“This isn’t about want, Autumn Princeling.” Caspian strides toward him, his black cape curling like smoke. “It’s deeper than that. More insistent. A craving. You don’t want what I have. Youneedit.”
“What are you talking about?” Farron breathes.
Caspian stands in front of him, lips parted as he smiles deviously. “Don’t you see? I’m here to offer you a bargain.”
25
Farron
IsthishowKeldarionfelt all those years ago, trapped amidst the cosmos of Caspian’s eyes?
How easily he had charmed us back then. Not just Kel, but everyone who spoke to him. Everyone denied it because of his connection to the Below, but during that time, the staff blushed at his very mention and the nobles longed for a scrap of conversation.
And I knew better than to get swept up in his cosmic storm.
I know better now.
And yet…
“What bargain?” I ask.
Kel crosses the room in a flash, snatching Caspian up by his lapels and slamming him into the table. Plates and cups clatter to the floor. “Don’t you dare do this to him.”
“My goodness,” Caspian practically purrs. A serpentine smile slithers up his face as he stares at Kel. “At least let me finish dinner first.”
I touch Kel’s shoulder. He jolts, expression rabid with anger. “I want to hear him out,” I say.
Kel’s chest shudders with his breath. He shoves Caspian to the side and turns away. The Prince of Thorns gives me a wide-eyed smirk as if we share some private joke about Kel’s temper.
“Spit out your bargain so I can reject it,” I snap. The others cluster around me until we’re all staring at the Prince of Thorns.
Caspian rights himself, smoothing his jacket. “Let me lay out the facts, Farron. Your realm is on the brink of war, and Keldarion is to blame. Despite my delight in seeing Kel in as much misery as possible, I can’t stand to see the four of you knocking your heads together and nary being able to come up with a thought.”
“Hey, I’m here too,” Rosie snaps, crossing her arms.
“Apologies.” Caspian smiles. “Trust me, I used to be the little mascot to this group of empty-headed princelings, just as you are now. The stupidity is, unfortunately, contagious.”
Rosalina blinks, unsure if she’s been insulted or not. But before she can retort, Caspian strides up to me and straightens my collar. “You say there’s no way to help your realm as you are now. Let me show you, Farron, that sometimes monsters are the best heroes.”
He leans in close, pulling hard on my jacket, until his lips are right by my ear. His breath is hot on my skin, causing a rush of warmth up my neck and to my cheeks. “Because we already know that heroes are the best monsters, aren’t they? The other princes have shown us that. You’re not like them. You can still be saved. And maybe then,” his dark eyes flick to Rosalina, “the coward could finally deserve a queen.”
He pulls back and grins so beautifully and so wickedly, it’s like a crack of lightning.
“I don’t like this,” Dayton grumbles. “He shouldn’t be here.”
“What are the terms of your bargain?” I ask.
Everyone shouts out cries of protest, but I say louder, harsher: “What are the terms of your bargain?”
Perhaps it’s my imagination, but the room seems to darken, the candles flickering on the table. My vision tunnels until all I can see is Caspian, silhouetted by his thorns. “The bargain is so, Farron, High Prince of Autumn.” His voice is a hypnotic melody, wrapping around me in echoes and whispers. “I will conjure a spell on you, one of thorn and shackles, that will confine your beast. Though you will still turn each night, this spell will ensure you remain… under control.”
“I’ll continue to shift?” I ask.
“Yes, but you will not have to worry about running through the halls as a mad beast or accidentally hurting someone you love.” Caspian gives a pointed look down at Rosalina’s leg, then up to Dayton’s face. “Until the bargain is broken, of course.”
“Ireallydon’t like this,” Dayton says. “Come on, Ez, let’s kick him out of here—”
“Farron is High Prince of Autumn,” Ezryn says, voice a low timbre. “It is his decision alone to do what is best for his realm.”
