Page 36 of A Blade of Lies and Spirits

Chance’s face held so many things he clearly wanted to say, but for once in his life he kept his mouth shut.

Walker spoke as I felt the gentle pressure of his leg against my back. He’d moved closer, even through the opposing force of the elf’s presence. “I thought the wards here were strong enough to keep your kin out of the major cities.” His presence, his touch, helped to keep the door locked.

He could have been commenting on how a meal had been cooked.

“No one told me,” Dmitri’s father replied, smile flashing.

I tightened my grip on Dmitri, to keep us both in place as Dmitri growled in anger.

Rich and wild, the elf’s laughter filled the garden. Elise leaned against Kara, who had buried her face in her hands. Robert’s magic glowed around them, shielding all of them from the worst of the longing.

Elves called to something that didn’t care if you wanted men or women. You simply wantedthem.

“Enough. What price do you offer, O noble lady, to take my son from this place? To safety? You know small death surrounds you, and I grow bored with holding your company out of the chains of time.”

“What do you want to leave him behind afterwards, among me and mine?” I hoped it was something I could pay. Dmitri safe and free was worth my life, easily.

He walked to the knot of Dmitri and me, Walker didn’t back away. Chance advanced, too, until we formed a kind of triangle.

The elf touched my face. I gasped at the piercing pain and pleasure of his touch, the brush of his power. “Another night. The chance of another babe.”

Sell my body to save my son? I didn’t pause. I didn’t glance at Walker to see what his reaction was, either. I cared about what he thought, and I didn’t want to see condemnation for something that would save all our lives.

“You’ll take Dmitri and the three most vulnerable,” Joan, Elise, Kara—Robert would be an asset, “away from here. You’ll leave them all, unharmed, in Silver’s office in Capitol, within the next hour. No more than that. In exchange, I’ll spend dusk until dawn with you, in a year.” I’d learned a few hard lessons that night with him, not least that specifics were best when dealing with the elves.

“Why so long a wait?”

“I’m weak, and I need to survive the night to conceive the child you’re aiming for. It’s all to your benefit.” My tone was dry as the air on Walker’s lands.

The elf bowed.

“My lady,” he said, his eyes lingering on my face and drifting down my body. “It will be done as you will it, pure in intent. Until l come to you again.”

The air thinned; they were gone.

“What the Hell, Lissy?” Chance snarled. “And what was all the exalted lady crap?”

“Look up what my name means, idiot. They’re all about the names. I got us a chance,” I answered. “Now let’s get out of this alive.”

EIGHT

Alys

Suddenly,time was suspended. The world outside of us grew eerily silent. Nothing moved. Nothing except us. Even the storm stilled.

The elf’s powers were impressive, but I had no idea how long they would keep things this way. All I knew was that if they’d used this kind of power, something more was going on. They’d taken more than a little interest in this situation with my son.

“Focus—” Chance snapped.

Walker grabbed my arm. “Are you insane?”

Chance and Walker’s voices blended in an irritated harmony as they chastised me for my agreement with the elf. I appreciated their concern. In fact, Walker being concerned rather than angry untied the knot in my chest. Hell, I was concerned myself, but we didn’t have time for that right now. We were surrounded by enemies. If we wanted to survive, we needed to figure out a solution.

“Come on, guys–”

“Sex, a year from now?” Walker said, emphasizing each word. “With a creature that cankillyou…”

He wasn’t wrong, but what was done was done. “Listen–”

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