The Never King (Vicious Lost Boys #1)(19)

I liked being called a whore.

If Pan called me a whore and fucked me—

“Good morning.”

I lurch upright as Cherry comes in.

“Hell,” I say. “You scared me.”

“Sorry,” she says. She comes to the bed and sets down a tray of food.

“What happened to you?” I ask her as I get up. There are scratches on her face and bruises on her arms.

“I fell down.”

“Where? In a barrel of broken glass?”

She ignores me. “I made you fresh coffee. Do you use cream or sugar?”

Beside the coffee, there’s a plate with toast and a bowl of fruit.

“Some cream would be nice.”

She removes the lid from one of the cups and pours in thick cream. The coffee pales.

“Did you sleep well?” she asks.

Oddly enough, yes, I did. Better than I have in a long time.

“Eat,” Cherry says. “I picked the berries fresh this morning. The bush didn’t produce much, but then it rarely does. So these are gold around here. Just so you know.”

I come over to sit on the giant bed. The chain comes with me. Cherry frowns at it.

“You don’t like my new jewelry?” I ask her and lift my arm with a flourish. “It’s very avant-garde.”

She laughs. She has a tinkling laugh that reminds me of Christmas and snow globes and elves.

I pluck a berry from the bowl and pop it in my mouth. Cherry watches me.

“You’re very pretty,” she says.

“I know,” I say.

She frowns at me.

“It’s best you know what your assets are,” I say, almost a parrot of Starla.

Cherry shakes her head. “I don’t know if I have any.”

“Sure you do.” I fold my legs beneath me and take a sip of the coffee. It’s honestly the best cup I’ve ever had. Better than Starbucks.

Why does everything taste better here?

“Your hair and your freckles are an asset,” I tell Cherry. “And you have this innocent look about you. Can you be devious?”

She laughs nervously. “I don’t think so.”

“I bet they underestimate you.”

She knows who I’m talking about.

“I…” She looks down at the sheet tangled at the end of my bed. “I don’t have magic or power. So I don’t think there’s anything to underestimate.”

Hand curled around the coffee mug, I bring it halfway, but watch her through the steam.

She’s lonely and desperate for attention. Something I suspect the Lost Boys will never give her.

I can give her attention. Just one more thing I can use when I need to.

“Who is your favorite?” I ask and take another sip of the coffee. God, it feels good to have something normal. Even though I haven’t been here long, everything is different. I need something that’s not.

“Of the boys?” she asks.

“Yes.”

A smile plays over her mouth and she ducks her head.

“Go on,” I coax. “Spill the secrets.”

“Well…”

“Yes?”

“Vane.”

I grimace with bared teeth. “Seriously?”

She blushes and tucks a lock of her auburn hair behind her ear. “There’s just something about him—”

“Scintillating and psychotic?”

“It’s his shadow. He—”

“Wait…his what?”

She licks her lips. Shit, I’ve caught her in something she wasn’t supposed to say.

That’s exactly why I need to befriend her.

I lower my voice. “I won’t say anything. Promise.”

She checks the door, then leans into me, excited to have a secret that I don’t. “There are more islands than Neverland. Seven islands, seven kings. Every island has two shadows. One for life, one for death. The king always claims a shadow. It’s in his blood, having the ability to claim it.” Her voice thins as she grows more excited. “The king picks which one he wants. Pan picked life a very long time ago. But when Pan lost his shadow, he lost the power and now the island is suffering because of it and I think Pan might be dying.”

I blink at her.

It’s a lot to take in.

“So Pan is a king?” I ask.

“Yes. Or he was. But that was before I was born.”

“And he lost his shadow?”

“Yes.”

A puzzle piece clicks into place.

He thinks the Darlings took his shadow. He said as much without saying it exactly.

He’s going to have a hard time getting that information out of me considering I’ve literally never heard of it and definitely don’t know how to find it.

It makes my plan even more important. Because if I can’t give him what he wants…

“What about the death shadow or whatever from this island?” I ask.

She shakes her head. “It’s been missing for a very long time. No one has seen it and no one seems interested in finding it. Death shadows are nothing to be messed with.”

Her gaze goes distant as she says this and I get the distinct impression she knows more about death shadows than she’s letting on.