Page 38 of Brutal Fae King
The soft glow explodes into beams of illuminance, towers of purple light reaching from floor to ceiling. Ebelor screams. She tries to pull away, and I keep ahold of her arm to keep her from running away. It’s over in a moment.
“And thus,” the witch says in her lilting tones, “you are bound.”
The witch bows deeply, then walks backward, the wall melting into a patch of darkness behind her. She soon disappears.
Ebelor turns to me.
“What happened?! What did youdo?!”
“You agreed to marry me,” I say. “You agreed to be bound to me until death do us part. I just thought it would be prudent to have a safeguard in place that would force you to keep that promise. Something other than a piece of paper, that is.”
My wife pulls her arm away from mine, glaring at me.
“So… you cast a spell on me?” she demands. “What kind of spell?”
“The same as a legal marriage, really,” I answer. “You are now bound to me—not able to betray me to the enemy, leave without my knowing, and if you were to do these things—” “—death would then do us part.” My voice darkens.
She stares at me, mouth agape. Her head shakes lightly.
“It goes both ways,” I say. “If I were to betray or abandon you, I would also die. It’s the same deal as a marriage—if you obey your marriage vows, then you should be fine.”
I narrow my eyes at her.
“Of course,” I say. “If you were planning on obeying your marriage vows and not abandoning me in the middle of the night,My Queen,then there should be no issue.”
Her mouth closes, her teeth clenching and grinding together. I can see it in her face; she’s been foiled.
Thought so. You were going to run away in the middle of the night, weren’t you?
She finally finds her voice, albeit in choking, spluttering tones:
“You… YOU BASTARD!”
“You agreed to marry me,” I say. “All I’m doing is making sure you keep your promise.”
She stares at me, teeth still grinding. Her eyes fill with tears. Her mouth opens and closes a few times, but she says nothing. Then, she covers her face, bursts into tears, and dashes out of the room. There’s a second of silence. I can feel Bruamin’sgaze searing into me, the judgmental stare burning into the back of my skull.
I turn back to him, meeting his angry gaze and returning it.
“What?” I grunt. “There’s no use feeling sorry for her! You saw her! She would have broken her marriage vows and abandoned me, even if the kingdom would have perished because of it! Besides, she is now a queen. There ought to be no pity for her!”
Bruamin still stares at me, eyes narrowed.
“Yes, but… is thistrulyhow this should have been handled?” he asks.
“Oh, I don’t have to listen to this!” I growl. “I am the king! You are the lord-in-waiting, andIam the king! Don’t forget your place!”
Bruamin just closes his eyes in disappointment. I seldom play that card, but I’m in no mood.
Even the hardest man in the world will crack when everyone in his life hates him so consistently, all the time. I can’t have another lecture from my old lord-in-waiting. I already know.
I turn and begin walking out of the room as well, leaving him standing there alone. As I walk through the corridor toward my own quarters, I pass hers. There’s sobbing coming from her closed door.
A thought intrudes:No woman should spend her wedding night sobbing like that.
I shake the thought away and continue on to my room.
Chapter 13 - Ebelor
