“What is conning?”
I rolled my eyes. “It means trickery. And I can't trick your senses, can I? You know I'm a Dragon-Sidhe, and you know up until today, you were the only one of those in existence. My story may sound crazy, but with magic, anything is possible.”
“But there are holes to your story. The ring, for example. You don't have it.”
“Yes, I know. That's the problem. If I had it, I would have just gone home.”
Arach stared at me, then reached across the table and brushed away my tears. “Eat your dinner. I'll help you.”
“You'll take me to the High King?”
“Yes.”
A surge of relief washed through me and dried my tears. “Holy cannoli! Thank you, Arach. You don't know how much—”
He cut me off with, “If you help me first.”
The balloon of my relief turned leaden and plummeted. “Oh, crap.” My tone went bitter, “What? What do you want?”
Arach chuckled. “You do seem to know me.”
“Well enough that I should have expected this,” I muttered. “Go on. What is it? What do you want my help with?”
“It's nothing really.”
“Oh?” I asked scornfully. Then I mimicked the tone of the Sea Witch fromThe Little Mermaid, “Just a token really, a trifle.”
“Why do you sound like that?”
“I'm quoting someone. Now, what is it you want? I know it's not my voice, Ursula. So what?”
“Who is Ursula?”
“Someone you'd get along great with,” I drawled. “What the hell do you want from me, Arach?!”
Arach's grin went as devious as the underwater Disney villain's. “A child.”
Chapter Eight
“Bacon powder?” I said.
“What?” Arach scowled at me.
“Esqueeze me?”
“Are you still speaking English?”
Just like the madwoman he accused me of being, I muttered, “He really is channeling a witch. One from a fairy tale no less. We've gone from The Little Mermaid to Rapunzel.”
Arach scowled at in with a hint of concern. “Do you always babble like this?”
“What in the House of Hufflepuff is wrong with you, Arach?!” I shot up from my seat. “Do you seriously think I'm going to have your baby here, then go back to my time, leaving that child with you to live thousands of years before I'll meet them?”
“That's what I want in exchange for my help.”
“Uh. No.” I walked to the door.
Arach was beside me in seconds, grabbing my arm. I broke his grip easily and shoved him back. He stumbled and fell on the bed, his eyes gone wide.
