The wordgratefullands heavier than any accusation could have.
“But now,” he goes on, “there is more between us than your debt. There is a debt of my own. One written by my mistakes, and it is mine to settle.”
I shake my head at once, the idea so absurd it almost steals a breathless sound from me. “My lord, that isn’t…”
“I have not finished speaking.”
The quiet authority in his tone stops me cold.
“You may ask a favor of me,” Luceran says. “One.”
The word echoes.
“One favor and I will grant it. That will settle what I owe you, and the balance between us will be restored.”
A favor.
Not coin. Not protection. Not mercy.
Afavorfrom a Fae lord.
My stomach drops as understanding crashes through me. This is not a simple offer. It is not kindness. It is power.
A favor like this could change everything.
It is a key to more than just a library. It is a key to the world. To lives altered, paths redirected, futures rewritten. Fae bargains are not made lightly, and they are never without consequence, no matter how cleanly they are spoken.
I swallow hard, my mouth dry, my heart pounding loud enough that I am certain he must hear it, and suddenly I am terrified.
It is almost too much.
What if I choose wrong? What if I squander the one chance I will ever have to claim everything I have ever wanted? And then there is the darker thought, the one that curls cold around my spine. One careless word, one poorly chosen phrase, and I could end up far worse than I am now.
Fae bargains are treacherous things.
Luceran waits, tapping his fingers slowly against the arm of his throne, his head tilted just enough that it feels as though he might be listening for something beneath my thoughts.
I clasp my hands together, fingers fidgeting as my mind races through possibilities. Wealth. Power. Freedom. All of it flashes before me like glittering doors, but beneath the noise and temptation, there is only one thing that matters.
“I want to go to my father,” I say.
The shift in him is immediate.
His jaw tightens, the column of his throat straining as if the words have struck deeper than I intended. “You…” He stops, then tries again, his voice softer than I have ever heard it. “You wish to leave.”
“No, no, that’s not what I mean,” I say so quickly that it surprises both of us.
I watch his throat work as he swallows, see the tension ease just slightly as his fingers loosen their grip on the edge of the throne.
“I just need to see him,” I continue, forcing myself to slow, to be precise. “I need to know that he’s safe. Perhaps take him food. Make him a tonic or two from your stores.” Then I hesitate, hardly believing the next words as I say them aloud. “Then I will return to Castle Frostwyn, and to your service.”
His brow furrows. His eyes sharpen. “You intend to return?”
I nod, and with that simple motion, certainty settles fully in my chest. “My family owes you a debt. We do not have much, but we have integrity. I will honor that debt until it is paid.”
He studies me for a long moment. “Why not ask for the debt to be wiped clean?”
“Because I am not a coward,” I say, the words steady and true. “I do not run when things become difficult. The debt is the Devlin family’s responsibility, and I will see it through to the end.”
