Page 13 of Healing Elixirs & Wicked Crows

I lifted my hand, halting his words."The right words."

"I promise to do you no harm and to protect you and help you on whatever journey you demand of me, through the Everland Forest," he murmured, his gaze dropping to my lips.

"And back," I demanded, my voice breathier than usual.

He smiled."And back.As long as you give me a dose of the potion you make."

This felt like a mistake, but I'd tried everything else to awaken Briar."It's a bargain," I said, "but if something happens and there is only one potion available, it's mine.Deal?"

Doubt flashed behind his gray gaze before he replied, "It's a bargain."

Our blood heated as the pact took effect, magic crackling between our joined hands like lightning in a bottle.The sensation shot up my arm and straight to my heart, and for one impossible moment, I felt connected to him in a way that defied explanation.Something ancient and primal stirred in my chest, recognition without memory.

My breath caught as his thumb traced across my knuckles, the simple touch sending fire through my veins.His eyes darkened as he stared down at our joined hands, and when he looked up at me, the intensity in his gaze stole what little breath I had left.

"Rosemary," he whispered, my name falling from his lips like a prayer.

The way he said it, with such reverence and longing, broke something loose inside me.Before I could think, before I could remember all the reasons this was madness, I found myself leaning toward him.His free hand cupped my cheek, and then his mouth was on mine.

The kiss was desperate, hungry, like a man drowning who'd finally found air.I should have pulled away, should have remembered he was unseelie, my enemy by blood and birth.Instead, I pressed closer, my hand fisting in his tunic as the world disappeared around us.

When we finally broke apart, both breathing hard, reality crashed back like cold water.I jerked away from him, my hand flying to my lips.

"Why did you do that?"I practically growled at him, though my voice shook with more than anger.

He looked as stunned as I felt, his fingers rising to touch his own lips."I...I don't know," he admitted, his usual cocky demeanor completely absent."Something about the bargain, the magic.You looked at me like..."He shook his head."I'm sorry.I shouldn't have."

"No, you shouldn't have," I said, but the words lacked conviction.My palm was healing already, a dark tattoo forming in its place, a crescent moon connected to a burning sun.Symbols for the seelie and unseelie kingdoms, now permanently marked on my skin.

He stared at his own palm, where the same marks were appearing."I've never seen bargain marks like these before."

"What do you mean?"

"They're usually simple binding runes.These..."He held up his hand, comparing it to mine."These look like something much older.More permanent."

A chill ran down my spine.What had I just bound myself to?And why didn’t I regret it?

"We leave at first light," I said, not bothering to turn his way again, and walked away.

Oh, gods, how I hoped it would work.

Like the Sunshine

ELIAS

She must have known I'd follow her to her cottage, hidden beneath brush and bramble.My steps were soft, silent as I navigated the dense forest, allowing her to believe she was alone.She never glanced back, her disregard bringing a genuine smirk to my lips.

I froze under two ancient trees leaning toward each other, forming an archway draped in moss.Taking a deep breath, my lungs filled with ease.Woodland critters scampered above, their chittering suddenly louder.Wildflowers bloomed freely across the forest floor, defying the chill of changing seasons.I glanced up at the clear sky as tension melted from my bones, wrapped in the warm embrace of magic.It made perfect sense that she would make her home in this hidden magical pocket.Who would think to search for her here?

Rosemary emerged from the woods into a small clearing, hesitating briefly before crossing and vanishing into her cottage.

I kept to the shadows and watched her through the windows.She unloaded her burlap pack onto the table, revealing new ingredients.With swift efficiency, she sorted them and prepared new mixtures.Another pack sat at the table's edge, a clear sign she planned to leave today.She shoved several bottles into it and strapped it shut, frustration etched across her face.I'd delayed her this afternoon, forcing a change in her plans.

As the sun dipped lower, I settled against a tree trunk.Inside, she lit a fire, the flickering light casting shadows that wrapped her in a soft orange glow.Nostalgia swept over me.My heart pounded at the sight of her, radiant and focused.She sat in an oversized chair, absorbed in writing, nibbling her lower lip and tapping the pen against her mouth.

The lone bedroom at the back offered the occasional glimpse of her slumbering sister, Briar.I didn't dare move closer.Rosemary's quest for the rare flower mirrored my own, and the path ahead was steep.Letting the weight of her sister's curse sink in would only weaken my resolve.

The sight of her sister lying motionless in that bed stirred something uncomfortable in my chest.For decades, I'd convinced myself that the unseelie way was the only way.That compassion was weakness, that caring made you vulnerable.But watching Rosemary tend to someone she loved with such fierce devotion challenged everything I'd been taught.