“Done.”
With an obnoxious giggle, she rocked forward on her toes, clapping her hands beneath her chin. I caught her hand, allowing the magic from our bargain to bind us together.
Meranda left as soon as I shifted a chest of gold to her home back in Graystones.
“Ohhhh, would you look at that,” Tadhg murmured.
I glanced over at my brother to find him clutching my feckin’ note. The bastard must’ve shifted it when I wasn’t paying attention. “Give it back, or so help me . . .”
“I must speak with you,” he mimicked in a high voice. “It’s urgent.” He pinched the note between his thumb and forefinger, giving it a shake. “I take it this is from ‘no one’ with the fiery touch? Where is Meranda living now? Graystones, isn’t it?”
Bollocks.“Don’t.”
He gave me a wolfish grin, drumming his fingers against his cursed lips. “Could my heartless little brother be in love with a woman from Graystones? How scandalous.”
“Tadhg, please. You know what the Queen will do to her.”
His smile faded, and he rolled his eyes, throwing the note onto the drink-splattered coffee table, muttering that I was no fun when I was melancholy.
I sank onto the cushion and stared at the note for far too long, trying to figure out what to do. Going to her could bring certain death. But she was clearly in trouble.
Maybe I could . . .
Feck it anyway, I couldn’t believe I was saying this.
Maybe I could help.
10
Two days.
That was how long it took for Tadhg to lose interest in Aveen’s note. Two long, excruciating days of having to live under his intense scrutiny. Any time I stepped out of a room, Tadhg was there, smirking.
Thankfully, Ruairi showed up the second night, distracting my brother with drink and women, and I was able to slip out the kitchen door unnoticed. If Tadhg really wanted to learn my whereabouts, all he had to do was convince Eava to do some scrying, but I was confident he’d been deep enough in his cups that he wouldn’t be bothered by my absence.
It wasn’t as if I intended to linger at Aveen’s house.I’d simply ask what she needed and decide whether to help. I evanesced to her garden, crossing the damp grass until I could see her bedroom window. Was this a bad idea? Probably. Was I going to do it anyway? Yes.
I remembered how it felt to lie on her bed, so that’s where I went.
Aveen sat on her chair, head in her hands and shoulders curled, crying.Seeing her upset did strange things to my chest. “I cannot stand weepy women,” I announced.
She launched upright, twisting and catching herself on the chair’s arm.
“You’re here,” she breathed, scrubbing at tear-stained cheeks.
My throat swelled, making it hard to swallow.Who hurt you?“Did you miss me?”
She gave one final sniffle, rubbing her red nose against her sleeve. “Of course not.”
There it was. A lie to give me hope I didn’t want. “Did you just want to stare at me, or was there somethingurgentyou wished to discuss?”
She shifted on her toes, catching her skirts in her fists. “I want to avail of that wish you promised.”
The useless hope within me died, turning to darkness. What had I honestly thought? That she’d called on me to confess her undying devotion? No. She wanted to use me for my magic. How disappointingly human of her. “I promised you a wish in exchange for breaking a curse. Seeing as you’ve refused to do your part, there shall be no wish.”
“Please. I need that wish.”
“Why? What has changed?” Last week she’d told me to go and shite, and today she was practically begging.