The only thing that stopped me from snapping at her and slapping her hands away was thinking of Selena.
Sage and I had the best chance of getting the staff if neither of us were turned into pigs. And I wouldn’t fail my best friend by losing control of my emotions and making a move against Circe.
At least, that was what I kept telling myself.
But I wasn’t sure I’d be able to keep reining it in if—no, when—Circe pushed further.
“She won’t touch you anymore.” Sage came up to me and took my hands in hers, stopping my pacing. Her eyes were hard—resolved. “Because I’m going to move forward with the first plan Thomas proposed to Reed.”
I dropped her hands and stepped back. “No.” I looked to the door, and then back to Sage. “You can’t do that. What about Thomas?”
“Thomas will be stuck as a pig forever if we don’t use whatever means necessary to get the staff.”
“But he’s your mate,” I said. “You can’t do that to him.”
“I can, and I will.” She stood strong and held my gaze—a true alpha wolf. “Unless you want to do it?”
I held my breath and pressed my lips together. I should have said yes. Anything for Selena.
But I knew what I’d be committing myself to if I did. And the thought of letting Circe kiss me, undress me, and do whatever else she wanted to do to me… would I truly be able to convince her that I was enjoying it?
No, the answer came to me, even though I wished I could say otherwise. You wouldn’t.
“I’m going to spend the day with her and shower her with the attention she desires,” Sage continued, apparently having gathered my answer from my silence. “Tonight, I’ll go with her to her bed. Once she’s asleep, I’ll kill her and steal the staff.” Her hands shifted into claws, her teeth sharpening into points. Then she shifted them back. “She might have taken our weapons, but I am a weapon. I can do this.”
“You shouldn’t have to,” I said. “There has to be another way.”
Sage sat on the chair in front of my vanity and grabbed a tube of lipstick. “This will be the fastest.” She applied it and looked back at me. Her lips were as bright red as Circe’s—the color of a true enchantress. “Unless you have a better idea?”
I didn’t.
But I couldn’t let her do this.
I started pacing again. I needed to think, and quickly.
So far, our plan had consisted of tracking Circe’s routine to figure out the best time to attack. But Sage was right. The only time Circe let her guard down was when she was sleeping. And she’d spelled her bedroom so we couldn’t enter uninvited. She’d told us that on the tour she’d given us on the first day.
Even if we could enter uninvited, Circe was sharp and quick. She’d shown that when she’d turned the guys into pigs. She’d know the moment we turned the doorknob, and then we’d likely be enjoying time in the sand with Thomas, Reed, and all the other pigs on that beach.
As much as I didn’t want to admit it, Sage was right.
The only way to be close enough to attack Circe unaware was to go to bed with her and be right next to her while she was sleeping.
Unless…
Were we going about this all wrong? Could we get the staff without attacking her?
A crazy idea hit me, and I stopped pacing.
“What?” Sage asked.
While I’d been thinking, she’d painted on winged eyeliner, pulled down the neckline of her top, and applied contour on her cleavage to make her breasts appear larger.
Ugh. I hoped she’d be on board with my idea. Because while it might be out there, it was better than what she was intending to do with that witch.
And I meant that in the meanest sense of the word. Which I was allowed to do, since I was one.
I sat down on the foot of the bed and placed my hands on my knees. “Maybe we don’t have to steal the staff,” I said slowly.
“Yeah. We do.” Sage looked at me like I’d been drugged with one of Circe’s potions. “At least, we need to steal it if we want to get off this island within the next year and have a chance of getting to the Otherworld to save Selena.”
“That’s not what I meant,” I said.
“Then what did you mean?” she asked. “Because I’m clearly having trouble following.”
“Why do we have to attack Circe at all?” The words came faster as the idea continued formulating in my mind. “Why can’t we just ask for the staff?”
Sage was silent. And not in a good way. It was the type of silence where she was waiting for me to drop a punch line and say I was kidding.
Except there was no punch line.
“Because Circe won’t just give us her staff,” Sage said, speaking to me like I was a child.
“Why not?” I asked.
“Because it’s her staff. She’s had it for thousands of years.”
“But she has potions that turn people into pigs,” I said. “She doesn’t need the staff to do that. And Avalon has tons of resources. The Earth Angel will give anything to get Selena back.”
“Except for the Holy Grail and Excalibur,” Sage said.
“Are you so sure about that?”
“No.” Her eyes hardened. “But those are the holy items from the prophecy. We need them to defeat the demons. We can’t ask the Earth Angel to trade them.”
“We can’t?” I challenged. “Or you won’t?”
“I won’t,” she said. “And neither will you.”
“There has to be something she wants in exchange,” I said. “Avalon has lots of valuable items hidden in the basement vaults.”
Her eyes narrowed. “How do you know about the vaults?” she asked.
“My best friend is the Earth Angel’s daughter.” I shrugged. “I know things.”
Sage rested her elbows back on the vanity and studied me. “Let’s say we do this,” she said. “What’s to stop Circe from saying we’re crazy and turning us into pigs on the spot?”
“Nothing,” I said. “But she’ll definitely turn us into pigs if we attack and fail. If we’re honest with her, maybe she’ll listen.”
Sage said nothing.
“And how confident are you that you’ll be able to go through with your plan for tonight?” I continued. “Thomas is your mate. You love him, and he loves you. I’ve seen the way you look at each other. Do you truly think you’ll be able to do this tonight? And would you be able to live with yourself if you do?”
More silence.
Then, Sage reached for a cloth and wiped the red from her lips. “Fine,” she said once all the lipstick was gone. “We’ll try this your way. And if it doesn’t work… at least Circe will stop trying to seduce us if we’re pigs. At least, I think she will.”
35
Torrence
Sage and I told Circe everything at breakfast, starting with Selena’s kidnapping. From the way she sipped her tea and listened without many interruptions, she at least seemed interested.
I breathed easier once we finished telling her the entire story without her lashing out and turning us into pigs.
“We have many precious objects in the Avalon vaults to trade with,” Sage said. “We keep them protected there, safe from anyone who might try to steal them, saving them for a time in the future when they’ll be absolutely necessary.”
“Very sensible.” Circe nodded. “What objects do you have?”
I looked at Sage, since while I knew there were important objects in the vaults, I didn’t know exactly what they were.
“Armor that will always protect you from physical injuries,” she said. “A shield that grants its owner heavenly protection. A bow that will never miss its mark. A dagger that will shroud its user in shadow. A sword that will only kill those who deserve it.”
“That’s it?” Circe asked.
“They’re all highly valuable,” Sage said. “They were left for us on Avalon by King Arthur.”
“They might be valuable to you.” Circe’s grip around he
r staff tightened. “But they have no value for me. Plus, I’d never trade my staff. It was foolish of you to think I would.”
“Please,” I begged. “There must be something you want.”
She smiled, slow and seductive. “There is something I want,” she said. “The two of you on my island for the rest of the year. Therefore, I already have what I want. And while your story is compelling, it’s not my problem.”
This was getting us nowhere. But there had to be something that would tempt Circe. There was always a way out of every situation. I just needed to figure out what that way was.
“What if you loan us the staff?” I asked. “Once we’re back from the Otherworld, the forces of Avalon can get it back from King Devin and return it to you.”
“You’ll be highly compensated for your cooperation,” Sage added before Circe could respond.
Circe crossed her legs as she looked back and forth between us. “You’re making many promises on behalf of your kingdom,” she said. “Especially given that neither of you have any real power there.”
“Our mission is to do everything necessary to get Selena home safely,” Sage said. “The Earth Angel will honor any deals we make to succeed in this task.”
She looked surprisingly confident, given that she was making this up. Sure, it was likely that the Earth Angel would do her best to follow through on whatever deals we needed to make to get Selena home. But she’d never said so explicitly.
“I’m not interested in making any deals with Avalon, or with your Earth Angel,” Circe finally said. “I am, however, open to a deal with you.” She looked at me when she said the final part.
Shivers spread from the top of my spine all the way down to my toes. “What did you have in mind?” I held onto the edges of my chair, bracing myself for whatever was coming next.
You don’t have to agree, I reminded myself. If she asks for too much, you can say no.
And then blame myself if Selena ended up stuck in the Otherworld forever?
If that happened, I wouldn’t be able to live with the guilt. And I was close to positive that Circe knew that, too.
“I’ll loan you my staff for three months,” she said. “If it’s not back by the end of those three months, you’ll come back to Aeaea and live here with me.”
“For how long?” I asked.
“For forever.”
I sat there, shell-shocked.
“Similarly to how you described life on Avalon, you’ll be immortal on Aeaea, forever preserved as you are now,” Circe continued. “No matter where you are—even if you don’t survive your journey and you end up in the Underworld—you’ll be instantly transported to Aeaea if three months pass and I still don’t have my staff. The deal will ensure it.”
She watched me, waiting. But my tongue felt numb.
She can’t ask this of me.
Except she could. And she had.
“Don’t take Torrence.” Sage reached for Circe’s free hand and gripped it in hers. “Take me instead.”
“You’re married. You’ve been tarnished.” Circe sneered, yanking her hand out of Sage’s, and refocusing on me. Her eyes softened. “You, my dear, are untouched and pure. You’re the one I want. So tell me… how badly do you want to save your friend?”
I pressed my lips together. Because she knew the answer to that.
She was just toying with me now. And I refused to let her get away with it.
“Immediately after the deal is sealed, you promise to turn Thomas and Reed back to normal, loan us the staff, and let the four of us leave the island on our yacht without forcing us to return?”
I’d learned enough about deals to know that the exact wording was always important.
“Yes.” She smiled. “Except for you, of course, if you fail to return my staff. I promise.”
“Okay. I’ll do it,” I said before I could stop myself.
“No.” Sage looked at me in horror. “There has to be another way.”
“There isn’t.” I placed my palms flat on the table, steadying myself. “And even if there is, we don’t have the time to figure out how. Selena doesn’t have the time for us to figure it out. I’m doing this for her. This is our best chance, and you know it.”
Sage’s eyes burned with intensity. “We’ll get that staff back in three months,” she said, turning to Circe. “I’ll make sure of it.”
“Very well.” Circe raised an eyebrow, pushed out of her chair, and stood up. “Torrence,” she said. “Come stand in front of me.”
I did as she asked, facing her with my head held high.
“Sealing the deal is easy.” She raised the hand that wasn’t holding the staff and traced her finger along my cheek. “It only takes one kiss.”
I held her eyes, staying as still as a statue. A kiss might be the way to seal the deal, but I’d make sure she knew I didn’t enjoy it.
She moved closer and pressed her lips to mine. They were ice cold and tasted like bitter poison. A chill swept through my body, growing colder and colder until I feared I might be turning to ice. I tried pulling away, but I was frozen in place. Powerless.
Panic raced through my chest.
She’d deceived us. She was killing me.
Sage, I thought, although I couldn’t move my head to look at her. Do something. Stop her. Please.
I wasn’t breathing. Everything around me turned into a milky haze. My heart beat slower, and slower. Soon, it would stop altogether.
This was it. This was how I was going to die.
But then, Circe pulled away.
Warmth flooded through me. My heart picked up speed until it was beating normally. I could breathe.
I flexed my fingers, surprised at how easily they moved.
“That wasn’t so hard.” Circe tilted her head, her eyes dancing as she looked at me. “Was it?”
“No.” I forced a smile. “It wasn’t.”
The corner of her red lips curled up in amusement. She reached for a strand of my hair and started to pull it over my shoulder, but I slapped her hand away.
“Showing your true colors.” She dropped her arm to her side. “I like it.”
Sage was immediately by my side, her fingers shifted into claws. “Bring us to Thomas and Reed, change them back, and send us off,” she said, her true alpha self shining through as she stared Circe down.
“Of course.” Circe held her staff in front of her with both hands, warding Sage off. “I’m a woman of my word. And while I’d usually wish you luck, there’s no need to bother with the pleasantries. Because you both know I’m hoping you’ll fail.”
She gave me another seductive smile, turned on her heel, and led us out to the beach.
36
Torrence
Sage, Thomas, Reed, and I stood on the top deck of the yacht as we sailed off. I held onto the staff, feeling its power pulse through me.
Circe stood on the beach, her dress and hair blowing in the wind. She blew me a seductive kiss and winked.
I didn’t move my gaze from hers. Three months, I thought, my grip tightening around the staff. I’ll be returning this to you in less than three months.
“From the way she’s looking at you, I’d say you bewitched her,” Reed said with a scowl.
I yanked my gaze away from Circe’s and focused on him. Everything about him was calm, except for his eyes. They raged with emotion.
“What if I did?” I asked, swallowing down disgust at the knowledge of what I’d actually done.
“Then you’re no better than the sluts at the Tower.”
I flinched backward, a storm brewing inside me. “I think you’re forgetting that if it wasn’t for me and Sage, you’d be stuck on that island as a pig for the rest of eternity.”
“We would have figured out a way to shift back,” he said.
I rolled my eyes at his arrogance. “You really can’t just say thank you,” I said. “Can you?”
“You went to Circe’s bed to get her staff.” He looked at me, repuls
ed. “I expected better from you.”
I slammed the end of the staff into the floor. “I did what I had to do to get the staff,” I said. “Which is far more than I can say for you.”
He held my gaze, glaring at me. “You should have kept that dress they gave you at the Tower,” he finally said. “Apparently, it suited you.”
Thomas was beside us in an instant. “Enough,” he said, looking back and forth between Reed and me. “You,” he said to Reed. “Stop making assumptions.”
I stood taller, smirking at Reed.
“And you,” Thomas said to me. “Stop goading him. It’s not getting us anywhere.”
“I’m not—”
“You are,” he said. “Now, would you care to share exactly how you got Circe to hand over her staff?”
The reality of what I’d done crashed over me again. It was a good thing I was holding onto the staff, because I needed something to keep me balanced.
There was no way I was getting away with what I’d done without any repercussions. I knew it deep in my soul.
Sage moved to my other side and placed her hand gently on my arm. “Let’s go downstairs,” she said. “Because it’s a lot to take in, and I think all four of us should sit down while we explain.”
Thomas stored the staff in the closet with the girdle. Then the four of us sat around the table, and Sage and I shared what had happened after the two of them were turned into pigs.
“That was the deal Circe offered,” I said, finishing up the story. “And I accepted.”
Reed’s eyes were stone cold. They’d been like that the entire time Sage and I shared what we’d done on Aeaea. “Turn the boat around,” he said to Thomas. “We’re giving Circe back the staff.”
“No,” I said. “We’re not. At least, not until Selena’s back home and we get the staff back from King Devin.”
Thomas rested his elbows on the table and sighed. “We might not get the staff back from King Devin,” he said.
“Of course we will,” I said. “Avalon has resources. We’re allied with him. We’ll find a way to get it back.”
The Faerie Mates (Dark World: The Faerie Games Book 3) Page 14