Page 135 of Somber Prince
That turned out to be a losing bet. The guard clearly lacked any compassion. He smirked.
“And what will I get if I let you up there?”
“Anything,” I pleaded. “I’ll do anything. What do you want?”
He couldn’t hurt me, could he? His eyelids dropped a little, which gave his smirk a lewd expression. Except that how could it be lewd if he couldn’t feel lust? He didn’t even have a dick, for goodness’ sake.
He dragged me from the stairs and to the shade on the side.
“Stay right here,” he ordered. “If you move even a step in either direction, the deal is off.”
“What deal?” I mumbled, but he was already gone.
He returned a moment later, bringing a small package wrapped in a piece of oily paper. He unwrapped it, revealing a crème-filled pastry.
“I want you to eat this.” He shoved the pastry in my hand.
“Now?” I blinked at him, confused.
“Yes.”
With a quick, furtive glance around the plaza, he shoved the fabric of his shroud behind his shoulders. Black shadows extended from his upper arms, snaking toward me. I stilled, halting my breath, my eyes fixed on the undulating shadows braiding into tendrils.
“That’s the food normally served to Joy Vessels.” The guard tipped his chin at the pastry in my hand. “Eat it. I want to feel your pleasure.”
I swallowed hard. The sweet scent of the pastry made my stomach roil. Which was not the pastry’s fault. It smelled nice. It probably tasted good too. But my stomach was tied in knots from nerves, and there was nothing I could do about it.
“If I do… If I eat it, will you let me see the prince?” I asked.
“That’s the deal.”
His tendrils plunged into the openings of the harness around my arms. Two more appeared from behind his back and slipped around me, connecting with the leilathas on my back.
“Now be a good girl and eat it.” He panted in anticipation. His mouth opened as he watched me bring the pastry to my lips.
The guard’s presence invaded my emotions. The eager prodding of his tendrils around my feelings were almost physical, like the greedy fingers of a stranger exploring the hidden, private layers of my psyche. I had the strong urge to yank them out and run away, but I needed the deal with the guard to work. He stood in my way to Rha.
Slowly, I opened my mouth and took a bite.
I tried, I really tried, to give the guard what he wanted. Being with Rha had taught me to find pleasure in little things and enjoy every moment. I tried to focus on the flakiness of the pastry dough as it broke and crunched under my teeth. On the flavor of the sweet crème melting on my tongue. But it mostly felt like tasteless clay to me.
All I could think about was Rha chained just above us and me being down here, unable to help him. I felt scared, helpless, anxious, and impatient. If there was any joy inside me, it was buried so deeply below worries and fear, even I couldn’t find it.
“What the fuck is this?” the guard growled, grabbing the bitten pastry out of my hand. “What kind of a Joy Vessel are you? If I wanted to feel anxious and terrified, I’d stick to my own emotions. I don’t need to break the law for this shit and risk my head.”
Begrudgingly, he withdrew his tendrils and packed away his precious pastry that he must’ve stolen from the kitchen at some point.
“Can I see the prince?” I couldn’t give up.
“Fuck off.” The guard gave me a shove toward the nearest side street. “Go back to the sarai before I report you and have you whipped for escaping.”
Disappointment crushed me. I dragged my feet, making a few slow steps toward the archway of the street. I wasn’t going to return to the sarai, of course, but I couldn’t figure out what else to do to get on that platform.
The sun was rising, and with it the wind. A day storm was approaching, coming earlier in the day, this time. If I just waited somewhere, maybe I could sneak up on the platform later? After all, I tolerated the sunlight much better than the shadow fae did.
Maybe I could trick the guards somehow?
“Greetings, Your Highness,” came from behind me.