Bonds of Cupidity (Heart Hassle Book 2)

I have until midnight to decide if I’ll show up like she told me to. In the meantime, I definitely can’t hang around Madame Gunky’s shop or she’ll probably try to throw me out with the garbage.

I walk slowly away, heading in the general direction of the castle walls to try to get closer without actually looking like I’m loitering. I don’t want another guard to spot me hanging around there again. But I can’t go very far, either, because if I go full on invisible again, I’m not sure I’ll be able to come back from it.

I do not want to get stuck as an invisible cupid in the Veil again. Just the thought makes my insides tense with anxious loneliness.

I walk past more shops, keeping the castle walls in my peripheral vision. There are just as many guards during the day as there were at night. My dress is a little wrinkled from sleeping in it, and I frown at the dirt smudges now staining it. I’m certainly not dressed for living on the street.

I walk parallel to the wall, passing the town square and the marketplace, and then I find myself in a residential area. The houses are all mansions with gates and elaborate lawns.

Finding a bench on the sidewalk, I take a seat to rest my aching feet. The trail of my dress is pretty much toast. The end is frayed and the color is more brown than purple. My slippers haven’t fared any better.

I stay here all day watching people pass by. Most of them don’t pay me any attention. By the time night falls, hunger pangs are tormenting me.

I haven’t eaten since I left the banishment island with my guys, and after not eating food for over fifty years as an incorporeal cupid, I do not like to skip meals.

Under the cover of night, I slowly make my way to the west side of the walls surrounding the castle. By the scent of manure and hay in the air, I’m fairly certain that the palace stables are on the other side.

The wall is off the beaten path on this side, with only a small, forested area behind me. The only guards I have to worry about are the ones passing by on the top of the wall, so I time it perfectly so that I sidle up next to the wall without them seeing me.

I sit on the grass and wait. And wait. And wait some more. I’m hungry, my anchor pains are hurting, and all I can think about is everything that can go wrong. Finally, when the moon is bright and huge in the sky, I hear a noise that makes me jump to my feet.

Ahead of me by about thirty feet, a part of the wall pops out and a secret door creaks open. My fingers fist my dress in case I need to hoist it up and make a run for it. But a figure holding a lantern is none other than Princess Soora.

“Hurry.”

Looking around to make sure no one sees, I quickly follow her into the lion’s den. Once I’m through the door, I see an older fae woman. I can tell she’s a brownie right away based on her tight brown ringlets in a pouf on her head. Even her eyebrows are curly.

She’s tiny, too. Only about four feet tall, and has the telltale working calluses on her hands from hours spent cleaning. Her kind gets power from it somehow. She quickly closes the stone door behind us and takes the lantern from the princess to lead the way ahead.

I follow behind them as we pass through a narrow cellar filled with dusty crates. After pulling open a trap door at the top, we climb a short ladder and end up inside the palace stables. Passing by dozens of sleeping horses, we make our way out of the stables, past a track, and into a small side door of the castle.

When we enter a kitchen, my stomach immediately clenches with hunger. There’s no food cooking or anyone inside, but I can smell the remnants of what they’d probably served for dinner. I look around for a scrap to take with me, but there’s nothing. Dammit.

After leaving the kitchen, the women, still silent, lead me up a servant’s stairway, down a plain corridor, and into a small room. It’s plain, with a bare wooden floor and stone walls, but it’s clean and there’s a tidy bed and desk inside.

The brownie closes the door behind us and it seems all three of us take a collective breath of relief for getting this far without being caught. “I suppose we need to make proper introductions. I’m Princess Soora, and this is my handmaiden, Duru.”

“I’m Emelle.”

“It’s nice to officially meet you, Emelle.”

I notice that Duru does not seem to share that sentiment. In fact, she’s staring at me like she’d have no problem plucking out my eyes.

“Duru, it’s all right,” the princess says, noticing our stare-off.

“She could be an enemy, princess. You shouldn’t have brought her here. What if she’s playing you? What if she’s using you for some grand scheme?”

“I would never hurt or betray you,” I say, letting the conviction of my honesty fill my tone. “You don’t know me, but I swear I wouldn’t do anything to intentionally hurt you.”

The princess just nods once. “You’ll stay here for now. This room is for servants, and you’ll find a uniform in the drawers under the bed. I’ve made you a lady’s maid, so you’ll be waiting on me. Don’t worry, I’ve made it so that you won’t be around many people, especially not the prince. You’ll strictly be in charge of keeping my room tidy, but you’ll have Duru here to help you,” she says, gesturing to the brownie. “Now, if you’ll allow me to glamour you, I can make you look more high fae.”

“Umm…”

I know from experience that glamouring doesn’t work on me, but I say nothing as she comes forward and touches my skin. I can feel her magic pooling around me, but then it just fizzles out.

She frowns. “That’s strange. Glamour doesn’t work on you?”

I shrug.

“Hmm. Well, that is a complication.”

The brownie tilts her head in thought. “Her pink hair looks high fae. Her skin doesn’t, but we can dye it, princess. She’ll have to be careful not to get wet, but I’m sure I can fix her up. She’ll also need to wear heels to give her extra height. Her ears will need to stay hidden, too,” she says, circling around me. “If she’s going to stay here, she’ll need to blend in. I won’t have her presence coming back to hurt you, princess.”

She gives the brownie a kind smile. “Thank you, Duru. Those changes should be enough, as long as she keeps to herself.” The princess gives me an assessing look with a tilting head. “I remember you with red wings.”

“Yeah, that’s right. They’re just hidden right now.”

“So you can hide them like high fae? Good.”

I just look at her, completely baffled. “Why are you helping me?”

She considers the question before answering. “Perhaps I’m wrong, but when you attacked the prince, it felt like you were doing it for me.”

“Oh, well…I was.”

“Why?”

I shrug. “He’s a cheating ass.”

Princess Soora’s lip twitches slightly. “What are you? You must be very powerful to have broken through the castle’s magical barriers and stay hidden. No entity is able to stay invisible inside these walls. Not to mention that magic the prince hit you with. You should have been killed.”

She looks at me thoughtfully, and I fidget under her intense scrutiny. “What are you?”

“You wouldn’t believe me even if I told you.”

She lets that reply go. “Tell me, why is it you can’t leave? Are you looking for something?”

I don’t know if I should tell her, but I already didn’t admit that I’m a cupid from the Veil, so I have to give her something. She’s stuck her neck out for me by bringing me here. The least I can do is repay her with some truths.

“I’m waiting to see the prisoners who are being taken to face the royal culling trials.”

Surprise flashes across her face. “And you know these prisoners? The ones that will be facing the culling trials?”

I look from her to the brownie and back again.

“You can trust Duru, and you can trust me,” the princess assures me. “Duru is not from here. She was my nursemaid back on my home island. Her loyalty is with me, not the prince.”

At the mention of the prince, Duru snorts. “I’d rather be loyal to a viper. Be less likely to get bit.”

I like her.

“The three genfin males that were brought there yesterday from their banishment island. I’m here for them. I can’t leave them.”

Princess Soora nods. “Well, I don’t know anything about the prisoners, but I’ll try to see if I can discreetly get some information. I do know that the culling will take place in one week’s time.”

One week. I have to hide out here in the palace, under the same roof as the prince, for one whole week.

My dismay must show on my face because the princess smiles softly. “As long as you follow my instructions, you will be safe. Duru? Could you gather what we’ll need? Perhaps some food for her as well.”

Duru hesitates, as if she doesn’t want to leave me alone with her, but then she nods and slips from the room.

Princess Soora and I study each other in silence for a moment. She really is beautiful, but her eyes hold a sadness, too. After a moment, that sadness turns into something else. Determination.

“I’m afraid I haven’t led you here for purely altruistic purposes.”

Well, I don’t love the sound of that.