Savage Beauty(20)

“And the binding salt?” I asked, holding out my hand.

“Aw, you remembered,” he smarted.

Of course I remembered. My goal after coming here would be to see that my sister couldn’t take a single step outside of her castle. Binding her inside would piss her off even worse than binding her to the palace grounds did. She would be enraged if she couldn’t walk among her roses. I almost couldn’t wait to see her in my dreams...her beautiful face, contorted in rage...

I sighed happily as Malex walked into the back of the cave and disappeared behind a wall that led to another chamber. When he returned, he was carrying a small burlap sack tied at the top with twine. “Sprinkle this all around the castle,” he instructed. “It will bind her inside.”

“And I’ll still be able to cross the barrier it provides?”

“Yes, but only you. It provides the person who creates the circle access, but will keep all other fae from crossing the line.”

“Including you?” I asked.

“Including me. Not that I’d want to visit Aura.” He smiled, looking as if he’d been chiseled from gold.

“Thank you for helping me.” When I reached for the bag, he held it up and out of reach. “These come with a price, you know. I’ll help you with your separation spell for a future favor; however, the price for the binding dust is a kiss.”

A growl tore from my chest. “I don’t want to kiss you,” I fumed.

He tsked, his canines seeming longer than they were a few moments ago. “We all have to do things we’d rather not sometimes. Besides, it’s only a kiss. You’re a beautiful halfling. Powerful. Terrible. I just want a taste of the fury building beneath the beauty.”

“Then you should seek out my sister. She’s the beauty. I’m the savage.”

“And what flavor is your savagery, sweet Luna?” He stepped closer, reaching out to ease my hair away from my face. My claws extended, biting into the flesh of my palm as Malex placed a chaste but lingering kiss on my cheek, his eyes widening as they locked onto mine. “Very interesting,” he murmured before pressing his lips to mine. His eyes closed as he kissed me, but I didn’t want to let him have the pleasure of enjoying it if I didn’t. Pushing him away, I wiped the moisture from my lips. “Enough. Give me the dust.”

“You taste of fear,” he whispered. Slowly, he handed the bag over. “I wonder what fearless Luna could possibly be worried about?” he mused.

“Not having enough time to end my sister once and for all, for starters.”

At our last visit, Malex warned that if I didn’t sever the tie before our eighteenth birthday, my sister and I would be forever linked. That meant this was my last chance. He said I couldn’t do it while she slept, which meant it had to be done in autumn. Another stipulation was that we both had to be awake, so the timing had to be either right before dawn or at dusk. When spring came again, all hope would be lost. We would come of age, and our powers would peak. If this didn’t work, we would be bound together forever.

And it had to work.

Right now is the time to strike.

He flashed a feline smile. “No, this fear seems direr than your tumultuous relationship with Aura. You’ve been orbiting one another since birth.”

I shrugged.

“You also taste of heartache. Surely you don’t still pine for your human prince.” His brows furrowed. “And there’s something else... I can’t quite put my finger on it.”

“Guessing the hidden flavor should keep you busy for a long while.” I turned my back to him and grabbed my broom. “My emotions are none of your concern,” I said sharply. “I’ll be back with the ingredients. Be ready for me.”

He smiled, tucking his hands in his pockets. “I always have time for you, Luna.”

I walked out of his cave and into the inky darkness. Rain sprinkled from the sky as I took flight. My lips and the cheek he kissed still tingled. Suddenly, I knew. He marked me.

That bastard marked me.



PHILLIP

An owl hooted just outside the window. Then another and another, their calls echoing eerily through the forest. The sound of a tree crashing to the ground came from just beyond the front porch. It was still dark, and Luna said she wouldn’t be back until just before dawn.

“Luna?” I called out, easing toward the door. I could still open it. She put a protective spell around the house, so as long as I didn’t walk outside onto the porch, nothing could get in. Right?

I looked at Ember. She stood between me and the door with her back arched and her claws sticking into the floor boards. “You don’t think it’s her?” I asked as if she could reply.

She let out a squall.

“Phillip?” a voice cried from outside.

It’s Luna! It sounded like her, anyway. Ember squalled again, setting my teeth on edge.

I opened the door an inch and peered out. Luna stood in front of the house, looking out at the woods. The owls hadn’t stopped their incessant hooting and screeching.

“Come out here with me,” she said, smiling over her shoulder.

“Make them stop,” I replied, jutting my chin toward the woods.

“I like their cries,” she said, turning back around.

Suddenly it hit me. “You aren’t Luna.”