Page 45 of Secrets & Curses of Crimson

Jesper’s beady blue eyes stared at her in a way that made me want to cut them from his fucking sockets. He had always looked at her like she was a piece of meat, and it enraged me more than anything. He glanced at Luren, and they exchanged a look I didn’t like.

“Did you go to Crimson?” Jesper was the one to ask. My heart raced; my shadows were ready to attack them if they tried anything. Thea stilled, but her eyes flickered to where I was, but she didn’t see me. Shit, her darkness could probably sense my magic.

“Why would I go to Crimson?” She scoffed like it was the most stupid thing he could have suggested. “Besides, if I went to Crimson, I would not be back by now. Thatwould take me longer than three days to get there and back.”

The guards watched her closely, like she might explode, their hands gripping their weapons. Suddenly the bond filled me with rage and anger.

“So, you didn’t go to Crimson.” Jesper glared. “Did you talk to anyone?”

“Like who? The monsters in the woods? What is with these questions? Who do you think I’m meeting in the woods?”

“No one.” Luren glared at Jesper like he had said too much. He had. Thea wasn’t stupid; she would have known this conversation was odd even if we never talked. Her anger doubled.

“Well, I’m tired, hungry, and cold, so is this interrogation over?” She snapped. Her father waved his hand to dismiss her like she was unimportant.

She was the most important fae in this realm, and he treated her like trash. Thea left immediately, and I instantly missed her.

“She’s right; she wouldn’t have made it all the way to Crimson and back this quickly,” Luren sighed.

“I still think she’s being strange.” Jesper winced when he scratched his black and blue nose. I smiled at the damage Thea had done to him.

“You always think that.” Luren rolled his eyes. “We will keep an eye on her. We’ll need her gone for the meeting; she cannot be close to Cassius.”

Too late for that. I waited for them to say more, but they didn't, so I went home. My father and Haden were waiting for me.

“How was that?” Haden asked.

“I need to talk to Della," I said.

"What, why?" Haden asked worriedly.

"Thea just told me a man is following her, and he told her that Bayla sent him." I glanced at my father.

"Thea's dead mother?" Haden looked at me. All I could do was nod. Something was happening to Thea, and I hoped Della knew what it was.

Chapter 14

Thea

The castle had no secrets or clues hiding anywhere I had found in the days following my return. Searching had proven difficult with the guards my father had watching me. He thought I didn’t see them lurking in the shadows or following me when I left my room. It was easy to lose them—they were idiots.

That was how I had found my way into the bottom floors of the castle. It had simply started with me hiding from the guards, but now that I was down here, something felt right. So, I wandered until I came across a small wooden door. There was nothing in particular about it. In fact, there were dozens of doors that matched it, but this one called to me.

When I opened it, I was met with a very small room. A bedroom by the looks of it. The bed was small and unslept in by the dust that had settled everywhere. I sat on thebed and closed my eyes as an image plagued my mind. An image of me crying silently in this bed played on repeat, or maybe it was different memories rolled into one. Then I could hear myself counting, but somehow, I knew what I was counting as I opened my eyes and looked around the room. There were sixty-seven nails. I was so sad.

I looked around the room, but nothing else happened. Standing, I headed for the door but stopped when I saw her.I turned when I spotted Wisp floating by the bed. She was her usual color of dark green, but then she shrank in size. She was so tiny that she swarmed the side of my bed and disappeared into it before reappearing again. I walked to her and watched her disappear into a slit in the mattress.

She was showing me something. I reached my hand into the bed and pulled out a letter. Something felt familiar about seeing it. Wisp disappeared into the mattress again, so I shoved my hands into it and found another sheet of paper.

The blood-red envelope sat heavy in my hand as I stared at my name on the front of it. I glanced around to see if anyone had followed me down here. I hurried and shut the door, using my fire magic to make sure that no one could enter. I ripped open the envelope, and my heart plummeted as I read the words.

I read the letter three times. I stared at the last part of it the most. A man with golden eyes watches me. The man from my dreams. The one who had seemed to disappear altogether.Blood witch. Never trust my father. A deal with the gods. Cursed to die young.

My hands shook as I unfolded the other sheet of paper. My eyes glided over the words of a contract. My blood boiled when I realized it was a contract to attack Exile. I stared at my father’s and Gwyn’s names scribbled on the bottom. Then I focused on the other name. Yerma from the Ravenstone Coven was scribbled on the bottom too.

Sweat beaded off my forehead as I paced in the room. Who left that in the mattress? Was it me? I begged the gods for a moment of clarity, but nothing happened. Sucking in a deep breath, I pulled my shit together because I knew that my father had secrets, but I had my own, and he couldn’t know that I was suspicious.

Those words swarmed my mind as I shoved all of it back into the mattress. I was a fucking witch. Who was the man with golden eyes, and where did he go?Never trust my father.Somehow, I felt like that was the most important thing I read. I would find Yerma and figure out what the contract was.

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