Page 18 of Daughter of the Dark

His words reminded her of Sami, which made her mind race. Whatever his reasons, King Killian had kept her alive. Even went so far as to offer her a position at court. There was something he wanted from her badly enough to go against his own laws, and, if the crowd’s reaction to her was anything to go by, his own people.

Solana stepped closer to the dais and clasped her hands in front of her. “I have a friend currently under your … care.”

King Killian looked at Reyes, who nodded. “What about him?” the king asked.

“Let him go, with no charges or repercussions, and we can have an honest conversation.”

The king drummed his fingers on the arm of the throne and pursed his lips. Solana’s heart thumped in her chest. She was playing a delicate game, pushing the boundaries of her existence to see just how vital it was to him. When the king hummed in agreement, she realized it was more so than she had thought.

“Hakun,” he called, and Solana startled as a man in all black, with long gray hair pulled away from a deeply lined face, stepped out of a shadowy alcove. “Release her friend and make sure he settles safely in the city.” The man bowed and stepped away without a word. The king turned back to her with a placid smile. “Any other requests?” he asked sharply.

Solana tried not to shift from one foot to the other, to let her uncertainty show. That had been too simple of a request by the speed with which he agreed. “Yes,” she said before she lost her nerve.

King Killian laughed. “Greedy girl. Go on, then, what else will it take to convince you?”

“Free passage off of Supay.” The words tumbled from her mouth in a rush. “Once I have served as your hunter for a month—”

“One year,” the king rebutted.

“Four months,” Solana countered. She ignored Reyes’s gawking and held the king’s eyes.

“Six months,” he said, “and you will follow every command, obey every rule. With expediency, and without question.”

“And you’ll continue to protect my people while I am here, and after I am gone?”

“Do you mean my people?” he asked with that same empty smile. “Of course. You have my word.”

“And my dagger,” Solana said, voice high-pitched in the quiet. She cursed herself for sounding so eager. “I want it back.”

This time, the king’s smile was knowing. “I was wondering when we’d get around to that. Reyes?”

Reyes’s leather gloves creaked as he stretched them open. His hand disappeared into his cloak, drawing her dagger out, his eyes cutting into hers through each movement. The dagger transferred from Reyes to King Killian, who flipped it from one side to the other, inspecting it with something like appreciation. “A beautiful weapon,” he said. “Swear an oath, and it will be yours once again.”

Solana froze. Blood rushed to her head, and any feeling of calm she had felt fled under the threat of an oath. Another tether, this one more official than any she had placed on herself. Her palm tingled with the ache of missing her dagger. If she had it in hand, she might have found the courage to fight. Or flee. Reyes had told her this was a fight she could not win, and perhaps he had said it because he knew exactly what would be asked of her. Already it was proving to be too much.

All she had to do was swear an oath, give him a drop of her blood that bound her to him for the duration of the contract, and survive for another six months. Which she had every intention of doing regardless.

Only this time, there would be a reward at the end. Sami would be freed. Her people would be protected. Solana could finally leave Supay and be done with the trappings of guilt and recompense and responsibility.

It was too good to be true, and yet. Solana felt herself take another step closer to the dais so that the tips of her slippered feet were pressed against the first step. Reyes’s hand was on the hilt of his sword, watching her as if she were the only one in the room—in the world, perhaps—but Solana kept her attention focused on the king.

Slowly, she lifted a hand out to him, palm up and open to give.

“I accept.”

Solana could still feel the warmth of the king’s hand in hers, still feel the way he had pressed his lips against her palm, shooting a glittering smile at her. Charming, attractive, persuasive. It was no wonder he was beloved by most of their people.

Do not trust him.

She had been just a child when her father had uttered the words. Solana couldn’t even be sure that he had been speaking about King Killian, let alone if Masimu himself could be trusted. The traitor of Supay had betrayed his king, his family, and his kingdom, forcing Solana and her mother to leave Sonqo, change their names, and never look back.

Now there she was, in the council chambers of her father’s oldest friend, with the man who had tortured her a few days prior holding a knife to her flesh once again. Much to her embarrassment, Solana’s hand shook. She couldn’t help the surge of painful anticipation that filled her body at his proximity. With every blink, she saw him looming over her, his hands covered in blood, his voice unchanging as he said the same words over her screaming and pathetic whimpers.

How did you control them?

Who do you work for?

You’re even more of a coward than I thought.