Page 116 of Of Realms and Chaos

Grunting, I pushed off the wall and brought my body to the bars as well, my face tilting up to look into his.

“Stassi. That’s what my companions call me. Now, focus on what’s important. Have you ever been with a male?”

“No, bossy thing, I have not. I do not have an interest in them.” A shrug, a blink, and then a smile at my baffled expression was all he offered. Bossy?

“Everyone likes both—most just don’t live long enough for their curiosity to take control. When you are immortal, truly so, then you grow too bored to not sample every dish available. And you learn quickly that all flavors are quite delicious. I would teach you if I wasn’t so possessive.” With that, I trailed my finger down a bar, watching as my magic took hold of the male beyond. “Say you’ll be mine, handsome. Give in to that sin, and I’ll come back for you.”

Without hesitating, he leaned his face between the iron bars, smiling down at me. I had the annoying impulse to close the space between us. For some reason, the dirt didn’t bother me as it normally would. How I wished that I had never met this thing.

“You wound me, Spice. You do not have to order me with that odd pink magic of yours. I will gladly be whatever you want me to be, whenever you want.” A hand reached out towards me, and instead of leaning in like I might have with anyone else, I backed away slightly, not wanting to allow him to touch me for fear of what it might feel like when he let go. Sighing, he pulled away, looking me up and down with obvious interest. “You once said that you control sin and virtue, but how does your magic even begin to determine which is which?”

A laugh bubbled in my chest, freeing itself through my lips. Too much, this was too much. I could become fixated on the taste of his presence—enamored by the sound of his curiosity. And that would be the death of me. Curiosity killed even more than I did, in my experience.

“Why do you ask so many questions?” I inquired in turn, trying and failing to stay away from him. My feet moved me back towards his aura, my shoes touching the tips of his toes through the bars.

“I like to learn.” The words were deliberate, just as the slow trail of his gaze from my eyes to my lips was. Groaning, I took my hand and shoved his face backwards, earning a deep chuckle from the male.

“Sin and virtue are subjective. My magic senses what you believe your deepest faults and merits are, the actions and thoughts that you deem good or evil. It even shows me them, giving me small insights into your whys. Then it capitalizes on that, intensifies it until you are so deeply within them that you can’t find your way out. My magic leaves you lost in a forest of your wildest dreams and worst nightmares. And, in the end, you’re left realizing that you were both the dream and the nightmare all along.”

His face pinched in concentration, thinking over my words. My declaration. Because I’d just laid before him the truth of how dangerous I could be, and this was his moment to decide if my wickedness was worth his freedom.

Before I could so much as encourage him to accept my offer, a burst of magic entered the ethers, calling to me and burning through my chest. A great quake of that place where my essence existed inside of me. I bent forward, gripping my chest and holding onto one of the bars for dear life.

“Do you feel that?” I asked him, knowing that he didn’t. Knowing that it was the call I had been waiting for.

His voice came out slightly panicked, his hands reaching for me as if he could help somehow. “No, what is it? Stassi, are you okay?”

All I could manage were two words, a gasped statement through pursed lips. “It’s her.”

And then I was gone.

Chapter Thirty-Seven

Asher

“Ilove what you have done with the place. Truly stunning work. You guys have an eye for interior design. Something about the way you paired the iron bars with the wooden bucket. My only note is that I do not think there is enough mold. I mean, look at this corner. There is practically none!” Leaning back, I gestured towards the far right corner of my cell, which was, in fact, limited in its mold.

“I see you are really leaning into your new role as a goddess. So nice to know you still have an attitude.” Genevieve’s voice was calm, though there was the barest hint of humor beneath her eye rolls and scowls. Dare I say she was warming up to me?

“First of all, I was always a goddess. It was just not widely recognized yet. Second of all, who knew information traveled so fast here? Your ravens must be far faster than those in the Fae Realm.” My head fell back, the tangles from my dragon ride so thick that they almost acted as a cushion.

How had that just been hours ago? It felt like a lifetime.

Genevieve looked at me inquisitively, her eyes narrowed and lips pursed. My gaze wandered, uncomfortable with the turn in mood. What did I say that was so awful?

“Yes, it turns out our ravens are capable of traveling across kingdoms in two months. I do not believe it is that impressive, Princess Asher,” she said, leaning her shoulder against the wall just outside of my cell.

Strangely enough, the first thing that came to my mind was a joke about mortals telling time. But then, as what she said sank in, I froze, my mouth suddenly too dry to speak.

Two months? How could it have been two months since I was taken?

“That is impossible,” I whispered. Somehow, I knew that it was not, though. Maybe it was Genevieve’s perplexed face as she stared at me or it could have been the snow that had found its way into my hair while I was dragged. No matter what told me that her statement was true, I still came to the same conclusion.

I had abandoned Bellamy for two months.

“Eoforhild? Shah? What has happened since I was in Gandry? Have you heard from Henry?” My questions came in rapid succession, so fast that Genevieve seemed startled by the sudden energy with which I was speaking. In fact, she did not answer for a couple of minutes, her frown deeper than before. As if she did not know how to tell me something.

“Asher, I think it is best if the prince answers those questions.” Before she even finished speaking, I was up, walking towards her with newfound determination—my head shaking back and forth. I did not miss the step back she took, despite knowing I was behind bars. The princess was smart enough to fear what she could not see.

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