Page 85 of A Realm of Fire and Ash

Ollin smiles, but there's a dangerous glint in his eyes. "Oh, I told him you've postponed the visit," he says, before turning and gesturing for us to follow him deeper into the castle.

"What!" I rage as fury pours off Aggonid, suffocating the room. "You had no right to do that!"

Valtorious stops and turns around, his eyes dark with amusement. "I'm afraid I did, pet," he says, his voice condescending. "My rules are absolute here in Romarie." He smirks before continuing down the corridor.

My heart bellows in my chest as Aggonid lunges for the king, grabbing him around the neck and lifting him off his feet as though he weighs no more than a rag doll.

Panic wages a war inside of me, all because this prick thought he could rip everything out from under me.

"How dare you," Aggonid snarls, fury radiating from his body. His shadows curl around them, nearly blocking them out completely. "Give me one good reason I shouldn't pluck your eyeballs from your skull for daring to look at what isn't yours and sever your tongue from your mouth for having the audacity to speak to me this way."

The king's red face is one of surprise and fear. "Let go of me!" he gasps, clawing at Aggonid's arm in a futile attempt to free himself. "He'll be here in a couple days!"

I rest a hand on Aggonid's shoulder, and his entire body is vibrating with rage. "If you kill him now, his people will never let us see Finn,” I reason with him. “Besides, if he ruins this for me, I want to be the one to string him up by his balls while I feast on his entrails.” I cross my arms over my chest. “We'll just go back now and meet him in two days.”

Still maintaining his hold on Ollin, Aggonid’s head swivels to look my way, his face displaying a mixture of equal parts horror and … arousal? His mouth tips up in a smirk. “Fuck. Say that again.”

I roll my eyes at him. “Let’s go.”

I can't jeopardize my meeting with Finn. We need this asshole of a king so I can see mine, and maybe find a way home.

The devil narrows his eyes, returning his attention to the king. "We can't, though, can we?" Aggonid squeezes tighter, inches from Ollin's face.

"Maybe let him breathe so he can answer our questions," I offer.

Aggonid lets go, and the king crumples to the floor, sucking in deep, gasping breaths.

"You fucking asshole," he growls before climbing to his feet.

"Guess you should've worn one of your stupid protection amulets, huh?" Aggonid folds his arms across his chest, smug.

I'd forgotten that all the protection jewelry is made here. This realm specializes in all sorts of metals not found elsewhere, imbued with magical properties like protection, invisibility, and luck.

The king sputters in rage, but Aggonid's shadow magic looms threateningly. "Tell us what you know," he commands.

He sighs and wipes the sweat dripping from his forehead before finally relenting. "Finn should be here in two days, but you won't be able to leave for the portal to the underworld."

"For how long?" Aggonid growls.

The king visibly pales and mutters something under his breath neither of us catch.

"Speak up." I step closer, and his eyes snap to mine.

"A month."

"What?!" I charge him, hands already balling into fists, but Aggonid steps between us. He knows how important this is for us, and he's purposefully trying to delay us?

He shrinks from me and shakes his head. "It'll take a month for the required energy to be focused around the portal."

"Can't we do anything to speed up the process?" I ask, my frustration mounting.

Valtorious shakes his head. "The process cannot be rushed. It requires a delicate balance of energies to be properly aligned, or the portal could become unstable and unpredictable."

A sense of defeat washes over me. A whole month trapped in Romarie feels like an eternity, and the weight of this news presses down on me.

"Then how is Finn planning to return home once he arrives here in two days?" I ask the king.

He considers my words, cocking his head to study me intently, and suddenly I realize my mistake. Using such a familiar name gives away the fact that I'm on friendly terms with the high king of the fae, and I curse myself for being so careless.

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