“You think you can steal fromme?” the shifter said with a laugh. “Some thieves you are, casting magic in my shop. My spells have revealed you for what you are.”
I realized that I’d fucked up. Kallie had said we couldn’t cast magic to get through the wards. I didn’t realize a simple illusion spell would set things off, as it wasn’t an outright attack. I mentally kicked myself for the stupid decision. The spell had stripped us of our glamour and forced Oberi to reveal all five forms, all for a dumb backpack.
I had to find a way to get through to this guy, because we weren’t leaving here without our stuff. I didn’t care if Kallie thought we couldn’t leave bodies behind. I would if I had to.
“Please, sir,” I said sadly, throwing in a voice crack for show. When you wanted to run a con, you had to play to what was important to the person you were trying to fool. Hopefully this guy had a shred of empathy. “We don’t mean anyone any harm. My wife is in a wheelchair, and in a lot of pain. We have nothing left, and we just want to help her. Don’t you have a family? Wouldn’t you do anything for them?”
He didn’t seem to care. Instead, he scoffed and said, “You think I’d believe a sob story like that? I should be turning you into the authorities right now!”
“So why aren’t you?” Kallie asked.
“Because I’ve seen what you can offer,” he practically sang. “I’m willing to forgive you for trespassing and sell you whatever you want, in exchange for one of those wyvern scales.”
“What do you want me to do? Just pluck one off his back?” I sneered.
“If you don’t want me turning you into the authorities, you will!” he demanded.
“That’s a rip-off,” Kallie spat. “One wyvern scale is worth a hundred times what we’re here for!”
“You destroyed my entire pharmacy!” the shifter roared. “I think it’s a fair trade.”
“Or I could just kill you and walk out of here,” I said with a shrug. Screw conning the man. I was ready to get this over with.
“Kill me, and other fae will be here in moments to hunt you down,” the shifter said. “Now that I’ve stripped your glamour, I’ve got you on camera, and the recording has already been sent to an off-site server. Give me a wyvern scale, and I’ll wipe any traces of you ever being here.”
“Charlie, do it,” Kallie insisted. The last thing we wanted was to be followed.
I gritted my teeth. I didn’t like being pushed around by some sleazy black-market dealer, but no one could find out where we were. It was the one weakness we had, and this guy knew how to play it.
If it gets us out of here without a trace, I’ll give him one of my scales, Oberi told me.
“Fine,” I growled. I turned to Oberi, and he shifted. He didn’t make the full shift, or he’d take up the whole room. It was just enough that I could feel his scales. I pinched a scale around his neck and ripped it out. Oberi winced.
I held up the scale to show the shifter, but I didn’t hand it over right away. “Let my friend go.”
“Give me the scale first,” he demanded.
“I said—” I started, but Kallie cut me off.
“Charlie, just give it to him so we can get out of here.”
I placed the scale in the shifter’s outstretched hand, the same time I grabbed Kallie and yanked her away from him.
“Now get out of here!” he yelled. “I don’t want to see either of you back here ever again.”
We scrambled down the hallway.
“Did you get it all?” Kallie asked.
“Yes, you?”
“Everything. Including your anti-baby meds. Let’s get out of here.” Kallie created a portal in front of us, and we leapt through. We landed on soft ground, and the scent of the forest filled my nose.
Oberi shook out his fur.I can’t believe I gave a scale up to that stinky old dude! That guy was suspicious.
“Of course he was,” I said. “What else did you expect from a black-market dealer? Do you think he recognized you, Kallie?”
Kallie hadn’t been seen around these parts in over two years, but the fae wouldn’t soon forget the face of the young princess who’d been sentenced to prison for an assassination attempt on the king.
