Page 120 of A Deal with the Shadow King

I sit up, gently pushing Cece off me. I remember everything.

Morrigan made a deal with Damian to spare my life. A deal to release me from the bet so she could marry him instead.

Adrenaline chases away the last remnants of the enchantment that was keeping me captive, and I jolt to my feet. “Where is my mask?”

Cece frowns at that, her gaze shiny and unfocused. “What?”

“My mask. Help me look for it.”

“Nell, what the crops is going on? Why did Father send these men to—to—” her rushed voice dies down to a mere whisper. She’s in shock.

I grip her hand and pull her to me. “Hey. I’m alright. I was under the effect of a Fae enchantment. A powerful one. You freed me.”

“So you’re not going to die?” she squeaks.

“No.” I press her palm to my beating heart to comfort her. “I just—I need my mask to save someone I love. Do you understand?”

She gives me a sharp nod, looking a bit more like her usual self. The uneven bite of power rolling off her in waves warms my body from head to toe. My little sister has magic, too.

We search the room frantically, ruffling through all the dressers and chests. Cece crouches on her knees to look under the bed while I search the embers in the hearth for a sign of my emerald-plated mask.

“It’s not here. Judging by the tantrum Father pulled when you returned, it must have already been destroyed,” Cece finally says.

“It’s not so easy to destroy. Where is Father? He must have it with him.”

“He’s out tonight. He said he had an important dinner with the ministers, but clearly, he only wanted to leave so he wouldn’t be here when they murdered you.”

I wrap her inside a tight embrace, and the powerful quakes of her body break my heart. “Hey, it’s okay. I’m here.”

A sob bubbles out of her mouth. “They boarded the windows from the outside after I tried to sneak along the ledge on the first night, but I finally managed to steal the keys to your room right before that awful priest came back from the kitchens.”

The first night…

“How long have I been asleep?” The blood drains from my cheeks as I press my eyes closed.

“Three days.”

I cover my mouth with one hand, about as shaky as Cece is. “What time is it?”

“Nine.”

Only hours to go before Morheim starts.

A loud pounding on the door startles us both, and the thundering sound is followed by a loud crack. The door splinters. A guard’s arm pokes through the hole, and I engulf me and Cece in shadows.

“Stay close to the wall. Quick.” I tug on her hand and flatten myself to the wall as three guards blast into the room.

Their eyes search frantically for us. “They’re gone.”

The sleazy priest runs to the window to check on the latch, and a frown overpowers his wrinkled face. “Where did they go?”

Cece’s mouth opens on a silent gasp. “They can’t see us.”

Sweat gathers on my forehead. The strain of keeping two people hidden instead of one encircles my ribs, and I don’t know how long I can keep it up. “Let’s go.”

We run through the broken door to the hallway leading away from the women’s quarters, down the grand staircase, and into Father’s study. The door is locked, but I ram it with my foot. All the might of my magic gathers behind the kick, and the door gives in.

The groggy haze from the enchantment has almost completely lifted now, and I slip inside the king’s private chambers with Cece on my heels.

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