Page 36 of Wicked Curses
“Not anymore.”
Zeth turned so his face was more illuminated. “I heard. The lycan who arrived before you said the Lord ordered the death of King Tove.”
“He did.”
Zeth shifted his attention back to the wheelbarrow full of food he was pushing down the shedrow. The demon didn’t say he was sorry to hear about Orin’s father; it would have been the polite thing to do, but also a lie. It said something about the demon that he chose the truth over politeness.
Most weren’t sorry his father was dead. King Tove was a good man to the dark fae and his sons, but few in the Shadow Realms liked him.
And why should they? He was a ruthless ruler who sought only the best for his followers. He wasn’t the Lord, who slaughtered far too many innocents and sought to take control of all the realms, but his father didn’t take shit from anyone.
And neither did his sons.
“My older brother, Cole, is now the king of the dark fae, and when he marries Lexi, he’ll also be the king of the Shadow Realms.”
“But she’s the one with all the power.”
Orin smiled as he leaned against the wall and crossed his arms. “Those who truly think so don’t last long. She has the dragons, but he has the shadows.”
“All dark fae have the shadows.”
“Not like Cole. None of us have them like Cole.”
Zeth grabbed some grass from the wheelbarrow and tossed it over another door. “I see.”
He didn’t. Without seeing him in action, no one could understand the Shadow Reaver, but Orin wasn’t here to discuss his brother.
“And you are Drozeth Carmosa of the Carmosa family. Your family rules the demon realm, and your uncle is king.”
“If you already know my story, then why ask it?”
“That’s not your story.”
“It’s not?”
“No. That’s your history, and all I care to know of it. Your story is unfolding now and consists of what do you want? What are you after? What do you hope to gain out of all of this?That’syour story.”
“Gain out of what?”
“Sahira. What do you want from her?”
“I think you’re talking about yourself, dark fae. And when it comes to you, I think we all know the answer to that question, including Sahira.”
“I should hope so; I’ve made it obvious that I’m going to fuck her. But you’re playing some game, and I want to know what it is.”
Zeth tossed the last of the grass into the final stall, stood the wheelbarrow against the wall, and wiped his hands on a towel. He neatly rehung the towel before walking back to Orin.
When Zeth stopped a few feet away, his yellow eyes met and held Orin’s. “I stopped playing games when I realized they were for children. Maybe one day, you’ll finally learn the same.”
Orin gave him a tightlipped smile as he kept his face expressionless. Inwardly, he seethed while contemplating taking this demon to the pit and bashing his brains in against the rocks.
He didn’t think Zeth would accept his invitation, even if the other immortals in this realm saw him as a coward for refusing. Zeth didn’t care what anyone here thought of him. It was a trait Orin would have admired if it wasn’t so infuriating.
“I don’t want anything from Sahira. I’m simply seeking a way to return home, and each fresh set of eyes who comes into this place offers an opportunity to see this puzzle differently. I’ll do whatever I can to help them solve it since so many others here, including me, have failed to do so.”
He surveyed Orin from head to toe. “Some new arrivals offer more of an opportunity to escape than others.”
And just like that, Orin went from contemplating Zeth’s demise to being amused by him. “I didn’t offer you the opportunity?”
