Total pages in book: 106
Estimated words: 99935 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 500(@200wpm)___ 400(@250wpm)___ 333(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 99935 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 500(@200wpm)___ 400(@250wpm)___ 333(@300wpm)
“I’m sorry,” I said softly. “You and your father deserved better.”
“Cut the shit!” The faeman wrung my neck like a dishcloth. “I know you’re not sorry! But you, and the master holding your leash, will be.”
Again he yanked my head around, ripping a cry from my lips. If I wasn’t very concussed and very human under the glamour, I might have been able to fight back. But as it was, even the thought of moving made me dizzy.
“I don’t know what you two are getting out of killing my people and making it look like a witch did it, but whatever your plan is, it’s over,” he dropped. “I’m telling everyone that you are the witch in disguise, and the one that made a deal to let our most dangerous enemy run loose in Abaddon—killing indiscriminately—is Lucifer, a lord of hell.
“When that gets out, it won’t matter how many deals he’s made or with who,” Iarla growled. “Hell itself will rise up and rip him from his throne of skulls.”
“Ravenscar, you listen! You’ve got it all wrong! I have nothing to do with any of this,” I cried. “I was lured here by the real killer, and if you go off spouting a bunch of lies, the wrong person will be blamed while the actual killer skips off free! Please,” I begged. “Just calm down and hear me.
“If you want revenge, get it for the five innocent faemen who were murdered by a psychopath. They gave everything to serve and protect you.”
Something flickered in Ravenscar’s eyes too fast for me to name.
“Don’t make their sacrifice worthless by putting your vengeance ahead of getting them justice.”
Iarla tipped his head to the side, studying me. “You really are the strangest demon I’ve ever met. And not just because you’re butt-fucking-ugly. You talk like no one I’ve ever met before—with all your made-up words and strange ideas. That I should repay the sacrifices of my servants by selflessly setting my own vengeance aside?”
Iarla burst out laughing so hard, he blew my wart hairs back. “What complete and utter houndshit! Who gives a shit about those dead fuckers? They’re the fools who let themselves be bested by the likes of you and Lucifer.”
Red descended over my eyes, letting me see nothing but the frantic desperation of that poor faeman—begging me to save him. How dare this pissy brat make fun of the last horrible moments of his life?
“Well, that’s funny,” I gritted, ripping out of Ravenscar’s grip. “Because if only fools are bested by Lucifer... what does that make Daddy?”
The humor leeched from Ravenscar’s face so fast, if I blinked, I would’ve missed the moment my righteous indignation turned to regret.
Whoops. Of all the things I shouldn’t have said, I shouldn’t have said that the most.
“You’re probably wishing you hadn’t said that right about now,” he hissed, scarily reading my mind. “I’m almost sorry we’ll have to skip the part where you’re begging and pleading for my forgiveness.”
Bang!
“Is this the one?” I would’ve recognized Erlik’s voice anywhere.
“Yeah, yeah,” someone replied to him. “Prince Ponce said it was the library on the fourth floor.”
“Goodbye, worm,” Ravenscar said.
“Wait—!”
The last thing I saw was his fist flying at my face.
Chapter Eleven
“...do we do...”
“...stupid fairy boy... running his mouth...”
“...can’t contain this...”
Voices reached me in my dark, pain-filled space and dragged me back.
I came to on a dark, musty, old carpet—blinking to make sense of the figures and lights spinning in my vision.
“The fool has only gone and told the whole fucking school that Lord Lucifer let the witch into the school to slaughter us all,” Erlik gruffed. “Says it was obvious from the first day when the little cheat rode a hellhound through the trials. He’s even saying that we demons likely suspected the truth all along, but didn’t care because the witch was only slaying wolves, vampires, faeries, and weak demons.”
“His slander has already spread through the whole school—no doubt with the help of his winged messengers,” said a voice I didn’t recognize. “It’s too late to shut the winged brat up, but hell knows we can’t bring an accusation to a hell lord without proof.”
I craned my head to see, and immediately winced. I reached up to rub my temples, and found I couldn’t move my arms.
I was shackled and dumped on the floor of a small and oddly bare room. Truly, this space had nothing to say for itself except for four walls and a door. For some reason, three pairs of legs huddled together—facing one of the walls as if they were talking to it. But the shackles were so heavy, they kept me pinned facedown, stopping me from getting a proper look at who else was in the room with me.
“What are your orders, Headmistress?”
Wait, what? Did he just say Headmistress?
“You’re quite right that there’s nothing we can do to silence Ravenscar now,” replied a feminine voice. Was she the third pair of legs? “Nor would killing him solve anything. Lord Lucifer and King Ravenscar share the most favorable trade negotiations. Killing the king’s heir because he slandered Lord Lucifer, would only set off a war that Lucifer would bring down on our heads.”