“Oensjægeren,” Alek hissed.
“Odin’s Hunters,” Tor translated.
“I thought they were fae?” Pan asked his father in a low voice.
“I get the feeling they might be both,” Malice answered.
Ignoring all the side chatter, Stag tilted his chin up and demanded, “Let us leave with our prisoner, and you may keep your lives.”
“You should take the deal,” Ram said. “It’s more than we offer most.”
My fear was swiftly replaced by acceptance. My life for theirs? It was no choice at all. Either way, I would not survive this. My years of freedom had been a blessing, but now they were at an end.
I closed my eyes, prepared to accept the Hunt’s terms, only to have them flying back open as Lilith brazenly declared, “Oh, you’re interested in making deals? Excellent, I have one for you.”
Horror twisted my gut as understanding rocked me. “Lilypad, no.”
Stag’s hold around my throat loosened, but he was still touching me, muting my power. “Continue.”
“You can have him.Afterwe complete our mission and stop the apocalypse.”
“We can simply take him now. The apocalypse is of no importance to us.”
“And what will you do with a weakened fae prince when all of existence is wiped out?” she asked. “Wouldn’t it be ever so much more fun to have a world to play in? Especially if I sweeten the pot.”
“With what?”
“Me.”
Masked as they were, it was hard to see any official reaction, but the shift in their energy was palpable. She’d captured their attention.
Wolf tipped his head back to sniff the air. “And who are you, demon, that you believe you are of any interest to us?”
Lilith cocked a brow. “I know you can look into my mind. See for yourself.”
I hated the idea of any of them rooting around in her head. They were known for their ability to use your fears against you and drive you mad. I should know. They’d done it to me.
“Don’t do this,” I begged, even though it was far too late.
Her eyes briefly met mine, and the emotion I found there left me breathless. “I vowed to protect you. I keep my vows.”
“I freed you from your vow when I broke the chain.”
Her luscious red lips quirked up in the smallest of smiles. “The chain was merely a reminder. The vow is eternal, Drystan.”
“But my power . . .”
“Okay, that part was bound by the chain, but never my promise to you.”
“This is all very touching, but I am running out of patience,” Stag warned.
“You know my terms,” Lilith countered smoothly. “Leave and allow us to deal with matters here. Once the apocalypse is handled, you may return and collect us.”
“You’ll come willingly?” Ram asked.
Lilith dipped her chin in a nod. “As you just witnessed, I am a demon of my word.”
Stag nodded. “Very well. We have a deal.”