Page 32 of A Court of Hearts and Hunger
I push against it, and it opens wider before thumping against something. A body, lying in the hallway.
It’s the Cat. His left ear has been chewed ragged, and his beautiful face has been lacerated by claws. The scanty remains of his shirt are soaked to his ravaged chest with his own blood, flowing from a dozen gashes.
Breath drags through his lungs in a hideous, sucking rasp.
His head lolls toward me, his purple eyes blinking. “Please,” he croaks.
I should run.
I should flee up the stairs, race through the halls, and find a way out. But what then? I’ll still be trapped in Faerie, with no way to return to my world.
Since I arrived, these faeries have treated me like an object, a commodity, a prize—a piece of flesh. They do not deserve my mercy.
Lifting my bare foot, I press my toes against the Cat’s bleeding cheek, pushing his face aside. He makes a weak sound of pain, and I nearly relent—but I can’t give in to pity. I press harder, shifting my weight forward. “Tell me how to get home.”
“Usually I would gladly let a pretty woman step on my face, but right now—”
“How do I get home?”
He lets out a groan as I increase the pressure on his cheek. “Have mercy, mouse. I can’t heal myself right now—if you could help me—”
“If you don’t tell me how to get back to my world, I will stomp on your face until it’s smashed to pieces.”
“I don’t believe you will. What if my cheekbone breaks and stabs into your foot?”
“You have a point. I’ll go put my shoes on.”
“I don’t know how to get you back to your world. Ri—my partner is the one who does that sort of thing, hopping between worlds—and it’s rare for him. The process takes a lot of supplies and preparation. You can’t do it without his help.”
I stare down at him, trying not to soften as I gaze into those pleading eyes, at the dark lashes crusted with blood. He’s terrified.
“Why can’t you heal?”
“The Heartless,” he says.
“What are the Heartless?”
“The victims of the Unseelie Queen. Fae, humans, and monsters whose hearts she has ripped out and eaten. They’re still animate after she does it—connected to her, somehow. The forest outside the royal city Mallaithe is full of her victims. They think of nothing but the hunt, and whenever they devour a heart, her power grows.”
My brows pucker. “I don’t understand. Why is your queen turning her own subjects into monsters? And how did the Heartless get to you? Can’t you turn invisible?”
“As to your first question—no one knows why she does it.” The Cat’s voice is weakening. “And regarding your second question—my invisibility is temporary, and it wore off while I was too close to some of the Heartless. Their claws carry a toxin that stops a Fae’s natural healing ability. They tore me up, as you can see. I got away, but—if you don’t help me quickly, I’ll die.”
“Why me? Don’t you have any Fae friends? What about the Court your partner mentioned? Surely someone there could help you.”
“Well, you see…” The Cat pauses, choking a little. My gaze drifts to his lean stomach, to the abdominal muscles contracting with each hard cough. Blood flecks his lips and chin. “I wasn’t supposed to be where I was, and I can’t let anyone find out what I was up to.”
I curl my toes against his cheekbone, chewing my lip.
“So there you have it,” he says softly. “I can’t help you get home. You’re free to run out of this house and face all that lies beyond these walls… or you can help me, and I will owe you a life debt.”
“A life debt? What does that mean here in Faerie?”
“I will swear to do you no harm for as long as I live.”
“Your oath means nothing. You and your friend are Unseelie. You told me you don’t follow rules or honor bargains.”
“This one is different,” he whispers. “I will bind it magically. We will seal it with a kiss, and by tasting each other’s blood.” When I wrinkle my nose, he gasps a faint laugh. “Our ways are strange to humans, I know.”
