Chapter 6

Vesper

Silence. Complete, absolute silence.

Then: "You WHAT?"

"I was hungry!" The words came out in a rush, defensive and desperate. "And the restaurant didn't take credit cards, and I didn't have enough cash, and it was right there in my pocket, so I—"

"You used a priceless artifact, worth hundreds of thousands of dollars, the boss's family heirloom, his most prized possession—" Kael's voice was rising with each word, his face contorting with rage. "—to pay for DINNER?"

"I didn't know it was worth that much!" I protested. "You know fae don't really... we don't think about money the same way humans do. We don't do the whole 'practical value assessment' thing—"

"I don't CARE about your fae bullshit!" Kael roared, and his claws shifted, moving from my shoulder to my throat. "If you don't have it, then you're worthless to me. And the boss said if I couldn't recover the artifact, I should at least make sure you never steal from him again."

His meaning was crystal clear.

"Goodbye," he said, almost gently. "Poor little half-breed thief. Should've stuck to easier targets."

The claw at my throat started to press inward, and I felt the sharp sting of breaking skin, felt the hot trickle of blood sliding down my neck. My vision was starting to blur at the edges, panic and lack of oxygen making everything feel distant and unreal.

Half-breed. The word echoed in my mind, stoking a fury that burned even hotter than my fear.

"Wait!" I gasped out. "The artifact—it's just one thing! Your boss must want other stuff too, right? I can steal other things for him! Better things! More valuable things! I'm good at this—I can get him whatever he wants!"

But Kael wasn't listening. His eyes were dead, decided. The claw pressed harder.

No. No, this was not how I was going to die. Not here, not like this, not at the hands of some asshole werewolf who thought I was too weak to fight back just because I couldn't fully shift.

My hand closed around the silver chain on my wrist, the delicate links warm from my skin. It had been a gift from Lyra years ago, enchanted to respond to my fae magic, to bend and shape itself according to my will. I'd never used it for anything more serious than party tricks, little displays of power to amuse friends or distract marks.

But silver was silver. And werewolves were werewolves.

I snapped my fingers.

The chain responded instantly, leaping from my wrist like a living thing. It flew through the air and wrapped around Kael's arm, the one holding the claw to my throat, and pulled tight. He jerked back in surprise, and I used the moment to break free, scrambling away from him across the bed.

"What the—" he started, but then the silver began to burn.

I pushed more magic into it, making it tighten further, making it heat and shift and change. The links began to melt, liquid silver flowing like water, seeping into his skin, burning through fur and flesh with the kind of pain that made strong men scream.

Kael did scream. The sound was inhuman, agonized, and he fell to his knees, clawing at the silver with his free hand, trying desperately to pull it away. But the more he touched it, the worse it got, the silver spreading like a brand across his skin.

I stood up slowly, my hand still raised, still channeling power into the chain. Blood dripped from my neck and my side, staining my clothes, but I barely felt it. All I felt was cold, burning anger.

"You know," I said conversationally, walking around him in a slow circle, "I always forget about the silver thing. Silly me." I tilted my head, watching him writhe. "How about now? Are you ready to let me talk to your boss? Or do you need more convincing?"

"Yes!" The word came out strangled, desperate. "Yes, fuck, yes! Just stop—please—"

"Hmm." I pretended to consider it. "I don't know. You were pretty rude to me. And I really, really hate it when people call me 'half-breed.'" I let the chain tighten just a fraction more, and he screamed again. "So here's what's going to happen. You're going to get on your knees—oh, wait, you already are. Good start."

I moved closer, looking down at him with all the contempt I could muster.

"Now apologize."

"I—" He tried to resist, I could see it in his eyes, the last shreds of his pride fighting against the pain. But another pulse of my magic through the silver made the decision for him. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry, okay? You're not—you're a full fae! A powerful fae! The most powerful fae I've ever met! Please, just let me go!"

"Better." I snapped my fingers again, and the silver flowed back to me like water, reforming into a chain around my wrist as if nothing had happened. The skin where it had burned Kael was raw and blistered, angry red welts that would scar.

He collapsed forward, panting, his eyes still that terrible red but now filled with something that looked like fear. I could see him calculating, weighing whether he could still take me, whether the pain was worth another attempt.

"Don't even think about it," I said coldly. "Next time, I won't stop until it reaches bone. Understand?"

He nodded, all the fight gone out of him.

"Good." I pulled out my phone, tossing it to him. He caught it clumsily, his hands still shaking. "Call your boss. Tell him I want to talk. Tell him I want to make a deal." I smiled, but there was nothing friendly in it. "And tell him if he sends another amateur to kill me, I'll be very disappointed."

Kael stared at the phone for a long moment, then back at me. Whatever he saw in my expression made him start dialing.

I listened to it ring, my heart still racing, my side still bleeding. The line clicked. A voice spoke on the other end—low, measured, dangerous. Kael's face went pale as he stammered out his explanation.

"Boss, I'm sorry—the artifact's gone, but—" He swallowed hard, eyes darting to me. "Vesper says she can get you that thing you've been after. The one you actually want."

Silence on the other end. Then a low voice, smooth and dangerous, said something I couldn't quite catch. Kael's face went even paler. He held the phone out to me wordlessly.

I took it, pressing it to my ear. "Hello?"

"Well, well," the voice purred, amusement threading through the danger. "The little thief. Color me impressed—didn't think you'd survive the night." A pause, deliberate and calculating. "Lucky for you, I happen to have a job opening. Interested?"