Page 56 of Lord of Dance and Desire

But. . .would I? If I wanted to escape, and there was no hope of it. . .could I?

I felt all the blood drain from my face. There was something about this man. Something. Something about the truth of his words. . .

Fae couldn’t lie.Fae couldn’t lie.

“No,”I said. “How could I be your bonded in a former life, but Andrei’s now?”

He looked at me for a second, then turned and began to walk away.

“Wait!” I tried to push to my knees, defiance spent along with my energy. “Please. I'll dance for you. Anything you want. Willingly. I’ll—I’ll walk into the Darkness with you. Willingly.”

It had been three days—four? I didn’t think Andrei was coming. I’d been hidden too well. . .and maybe, maybe he wasn’t coming because he couldn’t. I didn’t know what was happening on the other end of my blacked-out bond. Would I know if he’d died?

I had no idea.

Dartanyon turned slowly, waiting.

I swallowed. “I need real food, and water, and an actual bed before I can think clearly. Don’t you—don’t you want some time with me before we. . .leave together?”

Dartanyon stared. “You forget,” he said gently, “that I know you, my love. You have always been a Loki.”

But not a succubus, and he was already encased in my feathers. I gave a gentle tug.

“You’ve proven twice you can control me.” My shoulders slumped as I looked down. “You have to give me a chance to prove myself. Or what have you gained? A pretty toy in a cage. That isn't what you want.”

I looked up in time to see the flash of yearning across his face. But I didn’t press.

The glass cage began to dissolve.

Dartanyon stepped forward, heels clicking on the floor, and crouched, lifting me into his arms. The monster knew my muscles were the consistency of spaghetti noodles.

I shuddered in Dartanyon’s arms. At least he couldn't read my mind like Andrei. If I controlled my expression and my voice—and I was a decent enough actress to fool ex-boyfriends—then maybe I had a shot at putting him off his guard.

Since he was already certifiably insane.

On the heels of that thought I felt pain, internal guilt, and anger I felt guilty. Yes, Dartanyon had lost someone and that loss hadn't been from something natural like old age. Dartanyon hadsuffered, but we'd all suffered and suffering didn't come with the right to visit that on other people. You were supposed to deal with it, and try to stop the cycle of harm.

“Where are we going?” I asked softly, twining an arm around his neck as he carried me through a dimly lit hall. I wanted to keep him talking, keep him out of his head where he could imagine all sorts of vile things.

“You need to rest,” he said, his voice companionable enough. “And if you prove to be treacherous, I can return you to your cage, my swan.”

I accepted the gentle warning, glad I’d decided to play the long game rather than employ dramatic, spitting defiance. How did an average girl get out of a twisted situation?

Make nice. Bide her time. Wait until the antagonist wasasleep.

I smiled before I suppressed the emotion.

“Will you share what's amusing you?” he asked.

“How do you know what ballet you’re in until you get to the end?”

“You don’t.” Gentle humor in his voice. “Am I the beautiful prince or the villainous sorcerer, my swan?”

Before I could say anything else, he stopped. A door opened, leading into a bedroom, empty except for a large canopied bed.

Chapter

Fifteen

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