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“What is it to you?” Loki countered.
“Not to me,” Milo clarified. “The confronting image I caught onto had him facing Saint, whose back was facing me, which allowed me to see this Arthur’s expression. Not to judge a book by its cover, but his eyes gave off the impression of intense hunger with a pinch of lust rather than someone wishing to kill his prey.”
Loki groaned. “I only know this because I read it in ancient scriptures hidden in the Vile Queen’s library of stolen shit, but creatures of hell thrive on each other’s chaos. Compare it to how demons thrive on mayhem and anything that causes trouble for another. It's what makes them tick, which encourages more mischief. In Saint’s case as a Dark Lord and with his heightened state of rage, he’s gonna be hypersensitive to everything, but especially being in the presence of another being of the underworld.”
“And Arthur?” Milo offered. “Similar circumstance?”
“Arthur has plenty of rare gifts, and since he’s a being of the underworld, the same effect probably applies to him too. One of those gifts is the electric shocks he sent through Willow to knock her out. They’re a type of torture magic used in hell to surge through the sinners for all eternity, but in his case, he can use it briefly. He enjoyed using it as a torture tactic to kill anyone who lost a bet with him.”
“A bet?” Milo asked for clarification because it sounded a bit preposterous.
“A bet,” Loki stressed and added, “or rock paper scissors.”
“So he’s a psycho,” Milo concluded. “Why do I have a bad feeling about that?”
“Because anything involving Arthur invokes bad luck,” Loki said with a sigh.
“He can’t be that dangerous.”
“Arthur is the most unpredictable wild card upon these very lands, Milo.” Loki’s voice was so serious, it was actually scary. I could imagine his eyes narrowing while I felt his grip tighten around me. “He’s the ultimate gambler in life, and no matter how many years he’s been working with the Vile Queen prior to my kidnapping and service, even that cunning bitch can’t control him.”
“Meaning he’d even betray the Vile Queen?”
“If it wasn’t for the collar upon his neck, I’m sure he would have long ago,” Loki revealed. “He hides the collar with magic. I didn’t see it during our brief confrontation, but I’m pretty confident that’s the only reason why he’s still around at all.”
“Can it be removed?” Milo suggested. “He could be trying to make a bargain with Saint to involve us and deliver him freedom of some sort.”
“The thing is, I know for a fact that it can’t.”
“What?” Milo sounded surprised. “Every magic collar should be able to be removed or revoked.”
“Except for this one.” Loki’s voice carried a hint of pity. “The Vile Queen isn’t stupid. She doesn’t trust her own men. Now imagine someone like Arthur, who’s the son of Lucifer and can use a good chunk of his sinful gifts against anyone he wishes if it's a form of entertainment for him. She couldn’t allow him to ever have the advantage against her so she made it so his collar can’t be removed,” he explained. “Only transferred ownership.”
“Transferred…ownership? So like a pet?”
“That’s what she deems us as,” Loki confessed. “Mutts that must always be on our best behavior and do what she commands or else we get what we deserve.”
“Now I actually pity him.”
“Don’t. He’s a jackass,” Loki mumbled but was silent for a moment.
“What is going through your mind?”
“There’s one thing that has been bothering me since the moment Willow was kidnapped.”
“What?”
“Arthur’s shocking ability,” Loki began, and he sounded hesitant to continue. “Whomever he shocks normally dies instantly. I’m not sure if it’s truly intentional, but I’ve never seen anyone survive it. However, I didn’t feel as if Sweets died. I mean…I was drugged and passed out before you guys arrived and saved our asses so we could go right into action, but Arthur wouldn’t hold back to save Willow.”
Milo didn’t answer, and the silence only invited an odd lull in the air.
“Milo?”
“Her heart did stop,” he finally replied, though his voice was monotone, as if he were clearly in a dazed state. “Arthur saved the princess, restarted her heart through CPR or something. Mouth to mouth? He basically revived her and threw her on the plane before you guys arrived.”
“That’s exactly what you’re seeing?”
“Exactly that,” Milo replied. “Talk about unpredictable. You think he revived Willow since he wanted to deliver her to the Vile Queen?”
