Page 58 of The Mage and His Stolen Prince
Angelica lunged, fingers curled into claws. Delilah arched away from her, bending backwards over the couch. One of Angelica’s hands pressed against her face, seeking leverage as she crawled over the other girl. Delilah turned her head and bit the offending hand.
“You little beast!” Angelica shrieked. She backed away from the couch, cradling her injured hand to her chest. A red mark in the shape of human teeth shone wetly on her skin, but the bite hadn’t broken the surface.
Having won the fight, Delilah settled back in the seat and began reading a section aloud, “My mouth watered and my whole body clenched in anticipation at the sight of his thick, throbbing members—members?!” she screeched. “He hasmultiple?”
I frowned. Nothing I’d ever heard about orcs suggested diphallia.
Angelica sighed in exasperation. “That’s a typo. Or … maybe it’s not.” Her eyes narrowed in interest. “I haven’t read that far yet.”
Delilah chucked the book back at her like it’d burned her. “Well, there’s a plan at least. If we need to fight any orcs, Angelica can seduce them.” As she spoke, her eyes slid to me. A slow smile spread across her lips, and I finally understood what she meant when she claimed I looked at her ‘evilly.’ “I know the perfect quest.”
With each word, dread loomed toward me, creeping forward on quiet cat feet. I shook my head subtly so the others wouldn’t notice, but she stalked ever forward.
“We should defeat the Lord of Grimnight.”
Before anyone could respond, I stopped time, allowing only Delilah and I to move freely. “What are you doing?” I demanded.
“What areyoudoing? Stop wasting your magic!”
“The Lord of Grimnightisn’t here. You can’t defeat a mage who isn’t present.”
She rolled her eyes. “You’rethe Lord of Grimnight.”
Sweat beaded on my brow. Time was a river, and I was a dam in its way. It wanted to flow freely, and it bashed against me to break me down, filling me with cracks. “Technically, I’m only his apprentice”
Her brow furrowed and she said, “We can discuss the details later. You look like you’re going to faint.Again.”
Time restarted.
“Who’s the Lord of Grimnight?” Fitz asked.
I slumped against the wall, glad to have its support or I might have proved Delilah right.
“He’s an evil mage who cursed the city of Traumstead into a spooky forest,” Delilah explained.
Trey nodded slowly, his eyes distant with memory. “I’ve heard of him before.” Whatever he remembered, it didn’t seem to have anything to do with his biological father. “We could try to break the curse.”
“Or kill the mage,” Maximus said, his eyes locked on me.
Fitz shifted through his available books, trying to find a reference to the lord or the cursed forest. “I remember reading something about him, but it was a long time ago.” His brow furrowed as he added, “Or maybe just a few weeks?” He looked around the room, first at the chair I’d always sat in, then his eyes finally landed on me. The furrows in his brow deepened. “Willow, are you alright? You look like you’re about to faint.”
“Wilde,” I corrected.
“Oh, I’m sorry! I don’t know why I keep calling you that. I don’t even know anyone named Willow.”
Angelica groaned and fussed with the edge of one of her skirts. “I don’t want to tromp through a dirty forest.”
“The Lord of Grimnight has orc minions,” Delilah said.
Angelica’s delicate fingers froze, then twisted deeper into her skirts, wrinkling the fabric. “Well, Ihavealready done quite a bit of research … Fine, we can defeat the Lord of Grimnight. But I’ll need to update my wardrobe before we leave.”
Delilah’s smile widened with feral excitement. “Then we’ll have to go shopping.”
Two Hours Later
Standing Outside the Windermere Plaza
About to Embark on a Shopping Quest
