Chapter Eight

  We barely made it through the door before I was scream-whispering at Finn on our way back to our bedrooms. “Finn, what in the Realms was that?!” I hissed. “What the Hells is he? What is that magic? What did he do to you? To us?!” Finn held out his hand in front of me as we walked, motioning for me to calm down. He spoke in a hushed tone as we walked through the empty corridors, as if the walls themselves were listening.

  “I know, I know. I’ll explain everything, trust me. Not here, though. We have to get out on our assignment first. We’ll have plenty of time to talk then.”

  I didn’t want to settle for that, but the tone in his voice proved that there was no room for discussion. So we walked briskly, without any more words spoken between us, back to our rooms to pack our bags. When we were back, I didn’t even know where to begin. What do you pack for an undercover death trap? I thought with a scoff and grabbed my pack. I shoved a handful of clothes in it, followed by some healing potions and herbs that I’d been carrying since Sailor’s Rest. Just as I went to pull the drawstrings closed, something small caught my eye. It was the book I’d gravitated to when I’d first settled in. The Fall of the Tyrant King still sat on the table where I’d left it the night before. Shrugging to myself, I grabbed the book and added it to my stash. I didn’t know what kind of free time I’d have, but it couldn’t hurt to bring something along. With that, I tied the drawstring and threw the bag over my shoulder. I took one last glance behind me, then stepped out into the hall and locked the door.

  I lightly rapped on the door across the hall from my own, supposedly Finn’s room, and heard him beckon me in. I looked around his bedroom with wonder as I came in, seeing that his room was completely different than mine. His room had the same essentials, of course; a closet, bed, and bathroom. Where my fireplace and lounge area would’ve been, his room had a large card table with cards and playing chips scattered about. There were no bookshelves, but cabinets and ice chests full of liquors and wines in their place.

  Finn sat in one of the chairs at the table, straddling the chair backwards so that he was leaning forward on the back-rest; his forearms were resting on the top of it and his head resting on them. He was shirtless, and a nursemaid halfling was massaging some sort of dark blue gel into his shoulders and back. When I stepped closer, I focused on the reason she was there. Across Finn’s shoulder blades was a black and gold snake marking that was eerily similar to my own. His brand. I noted, subconsciously touching my own neck. So he made a bargain with him, too. There was something off about his mark, though. The skin around it was inflamed, red and angry. It almost looked as if he’d got hot oil splashed on his back. The nurse was muttering something about Finn being in trouble again, and how she should just leave him like this next time to teach him a lesson. Finnegan just laughed, though his voice was laced with pain.

  “Come now, Alice, I know how much you enjoy paying me these visits. You’re going to be painstakingly bored without me to keep you company while I’m away.”

  I gently closed the door and leaned against the wall, not sure how to react to this scene. It felt oddly intrusive, to just barge in like this while Finn was vulnerable. We’re partners though, right? And he told me to come in, so obviously he doesn’t care. I shrugged away the thought and cleared my throat. The halfling startled and let out a small but audible gasp when she turned and saw me. I cringed inwardly despite having no external reaction. I was used to adverse reactions, but that didn’t lessen the sting. Finn looked over his shoulder and grinned. He was clearly in better spirits than earlier.

  “Alice, that’s no way to behave. You’re older than the both of us combined and you’re still staring at the man like a child. Rune, this is Alice. Alice, this is Rune. He’s our newest recruit, dear. And my partner, which makes HIM your responsibility as well. Isn’t that great?”

  Alice scoffed. Her braided brown hair had large streaks of grey in it, I noticed now that Finn pointed out her age. She closed the jar of salve and stomped her foot. “Finnegan Moore, you are a thorn in my side. I hope you get eaten by a giant sewer rat so that I don’t have to keep fixing you up after you piss off the wrong people.” With that, she turned on her heel and marched out the door without even glancing at me a second time. Finn was laughing heartily as he got up from his chair.

  “Isn’t she just a delight? A miracle worker, she is. You’ll come to know her soon enough.” He stepped into the closet to put on a new shirt. “So, what’d ya think of my place? Pretty nice, right? I told you, it’s a pretty killer gig. They even refill my booze for free. The others come for drinks and King’s Hand on Saturday nights. You’ll meet most of them properly, then. A round of cards is the best bonding a man can have with his crew, I say. Suppose it’ll have to wait, though.”

  “Finnegan, what are you doing?” I growled at him. I was fuming, and my temper had reached the end of its rope. “You’re acting like this place is your savior, as if your back isn’t killing you right now. HE did that to you! And everyone acts like it's an everyday occurrence, like this place is still the best thing in their lives. Have you all lost your minds?? You’ve got some explaining to do, and it needs to be sooner rather than later if I’m supposed to trust you with my life.” I could sense that Finn had stopped moving in the closet. I couldn’t tell his emotions, though, but I knew what I said had rattled him.

  Finn stepped out of the closet with a long sigh. He suddenly looked bone-tired again, as if all his years working in this place had caught up to him all at once. “Alright then,” he pulled a small travelling stone from his pocket. This stone wasn’t purple, it was pulsing with a faint sky-blue hue. “You want to see why I’m here? Why I shook his hand on that day seven years ago, and why I’d do it all again? Come with me.” When he sensed my hesitation, he added, “We’ll be back before they even realize we left.”

  I looked him dead in the eye without a word. His dark-brown eyes were pleading, so many things were unsaid in his gaze. The man wanted me to trust him as much as I wanted to trust him. I put my hand on his shoulder and gave him a firm nod. Relief flooded his aura as he nodded back and whispered something to the stone. The wind started howling in my ears. The room started going fuzzy, seeming to spin, before going dark. I shut my eyes and held my breath, thankful I hadn’t eaten breakfast that morning.

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  The fresh air hit me before the nausea could overtake me. It was overwhelming, being out of that suffocating place. I gasped as my magic surged through my blood the second we hit the grass. My fae senses were back to normal, and I felt better than I had in what felt like ages. You’re alive! Gods, I was beginning to think you’d died in that suppression. You’ve got a lot to fill me in. I couldn’t stay awake for more than an hour there. It’s so draining. I jumped at the foreign voice in my head. I’m not sure how he’s doing it yet, but I’ll fix it. I promise. I responded. When I finally looked around, I realized we were on a grassy knoll. The plains around us were expansive, bordered by trees that were miles in the distance. The wind rolled through the grass, creating ripples through the field. The sight almost made me a bit homesick. Haven was built in a valley just like this, when I was a child. Finn was a few meters away with his hands folded behind his back, looking over whatever lay below the hill.

  When I stood next to him, I stared at the scene he’d been so entranced with. There was a small farm in the valley, a woman and child sat in the dirt of the garden. The woman was beautiful, to put it simply. Her long, blonde hair whipped in the wind along with her yellow sundress. Her skin was a pale white, not too far off from the calla-lillies she tended to in her garden. The little girl next to her bore a striking likeness to Finn, I realized. Her dark-brown eyes and curly brown hair were an uncanny resemblance to the man on my left. The mother hummed a fae song, lost to Finn’s human ears in the wind. I heard it, though. Good Goddess above, I heard it. It was a common nursery song that fae would sing to their children, including my own mother. My breath caught in my throat. I hadn’t heard that song since Mother had sung it to Gia and I at bedtime, the night that she died. “She’s of fae blood.” I breathed, swallowing back the lump in my throat. Finn only nodded.

  “Calli is Anthousai. Bound to this plane, and more specifically that flower garden.” He confirmed. “She’s my wife.”

  I couldn’t help it, my jaw dropped. “You’re MARRIED?” I burst, staring at him as if he had suddenly sprouted four more eyes. “The little girl down there…”

  “Is my daughter, Peony. Half fae.” Finn finished my sentence for me. “Seven years ago, Calli was in labor with our daughter. Wildfires were plaguing the plains around our home. They were out of control. I pleaded with the people of our town for help, to protect her garden at least. They told me it was hopeless, that she and I needed to flee from our home. We could rebuild later when it was safe, they suggested. They didn’t understand that her life is tied to those flowers. We couldn’t leave. I was going to lose her, and I couldn’t do a damned thing about it.” He sounded choked up, but he swallowed and then cleared his throat before he continued.

  “A man stopped me on my way home that evening. He told me he was a sorcerer, and that he could help me in exchange for my employment. I had already done my time in the royal guard since I was a boy, before I settled on my own land. He told me after ten years of service, I could go back to them again. If it came down to being hired help for another ten years or losing my wife and daughter, it’d be a no-brainer. I shook his hand, and the snake brand seared my back. I took him to my home, where the wildfires practically raged at my doorstep. I ran inside to be with Calli while she gave birth to Peony. They both survived, thank the gods. That man had put out all of the fires on his own. That’s when I truly realized what he was. I explained to Calli what happened while I held our daughter. She was madder than a hornet, for sure. Told me I was abandoning everything we’d built together.” A lone tear trailed down his cheek as he watched his family.

  “I made her promise to wait for me. Promised her I’d be back as soon as my deal was over. I send them letters and money every week, and check on them to make sure everything’s okay. I can’t visit them more than just this, though. It’d be a danger to them while I’m still a part of Venom. A lot of people want to get to us in any way possible.” He brushed his wet face on his shoulder and took a deep breath.

  “This is my reason for standing in King’s Venom, under Valen’s command. He saved my entire family, Rune. I owe him not only my life, but my wife and daughter’s too. If making a deal with a devil-spawn for ten years off my life means I get to keep them safe, I’d do it a thousand times over. I hope you can understand. We all have something that we’d give up anything, even ourselves, to protect.”

  I was at a loss for words. Nothing I could say would express my feelings that Finn had brought forward in me. Finn wasn’t just saying those words last night to make me feel better. He truly believed that King’s Venom was one of the best things that's happened to him. He’s spent the last seven years making the best out of his situation. All this time, he’s just been trying not to count the days until he gets to go home. I took a shaky breath. “I have a twin sister. Her name is Gia. I haven’t seen her in a little over five years. My people are in hiding.” I’d never told anyone about my sister, but I felt like that was the only thing I could say to follow up Finn’s story. “Valen promised sanctuary for all of them.”

  Finn offered me a solemn smile. “Like I said, we all have something that’s worth a deal with a devil.” He cast one last look at his family before exhaling and stepping away from the edge of the hill. “It’s time to go.” He pulled a purple stone from his pocket and held it out to me. “You should learn how to use these.” He placed it in my palm, and the faint purple glow suddenly flared brighter than a fire. We both exclaimed in surprise and yanked our hands away, and the stone fell to the ground with a non-dramatic thump. We stared at the stone for a moment, then exchanged looks. Uhh… What was that? I asked myself internally. I could practically feel my inner companion roll their eyes. It’s powered by magic. You know, the very thing coursing through your blood right now? I put my palm against my forehead. Oh. Right. I guess that makes sense.

  Finn picked up the stone once more, but I didn’t try to take it back from him this time. “Maybe now isn’t the time for new knowledge, though.” He offered sheepishly. I put my hand on his shoulder and offered a small chuckle in return. I told him to take us back, and he spoke more unknown words at the rock. The world spun, my ears roared, and the power in my veins tapered off to a dull presence. I was alone in my head again, and the thought already bothered me. This transition wasn’t nearly as rough on me as the last two had been, thankfully, and we reemerged in Finn’s room just as there was someone knocking at his door. I braced myself against a nearby chair to recover as Finn answered the door. It was Sahara, which only meant one thing. It was time to go.

  “Your first assignment awaits, Runie.” Finnegan proclaimed with a large smile. I narrowed my eyes at him as I stood straight and released my death grip on the chair.

  “If we make it back alive, I’m going to wipe that look off your face, Finnegan.”