Page 55 of Quiet
The man gave Isa a pat on the head. “Very good. You can keep your memories.”
“Keep my memories? I didn’t know they were up for debate.”
“They were and you won. Good job.” He bestowed Isa with another head pat. “You’re also allowed to continue to exist around my cousin.”
“I’m what?” The nerve of this guy! If Isa didn’t need him so badly right now, he’d kick him directly in the shin.
Briar stirred himself enough to push the fairy’s hand off Isa’s head.
“I’m sorry, cousin, I’ll stop teasing him. I do have a tiiiiiny problem though.”
“Which is?” Isa asked warily.
“The spell needs to be cast by a family member, which I am, by the way. You and I are very distantly related, you lucky boy.” The man poked Briar, evoking a disgruntled growl.
“So, what’s the problem?”
The man rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. “I’m doing this thing right now where I don’t lie anymore. And there’s this person who thinks I’m kind of a slut, and . . . well . . . I told them I’d never kiss anyone but them again.”
Isa stared at him blankly. Why had he switched the topic to kissing?
“Oh, right! And the spell has to be sealed with a kiss.”
Isa wrinkled his nose at the thought of this sketchy guy kissing Briar. If he tried, Isa was definitely going to kick him.
“What do we do then?”
“I could make you a member of my family and give the spell to you to transfer to him. It’s a bit unorthodox, but like you said, I do owe him.”
Isa was picking up a major flare of alarm from Briar, but he ignored it. “How would we do that?”
“It’s simple. All we have to do is share a little bit of blood and swear to never hurt one another and we’ll be family for life. Honestly, you should be honored I’m offering you such a precious gift.”
Briar’s fingers bit into Isa’s wrist.Don’t you dare.
Briar shoved a distant memory at Isa. It was of a woman with bright, red hair saying, “Never make a deal with the fae, my love. Not unless you have something to hold over them.”
Briar stared fiercely into Isa’s eyes, ordering him not to agree.
“Give me your name,” Isa said suddenly. He’d taken Myths and Legends last semester and one of the books on the required reading list had mentioned something about the fae and names. If you could get one to give you their name, it gave you power over them.
“I beg your pardon?”
“I’m not swapping blood with someone if I don’t know their name.”
The man looked around, and his eyes landed on a nearby rosebush. “You can call me . . . Mr. Green.”
“You got that from the leaves right next to you, didn’t you?”
“Fine, call me Briar.” The man stroked a tight, newly formed rose bud on the bush.
“That’s his name!”
“Is it? What an excellent name. You can still call me that if you want.”
“I didn’t ask what I can call you. I asked you to give me your name.” The more the man resisted, the more Isa knew he was on the right track.
“I can’t give you my name, clever human.”
