I move to retrieve the mask. Kasaros stops me with a hand on my wrist.
“Tsk tsk, there you go, rushing in as usual.” He picks up the mask and turns it over in his fingers before spreading the silken smile across his face.
“What do you think?” he drawls. “Do I look good in a smile?”
My lips stay shut.
It only riles him up, twinkles his eyes. “Do you think she’ll believe I’m you?”
A growl slips out and I lunge for the mask. “Play with her and I’ll?—”
“Relax,” he purrs, casually holding it out of my reach. “What’s a little spark to me when I’ve tasted the stars? Put the mask on again, and you’re back in my service… promise me that, and I’ll even give you a few upgrades to help you along your way.”
“I just want to keep her safe.”
“You’re forgetting something.” Dark brows raise.
“I promise,” I grit out.
“Pinky promise?”
“I pledge my service for 10 years.”
Up until now, our arrangement has been transactional. Year by year I’ve bartered my life to him.
He waits another moment, testing me, watching me, listening to my thoughts. Slowly, he lowers his hand. When the mask is within reach, he jerks it away to prove a cruel point, then hands it over with a flourish.
I snatch it before he can stop me again. I don’t need to be king. I just need to ensure Florienne reaches the end of the Labyrinth before another hunter claims her. Then she’ll be free.
It’s what she wants.
It’s what I can give her. All I can give her.
A low hum begins, vibrating beneath my skin. The air crackles with raw, untamed magic. The mask feels different in my hands.
“What have you done?” I ask warily.
“You want to keep her safe? Now you can. But there are rules, little shadow.” The Gods voice drips with amusement. “You cannot remove the mask while you remain in the Labyrinth. And the longer you wear it, well…” His smirk is a dagger gliding across my throat. “Let’s say I’m not just forbidding you from removing the mask. I’m making it so you won’t want to.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Not only will you remain in my service with the mask on, but you may find it… difficult… to act as anything other than the beast she believes you to be.”
I stare up at him, breath ragged, throat tight. “You’re turning me into a shifter?”
“Not quite.” He chuckles. “We have enough actual beasts roaming the maze tonight. But your instincts will grow more bestial, more primal the longer you wear the mask.”
Dread squirms in my gut. The mask pulses and my hands tremble.
I can still walk away. I can still try.
“You bastard.”
Kasaros grins, slow and pleased. “Now, now. Didn’t you promise to serve me?”
He returns to the darkness, folding into shadow. But he doesn’t take the choice from me. That’s not how he works.
I rub my thumb across the fabric smile. If I don’t put it on, she’ll belong to someone else. This hunt will claim her soul, and everything I love about her will wither and die.
