Page 37 of Nocte
But no more. She isn’t worth any more.
Even so, I haunt her worthless steps, deep into their dusty, suffocating archives. The fae spread the rumor that their vaults of knowledge are safe and secure.
A lie. It’s too easy to slip in and walk around unnoticed. Those haughty fae have their noses too far into the air to notice. They think that the threat of discovery alone keeps them safe and hidden.
Even Cassius is surprised by how easily I can creep in amongst their stone. He’s never tried, but he’s wanted to—that much he lets me discern.
However, he is lazy and unmotivated. I am not. I have a prize to hunt. A toy to play with. A body dressed in ugly rags that beckons to me even in this dark, dank crypt.
Cassius’ price tag isn’t the worst part, nor is the looming death hanging around her neck. It’s the fact that she knows I’m here. She’s known all along.
Rather than quiver in fear, she waits for me to make myself known. Eventually, the little fae becomes impatient. Hunched on the floor, rag in hand, she asks, “What do you want?”
“You know what I want,” I reply. But that isn’t quite the truth. She knows what I want but can’t have. I’m here for another reason. A foolish reason.
“Pick up one of those books and read to me, little fae.”
She shakes her head. Picks up her rag. Tries to clean. She fails. Her hand shakes too badly to manipulate the rag correctly, but fear isn’t the reason.
“No. They… They are not a game.” Disgust paints her words with a fae-like haughty sheen, but she couldn’t sound like them if she tried. Even here in her chosen domain, she isn’t arrogant enough. “These books are important. Not toys.”
She truly believes that. It amuses me just how deeply she believes that. As if none of the shit in this stuffy room is as fragile as paper. One small flame and it’s all alight. All gone. Poof. Dust.
Telling her so would make her snap. I like her better this way, fragile and delicate. I’ll use her books against her the way Cassius has used her body against me. She wants my mercy? I’ll make her dance for it.
“Read to me little fae, or…”
The threat dangles in the air, unspoken but just as sweet. Just as potent. She jumps as if I’ve pulled a knife out and slashed at one of those leatherbound covers.
“I can’t,” she insists. “I have to clean. I can’t stay here all day.”
Partly the truth. Mainly a lie. The others avoid this place like the plague. Oh, how the fae pretend to exalt knowledge and wisdom and their history-laden bullshit. In reality, they prefer to play, and gossip and fuck. They hate this place. They hate her.
Yet they allowed her to believe that it all matters. That this place, which she treats so sacredly, is important. I want to crush her delusion. Tell her just how little they care.
I don’t. Cassius wants me to. He’s purring encouragement at the back of my mind, lurking there like a coiled snake, waiting to strike.Come, Caspian. My loyal one. My little sadist.He wants me to dash her little fae hopes and dreams—which means I can’t. I won’t.
Even if it hurts her, I will never please him.
“I want you to read,” I tell her. Her lips part but before she can speak, I add, “You want me to tell you about the other realm. The mortal realm. Don’t you?”
She stifles a gasp as she falls silent. Ah, I’ve got her. She can’t wiggle away from her heart’s desire. She’ll jump through any hoop just to achieve a glimpse of it.
Though, she’s not as dumb as I thought. “You’ve told me nothing,” she points out, chin in the air. “Even after…”
I lick my lips, recalling the toll she’s already paid. One kiss. Two. Three.
“Yet, you’ve told me nothing. I’m starting to think that you know nothing.”
Ah, maybe she’s right. Perhaps she’s wrong. Our collective mind hums at the mention of forbidden knowledge. I’d run myself ragged trying to break down Cassius’ mental barriers—not that I have to. I’ll make him a trade. A small piece of knowledge for…
Another kiss,he replies in an instant. Greedy bastard. There is no time to regret or despair. No time to hate him either, because in my mind unfurls a kernel of information, brilliant and bright.
“There is a way out of the Citadel,” I tell her, and watch those black eyes widen. “A secret way where one can pass without needing clearance from the elder council. Another tunnel, underground. A forgotten portal.”
Is there? Cassius, the bastard, doesn’t clarify. He could be feeding a lie through me to this little fae. But, hell, I’d lie to her forever if it made her eyes widen like this and her throat clench.
“Really?”