Be thankful we’re giving you one year to settle your affairs instead of ripping your heart from your chest tonight.”
