Page 13 of Savage Crown

She swallows. "And if I refuse?"

My smirk is slow, deliberate. Cruel.

"Then I give them exactly what they want."

A flicker of emotions appears on her face. Fear. She knows what will happen if I hand her over. She’s smart enough to understand what dark elves do to humans who steal from them.

"I don’t trust you," she says, voice tight.

"I don’t need you to trust me." I let my gaze flick over her lips, down the curve of her throat, before meeting her eyes again. "I need you to obey."

Silence.

After a long, agonizing moment?—

She nods.

A small, sharp movement. A reluctant surrender.

I feel something in me tighten. I’ve won.

And yet… it doesn’t feel like a victory.

"Good," I murmur. "Now, let’s seal the deal."

Her brows knit. "What?"

I reach inside my coat and pull out a small, silver dagger. The blade is thin, wickedly sharp, gleaming under the dim firelight.

She steps back, just slightly, but I catch her wrist before she can put real distance between us.

"Easy," I say softly. "It’s just a cut."

She looks up at me, wary, searching for deception. She won’t find any.

"This is how dark elves swear oaths," I explain, guiding her palm upward. Her skin is soft, warm beneath my fingertips. "A drop of blood, given freely. No magic. Just a promise made in flesh."

She exhales shakily, hesitating. I watch her, waiting. She nods.

Brave little thief.

I bring the blade to her palm, pressing just hard enough to draw a single drop of blood. She doesn’t flinch, just stares at me with something unreadable in her eyes.

I release her hand, lifting the dagger to my own palm. A quick slice, another bead of red welling against my skin.

I press my hand to hers.

Heat.

Her breath stutters. So does mine.

The moment stretches, charged with something neither of us dares name.

Slowly, I pull away.

"It’s done," I say, voice lower than I mean it to be.

Seraphina exhales, flexing her fingers, watching the faint smear of our mingled blood on her skin.

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