Page 9 of A Tale of Treachery

My lips remained sealed. He didn’t need to know that it was a present from the prince for my twenty-third birthday. He didn’t need to know anything about me.

“Give it back,” I demanded.

“Why would I do that?” he asked, twirling the blade through his fingers.

“Why do you hate me so much?”

“I don’t hate you,” he purred, and I froze. “On the contrary, I like you. I like the way you smell.” His nostrils flexed as he breathed in the air around me, and my body tensed from whatever the hell that meant. “There’s something strange about the way you smell. Your scent is not quite… human.”

I burrowed into myself. He could sense that thing deep inside of me. “Don’t make me take it back, Ryken.”

He laughed at the threat.

“Such a brave little crow, considering how you have cowered and hid upon seeing me, just like all the others do.”

“I do not,” I spat out.

“Come and get it, then,” he dared, pushing away, and raising the blade over his head until it was just out of my reach. His empty hand moved in a come-hither motion.

It was reckless to engage instead of simply walking away, but that dagger was mine, and meant something to me. I couldn’t have Aiden but would always have his gift.

I dove toward Ryken, hoping to catch him off guard, but he was faster and stronger than me. He grabbed my hips and spun me around until my backside pressed tightly along his front. One arm encircled my torso and held me in place, while the other held the dagger to my throat.

“Let me go!” I fought against his hold, but he was too strong.

“I will,” he said as he burrowed his nose in my hair, inhaling my scent. “But first, we have a debt to settle. You drew my blood, and now, it’s my turn.”

The sharp prick of the dagger pierced my neck, and I stomped down on his foot and elbowed him in the gut. The movement surprised him long enough for me to grasp the opportunity and tear my dagger from his hands. I lifted the sharp metal with a jerk and held it in the air between us.

A small drop of my blood lay on his gloved finger, and he lifted the digit to his nose and sniffed it curiously before licking my blood from the leather.

“Your taste, little crow…I’ve never tasted anything like it.” He paused for a moment and released a wicked laugh. “Oh, I know exactly what you are. Not a little crow after all…maybe I’ll call you little monster.”

The term jarred me, and my body went tense.

No, I’m not a monster.

There was no way he could have discovered what I was.

My heart dropped, and my thoughts grew panicked, my breaths coming out in quick little bursts. The last person who should ever know my secret had learned it.

“You know nothing.”

He grinned; a response that made me unreasonably angry.

“I know your secret, too. You’re not human. You’re fae.”

“It’s not much of a secret,” he replied matter-of-factly. “Not compared to what you’re hiding, at least.”

“I’ll keep your secret if you keep mine. I’m sure you wouldn’t be welcome in Cambriel if anyone else knew,” I threatened, moving backward while brandishing the dagger like a lunatic.

I glanced toward the staircase, ready to flee while there was still a chance. I could regroup later and find some way to ensure that he kept his mouth shut.

“The king already knows what I am, but you don’t need to worry, little crow. Your secret is safe with me… for now. Although, I will be calling on you to ask for a favor or two, and I expect you to comply.”

“You intend to blackmail me?” I asked, and he responded with a slight smirk.

The answer was clear, as my feet slowly inched backward, my gaze holding his to ensure he didn’t pursue me. But he made no move to follow or give chase, only watched my exit with a raised brow. Once I reached the stairwell, I finally allowed myself to turn my back on him and run.

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