The demon stomps to the side of the bed. Leans toward me, close enough that the sulfur on its breath gags me. In a conspiratorial gesture, it holds a clawed finger to its lips. “It was our secret, Queen Rapunzel and mine.” It lowers its hand and braces itself on the mattress, its weight pulling me closer still. “If she whispered a word of our bargain, the pact was broken.” Then it sniffs me and grimaces as if I’m the one whostinks. “Truth is, Quinn Redgrave, I would have released your toxic soul even had she reneged on our agreement.”
Without warning or ceremony, the demon clamps a hand around my throat and squeezes. Don’t know how its grip doesn’t crush my neck. Gasping, I open my mouth and fight for my next breath, which allows the demon to press its disgusting mouth to mine.
The demon exhales.
I cough.
It growls and exhales again. The vile taste of its revolting salvia makes drips down my throat. Noble-born and warrior-bred, I have the instinct to fight. To feel the comforting weight of my sword in my hand. The warm spray of my enemy’s blood on my flesh marked me as the victor of the battle. Instead, all I can do is sit there, my back pinned to the wall and my ass to the bed as the demon breathes into me.
Filling me…
Filling me with my soul.
Oh, God, please let this be real. Don’t let me be dead, and this be naught but a cruel, hellish torment.
When the demon pulls away and spits on the floor, it whips around to face Rapunzel. Bows its head. “Our bargain is complete, Queen Rapunzel. May you all rot in Heaven.”
And then it drops back into the shadows, and my body becomes my own. Rapunzel races across the room and throws herself at me. “Talk to me, Quinn. Please. Are you—”
“I feel it.” I place my hand—my flesh-colored hand—on my non-marked chest, the hammer of my heartbeat strong against my palm. “Rapunzel…” I grab her hand and replace mine with hers. “Here. Touch me. I’m whole again.”
“Yes, Quinn, you are.” She’s crying, nodding. “Oh, God, your eyes are blue.”
“Here.” Dax shoves a goblet at me. “Get the taste of that fucking creature out of your mouth.”
I accept the metal goblet and gulp down a long swallow of the spiced wine. It tastes…different. Better. Richer. Delicious. “Christ. That was… Remind me never to do anything that stupid again.” Then to Rapunzel, “Why would you summon it?”
“I would never.” Appalled at the accusation, she glares down her little imperial nose at me. “Itcame tome. It said you lost your appeal and that once you regain your soul, you’ll be my problem.”
Sorry, but I have to laugh at that despite how this night keeps getting stranger and stranger. “Problem?”
“Seems you have a wild soul,” she drawls.
I haul Rapunzel onto my lap. “It may be wild, but at least it’s finally mine again.”
“Try not to be reckless with it in the future,” Wren warns me as he slides into the bed beside us.
“Never again.” I kiss Rapunzel. “Too much at stake now.”
“Move the fuck over. I’m tired.” Dax shoves Wren closer to Rapunzel. “In case you forgot, we killed a king and usurped his kingdom. I don’t know about you, but I’d like to get at least an hour or two of sleep before we wake up.”
Ignoring her yelp, Dax repositions Rapunzel. He yanks off the blanket. Shakes it out and lays it atop us before crawling up on the large mattress and tucking himself beside us. Still, it’s cramped with our three large bodies crowding Rapunzel, but I’ll bet my sword arm not one of us will leave this bed tonight.
As I drift off to sleep with Rapunzel in my arms, I have love and hope in my soul for the first time in over two years.
I am a happy man.
ChapterTwenty-Six
Once upon a time, Blithe Forest was cursed.
A witch lived here, hidden among the ancient trees and twisted, thorny foliage. Most folks didn’t dare venture too far south of Leeds Village once they crossed the Merrie River. Scared, the lot of them, they were. But not me. My father always said I was fearless. My mother called me reckless. I remember asking myself how anyone could be afraid on such a fine day when the sun filtered through the canopy of trees and made the pollen sparkle like fine jewels.
Besides, if the witch tried any of her foul magic on me, I had a trusty stick as a weapon to protect me.
Little did I know, Sybil led me to the tower that day.
She led me to Rapunzel.
