Page 46 of Prince of Ruin

“Two days.”

Fuck. The halls begin to spin again, and I stumble forward, but Ulna grips my elbow, keeping me from falling head-first into the floor.

“Did we know each other?” I ask her.

She pauses ever so slightly before saying, “I thought I knew you.”

“What happened?”

Her back remains rigid, her spine straight, and she’s quiet for so long that I figure she’s blowing me off. But then, she finally speaks.

“You used to be a love-sick dreamer with stars in his eyes. But the moment you took your father down, you turned into a vengeance-stricken nightmare. Always on edge, never appeased, never present.” She finally looks at me with those cold silver eyes, her silver armor glinting in the faelight lining the walls. “You had become your blood-thirsty father.”

We arrive at double oak doors with gold trim, guarded by twelve guards. A guard announces our arrival, and we’re led into a massive room of black marble floors and bone-white walls and a long white table with white chairs around it, exotic silver dishes splayed across the surface. A massive window runs the length of one wall, allowing the gray light outside tospill into the room. I imagine that on a clear day the sunlight would flood this room.

The smell of roasted meat and freshly baked bread hits my senses, reminding me that I haven’t eaten a full meal since that turkey leg I shared with Aden. Was that…three days ago? I would hardly call that croissant I had the morning before the battle a meal, but at least I had water then. Still, two and a half days without water and three days without food… no wonder my brain is foggy as shit.

Tarsus sits at the head of the table, their little pet, Aden, at their right side. I take my place at their left, my hands still bound at my front. The grimaces on both their faces don’t go unnoticed by me, and no wonder. My rumpled button down shirt still has the remains of my puke on it. I’ve been wearing the same clothes since I left the human realms. My prison is dank and damp, and my chest is congested with fluid, making a wet cough erupt out of me. I suppress another cough, not wanting to appear weak when I’m here to scare these little shits into thinking I am, in fact, their fae king and they should fear me.

Deep blue shimmering eyeshadow is dusted across Tarsus’ eyelids today, and gold lipstick paints their generous lips. Their antlers look extra polished today, nothing like they were on the battlefield, sprayed with blood and mud. Decorative chains looparound their antlers, matching the many hoops in their pointed ears.

I haven’t decided yet if they have some immeasurable talent with their use of foundation or if their skin truly is that flawless. The hair at their temple has been braided back into a half ponytail. Behind their blanket of pale white hair that falls down their back, a tarantula about the size of my hand peaks out, and I shudder. The tarantula wiggles its pedipalp at me in greeting, as if it hadn’t had me running for my life two days ago.

Aden, may God bless him, scoots my glasses across the table. I pick them up with my bound hands and shove them on my face. Holy hell, I’ve taken these things for granted. Everything is so crisp and clear and I want to cry for being able to see again. But crying will make me look weak. These guys will never believe I’m innocent, so it’s time to start playing their game.

“I always wondered what you would look like as a human,” Tarsus says before popping a red berry into their mouth.

“Remove these binds,” I order in my most ruthless voice, but fail miserably. My voice is husky from the dryness in my throat, the force of my order weak from lack of food. All of this only serves to bring a grin to Tarsus’ features.

They look at Aden. “You see what I told you? He was in there all along.” Tarsus meets my gaze as they chew that berry. “You almost had me fooled.”

Sure, I did.

“What do you want with me,step-sibling?”

Their brows shoot up. Them being my step-sibling was information Abaddon provided me with. It seems convincing enough to make Tarsus believe what I want them to believe.

“I want you to eat.”

I blink, taken aback when a plate is set before me, filled with fried eggs—thank the gods, not the bloody wyvern eggs—and bacon and toast. Coffee, water, and orange juice are also set before me, and I immediately reach for the glass of water with my bound hands and chug every drop down. Fuck, I can’t believe I took water for granted all this time, too. I almost tell them thank you for the very human breakfast, but then remember how they made me suffer in my cell for two days.No way in hell am I going to go down the Stockholm Syndrome rabbit hole. I’ll show no gratitude for how they treated me.

“Take his binds off his wrists,” Tarsus tells Ulna. “He’s powerless enough with the copper collar on.”

Ulna removes the shackles, and I give her a grateful smile, to which she scowls.

Tarsus casually smears butter across a piece of toast. I’m tempted to shove everything on my plate into my mouth, but decide it’s more important to play the composed prince than the starving beggar. Picking up my eating utensil with a trembling hand, I scoop up some scrambled eggs and begin to eat. A moan escapes me as my eyes fall closed. This is fucking delicious.

When I open my eyes, I find Aden watching me, their smile tucked between their teeth, as if I were the most amusing creature in history. I manage—but fail—to glare at him.Instead, a small laugh erupts out of me, because I legit must look ridiculous right now.

“About time you fed me,” I say, smothering my laugh as I successfully level a glare at Tarsus. “I am still in a mortal body, you know.”

Tarsus takes a bite of their toast. “You need to know who rules these lands.” They point their utensil to my finger. “Doesn’t matter how many swears you break to return here, I’ll always be the ruler.”

I swallow that bite and pick up my coffee. “You can go to hell.”

“If your mortaldadis correct,” Aden says with a smirk. “We’re already ruling hell.”

I roll my eyes and ignore him while I finish off the rest of the food on my plate in silence. Who knows when I’ll eat again? Only after my plate is cleared and all three glasses are once again drained, do I wipe off my hands and face with a napkin and give Tarsus andAden my full attention. I can already feel the strength returning to my body, feel my mind clearing.

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