“But what of theBook of Erebos?” his eyes narrowed, watching me closely. “Will you vow to do all in your power to ensure the Darkseer does not destroy the Book?”
I couldn’t see a way out of it, so I gritted out, “Yes.”
“And one last thing,” he said, his tongue flicking out to wet his bottom lip. “You will grant me one favor. Any favor, at a time and place of my choosing.”
I stared into his predatory green eyes, the bloodlust in them unmistakable. This was a step too far. What if he called in this favor the night of the blood ritual? It could jeopardize everything. But what choice did I have? I could accept this twisted bargain or face my death.
I shut my eyes. “I will.”
“Then, I, Evren Dronov, vow to uphold my end of the bargain,” he declared. “And now, we seal this oath in blood.”
I stilled.
He gave a dark, humorless chuckle. “Did you think we were going to use softmagic?” he taunted. “I think not. I find bloodbargains to be much more enduring.”
“Wait—!” was all I had time to say before he drew the blade across his forearm, allowing beads of blood to trickle to the floor. Without warning, he tugged on my wrist, yanking me closer, slashing a shallow line in the flesh of my wrist. I gasped at the sharp pain, hardly hearing the strange slew of words that Evren muttered under his breath in a language I didn’t recognize. My blood dripped to the floor, mingling with his.
I tasted a glimmer of sulfurous magic in the air, like a match striking against a rough surface, and then it was gone. A searing, burning sensation shot up my wrist, different from the stinging cut made by his knife. A whimper of pain and surprise escaped my lips, and I stared down in horror as a searing red symbol materialized on my forearm.
X
An identical symbol appeared on Evren’s arm in exactly the same place. Once the words had been spoken and both runes seared into skin, my blood began to clot, though the flesh still looked raw and angry. I fought back tears, butfuck,if it didn’t burn! Beneath the stabbing pain loomed a new and dawning senseof horror. How could the rune have appeared without Evren’s invoking my true name? I hadn’t expected the magic to bind us without it, but clearly, I’d been wrong. An icy coil of doubt wrapped itself around my abdomen. I was going to be sick.
Evren waited for me to heave the meager contents of my stomach onto the tiles before he forced me to look up at him, eyes shining with a vicious sort of anticipation that made my blood chill.
“Now,” he breathed. “Let’s see if our bargain is truly sealed.”
He seized my wrist, nails biting into flesh.
I was shocked when my mouth abruptly flooded with cold iron, the flavor of old blood. I nearly gagged at the taste. The metallic tang of Evren’s glamour coated my tongue, spreading over my body like a current, but the pain I’d anticipated did not come.
His knuckles were bloodless as he held my wrist.
I acted instinctively, falling to the floor and thrashing about, emitting groans of pain, crying out as if I was being tortured. Internally, I was gleeful with triumph. Evren’s glamour hadn’t worked.
I rolled my eyes back into my skull, really selling it. I figured he’d make this little test as painful as possible, even if it got us caught—he was so eager to repair his bruised ego. To remind himself that he was powerful, and I was nothing. A heartbeat later, he released my wrist, and I flopped against the floor, groaning feebly.
“Marvelous,” he murmured. He was breathing heavily, staring down at me with a satisfied grin, his eyes almost black with power.
It wasn’t difficult to arrange my features into an expression full of loathing as I gazed back up at him. “Did you have to make it hurt so much?” I croaked, knowing my weakness would only increase his enjoyment. Albeit necessary, it was still nauseating to debase myself like this; to play the role of the Bloodweaver’s new plaything.
“Lucky for you,” he purred, “I don’t usually break my toys... at least, not until I grow tired of them.”
He extended a hand to me and laughed when I hesitated to accept it.
“Don’t tell your Darkseer about our little agreement,” he added, a wistful smile spreading across his lips. “I want to witness the look on his face when he sees how I make his mortal girl scream.”
Numbly, I nodded, feeling squeamish. I tried my best to keep my expression vacant, concealing the warring shock and relief that surged through me. He hadn’t been able to hurt me, even after I swore away my protections. He couldn’t touch me.
Evren muttered something under his breath, and I watched in amazement as our blood vanished from the tiles. An enchantment? He turned to leave, and I wondered if he might renege on our bargain.
“Wait! I called after him. “Our bargain means I have immunity, right? You… can’t kill me?” He was compelled by blood to honor his word. Wasn’t he?
Evren shot me a derisive glance over his shoulder. “I am bound by the terms of our bargain, same as you. So no, girl, I won’t kill you,” he answered with a devilish grin. “Not yet, anyway.”
Hope drained from my body, leaving ice in its wake. In spite of all my lies and scheming, Evren had tricked me. He would be entirely at his liberty to murder me after the bargain. But—no, hadn’t Casimir said that bloodbargains were permanent? That they never expired? Evren was bound by magic not to kill me forever… right? By now, the adrenaline that had kept me alert had faded to a dull echo, and emotion threatened to overwhelm me. Biting back a sob, I ran into the nearest stall of the bathroom, slamming the door and locking it behind me. I leaned against the doorframe and tried to calm my fluttering pulse.
If there were a hierarchy to oaths and bargains, it would follow that the bloodbargain between Evren and me should be more potent than a veilbound one. However, because I’d neglected to invoke my true name, it followed that the magic could not compel me to obey Evren’s terms. At least, that was my working theory.