Stryker peered at me with venom in his gaze. He slowly set the knife and wood block down and leaned forward, getting into my personal space and breathing over my face. A fresh cinnamon scent washed over me, causing unexpected heat to bloom in my lower gut. My heart fluttered in my chest and my palms began to sweat.
“I will only say this once,” he warned, his gaze flicking to my lips for half a second and then back up again.“Whatever you think you know about me and the past Ethereum lords is a lie. You have probably been lied to your entire life.Youare the one who comes from a long line of assassins that have come to our peaceful home and killed our uncles, cousins, fathers, and children for centuries.You, Aribella, are the monster.”
I reeled as if I’d been slapped, the back of my head hitting the window. “No. That’s not true.” I shook my head to illustrate my point. “Yourancestors put a curse on our lands. Every hundred years it ravages Faerie and without the heart of an Ethereum lord, it won’t stop. Our water turns black, our crops fail, it’s trying to kill us.”
He raised one eyebrow. “Have you ever taken a moment to think why you needourhearts to stop a curse onyourland? It sounds like you are stealing our magic, not the other way around.”
His words shocked me into silence.
Why did we need the heart of a lord? Because it contained the magic of Faerie that had been stolen, and we were just getting it back? That’s what I’d been told but …
I shook my head, reaching up to rub my temples. Lies, these were lies. That’s why we were coached to never let them speak.
Stryker watched me with curiosity. Was there even a little compassion in there too?
But I wasn’t done arguing. “For the record I do not hail from a long line of assassins like Dawn does. The Summer princess always travels to Ethereum and returns with the heart. I’m from the Fall Court. None of my ancestors have ever traveled to this realm, and I’ve never killed a fae in my entire life.”
“Yeah, I can tell,” he said mockingly.
I reached out to smack his chest but he caught my hand in midair, his big thumb pressing into the middle of my palm. We locked eyes and it felt like all of the oxygen had been sucked from the space. I could hardly breathe, pinned by his gaze.
His eyes narrowed. “Are you using your power?”
Hurt washed over me, and I yanked my hand back. “I assure you that your feelings are entirely your own.”
But his wall was back up, he was watching me through a veil of suspicion.
I shook my head. “Do you trust anyone?”
He laughed dryly. “No. Least of all a witch that can manipulate my feelings.”
I sighed and leaned my head against the cushioned side of the carriage.
“This is going to be a long ride.”
* * *
After riding for what felt like forever, we stopped for the night. The guards made camp in a beautiful green meadow just off the main road. A fire and multiple tents were set up. Lord Stryker hooked his elbow into mine and all but dragged me to the largest tent, our ankles still shackled together. When we got inside, he unlatched the shackle from his ankle first, then mine, and tied me to the post supporting the middle of the tent. Off to the side were two large cots, both with light blankets as the weather was agreeable.
“Umm, are those two cots for you and I?” I asked nervously. They were awfully close together.
Stryker walked over to the large desk in the middle of the room and glared at me. “Yes, I don’t trust anyone else to keep an eye on you.”
“I’m not a big runner,” I announced, but he ignored me. “So you can take this off.” I shook my foot to rattle the chain.
Stryker just ignored me and I growled in frustration.
A messenger came in holding a few letters and Lord Stryker waved to him, leaning back in his desk chair. “Tell me.”
The messenger nodded. “The farmers send their thanks for the compensation of their lost crop due to fungus contamination.”
Stryker waved it off. “Yes, yes, they are welcome. Next?”
The messenger burned the letter in a metal bin of glowing coals near the open door. Moving to the next, he shifted a little uncomfortably.
“The moment you left the castle in Easteria, there was a robbery attempt by three civilians. They were subdued and nothing was taken. They are in the dungeon awaiting your return.”
Stryker just sighed, looking over at me as if to say,see,I can’t trust anyone.
