Page 246 of Primal Bonds

Sindre’s lips pulled back in a smile that made it very clear he wasn’t human. “I already have.”

Chapter 34

The loss of Fane’s Gift shuddered through him. He felt like a fucking limb had been torn off. He set his jaw and tried not to throw up.

His magic was gone, and with it, a vital part of himself.

A cold sweat pricked his forehead. Without his Gift, he was defenseless—and worthless to Marjani.

His intrepid mate closed her fingers around his. “If we escape the castle by dawn,” she told the king, “you’ll also restore Fane’s Gift. That’s nonnegotiable.”

His abused heart punched in his chest. It was a chance. Sindre wouldn’t bargain with Fane, but Marjani was a different story.

The king regarded her as if she were an interesting species. Fane could count on the fingers of one hand the fae who’d dare openly thwart Sindre when he had his heart set on something. The man who could buy and sell whole nations hadn’t been able to buy this one woman.

No wonder the king wanted her so badly.

“You're in no position to be adding conditions,” Sindre told her. “The bargain is set.”

“No.” Her chin jutted. “It’s not. I did not agree to Fane losing his Gift, and neither did he until after the bargain was set. You talk about dishonor? Where is the honor in tacking on a new condition after a bargain is made?”

The temperature in the room dropped below freezing. The snow came down harder.

Fane locked his knees and tried not to look as weak and lightheaded as he felt.

It was Arne who broke the deadlock. “What’s the harm?” he murmured to Sindre. “It adds another dimension to the game.”

Thank you, Dad.

A long silence during which Fane held his breath.

Sindre gave a curt nod. “Very well. If you both escape the castle by dawn, I’ll return Fane’s Gift. If.”

Hope surged in Fane.

Marjani inclined her head, regal as a queen. Goddess, he loved this woman.

“That’s acceptable.” She stuck out her hand. “We have a deal.”

Sindre pressed her fingers. “The bargain is set.”

He raised his voice, repeating the agreed-upon terms for all to hear. “Witness my words: If both Marjani Savonett and Fane Morningstar find their way through the maze and out of the castle by dawn, they will be free to leave Iceland with no retribution from me. You, Marjani Savonett, will receive six diamonds worth at least two hundred thousand dollars in the human world, and I’ll release Fane Morningstar from the rest of the geas and return his Gift.”

Beside him, Marjani gave an audible swallow. “Two hundred thousand dollars,” she whispered.

“But,” Sindre added, “if either of you is still in my castle at dawn, you, Marjani Savonett, will accept my geas for a fae year-and-a-day, and Fane Morningstar will serve out his geas plus another ninety-nine years. And his Gift will be mine.”

Fane squared his shoulders. “Agreed.”

“Agreed,” echoed Marjani.

Around them, the room was buzzing. Roald gave Fane a last, contemptuous look and then deliberately gave him his back. One by one, everyone but his dad and Sindre turned their backs on him, too.

Fane kept his head high. Let them scorn him as an oath breaker. He knew it wasn’t so black and white. Sometimes a man had to choose between two opposing points of honor, and he’d chosen to protect Marjani.

But that didn’t mean it wasn’t hard.

He waited, tight-lipped, for his father to join the others. The king would expect a show of loyalty. Arne was his longest-serving envoy, and one of the few half-bloods granted full status in the court.