Page 37 of A Bargain with the Fae King

My heart crushes to powder as my knees give out. I sink to the ground. An enraged male bellow fills the air, echoing into the night.

That creature, that fae, has my sister.

I slip away, everything going dark and numb as the horror of it drowns me. Dimly I’m aware of angry words and rushing feet. But that activity is worlds away, far away from the black hole sucking me down.

A question. My name? Something on my arms, my cheek. A blurry face in front of me.

“—back to me.”

The blurriness clears. A figure takes form. Riven.

“Please.” His eyes are wide, panicked. His chest rises and falls with heavy, quick breaths.

“You promised.” My accusation is a cracking rasp.

“I’ll get her back. I’ll find a way,” he says. Blood splatter mars his face, hair, and clothing, painting him the wild warlord I thought he resembled before this trek. Magic hums under my skin, searching for wounds that can’t be repaired.

Even magic can’t heal a broken heart.

“Why are you here, Lia? I told you to stay away.” Riven smooths the hair back from my face, running his other hand up and down my arm in what may have been a show of comfort.

“She’s my sister. I had to save her. Those vines, they could have crushed her, and those creatures—”

“The vines were mine. I almost had them all trapped when you ran into the clearing.”

What? I gaped at him. The darkness creeps in at the edges of my vision again. He almost had them all. Did he…? Did I…?

No… No, no, no.

“I had to stop to save you. I couldn’t risk them harming you or taking you as well.” He wipes at my face, clearing away rogue tears and something sticky I refuse to consider.

My chest burns. I can’t get enough air. “It’s my fault. I got in the way.”

Riven presses my face between his hands, forcing me to meet his burning gaze. “It’s my fault. I underestimated them. And you. We will get her back.”

He releases me, but I don’t move. Instead, questions spill from my mouth like a waterfall. “Where did she go? Why did they take her? What do they want?”

“I don’t know where they went, but my guards are searching.”

“You can’t feel it? The magic?”

He winces.

I look around, frantically searching the clearing for my sister though knowing I won’t find her. The vines ringing the clearing are gone though. Instead, thick piles of leaves circle the area.

“Lia.”

I’m panting for breath. Sweating like I’ve run a marathon. He holds me, an anchor in this storm, just like the night I almost killed May.

“We. Will. Save. Her.” His eyes are wild, fierce.

Tears threaten to spill again, but I hold them back, nodding as I bite my bottom lip. He’s here. Riven is here. We have a promise, a bargain. He’ll save her.

“Can you stand?” He helps me to my feet.

Dark crimson splatter covers my arms and clothes. I sway, reconciling it with the metallic scent that hangs in the air.

“I’ll be right back,” he says. “Stay here this time. Please.”

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