Page 37 of Crucible
The list goes on.
“That does pose a problem,” Aurelia says.
“You could come with me and hold my hand,” Seth suggests. “Make sure nothing happens to me.” Aurelia doesn’t respond, but it’s kinder than the answer I’m sure she’s thinking.
I would have wagered Seth didn’t stand a chance of wooing this girl or any other because he hasn’t had the practice, but I was wrong. While Aurelia is wary of Seth, waiting for him to pounce and demand payment for rescuing her from the deck, her claws aren’t out.
She seems as curious about him as he is about her.
When Seth realizes Aurelia isn’t going to answer him, he lets her finish the stew in silence. “Want some more?”
“Are you sure Moe and Larry would approve?”
“I guess that would make me Curly, huh?”
“Seriously? You know who the Stooges are but never rode a roller coaster?”
“I got a crash course in the classics when I left the Seeds of the Undying.”
“The what?”
“It’s um…where I was born.”
“Oh.” Aurelia frowns but thankfully doesn’t pry—likely because she doesn’t give a shit.
“So, more stew then?”
“Thank you, but no. If the only currency I have to offer in this hellhole is my body, I’d rather starve.”
Seth stares at her for a while, and I already know what he’ll say before he shakes his head and turns it to stare into the fire. “Then you don’t know what it’s like to be hungry, Sunshine. Not really.”
“Look,” she says coolly. “It’s not my fault I don’t have anything else you and those creeps-in-arms want, okay? All I have is my voice. It’s all I know. All I’ve ever been allowed to be.”
Next to me, Thor slurps his stew…loudly.
Before I have a chance to hide and pretend I haven’t been eavesdropping, Aurelia and Seth’s gazes snap toward us. Only Aurelia looks surprised to see us standing here.
“So, sing us something, songbird.”
Aurelia’s lips part at Thorin’s demand. “What?”
“I want to hear the voice that made you such a big deal.” A bratty little bitch is what he doesn’t say.
She thinks about it for a moment—too fucking long considering the alternative—and then a cunning gleam enters her eye. “Sorry, but I don’t sing for free. If you want me to perform, you’ve got to earn it.”
“You’re fun,” Seth praises like their best fucking friends. “What’s your fee?”
“For a private show?” She taps her chin and pretends to think about it. “How about a million dollars?”
“How about another bowl of stew and a bed for the night?” Thorin counters with a sneer.
“Just one night?” Aurelia sputters.
“We haven’t heard you sing.”
It’s a reasonable offer and better than we’d give anyone else—which is a bullet to the brain—so imagine my surprise when Aurelia says no almost immediately.
“Why the fuck not?”
