Chapter 17 The Bargain
"Peaches!" Maya blurted out, grateful for the sudden idea. "What?" Confusion was written all over Levi's face. "I came here to get some peaches," She told him, pointing towards the trees behind him. "Thank Goodness! I've been searching all over the palace for them." She exclaimed cheerily, counting on her little act to help her out.
"This is clearly an excuse to save yourself." Levi stated, the corner of his lips tugged into a smirk. "No It's not. I... I was just wondering if you were going to find it absurd that I came out here in the dark to get some peaches." Maya replied, feigning complete innocence.
Levi took a step closer, making her take one step back. "Not only is it absurd but stupid as well. You are straying far away from the safer parts of the palace and unguarded too, all for some peaches." Maya wanted to invade his mind to make him forget about their interaction but her intuition told her he was going to fight back. Levi wasn't an easy target.
"I just wanted some peaches." She muttered instead. Levi turned to look at the trees with already ripened peaches. "I'll be on my way now," Maya said and started to leave, silently praying he would let her go. "Stop." He said just as she was about to walk past him.
Maya screwed up her face in frustration before facing him with a small smile. "You will confess about your true identity to the council." Levi said and Maya could feel her immediately head spin, "What?" She whispered. "You heard me. Although I have no problem repeating myself." He replied.
"I can't do that." Maya said, shaking her head. Doing that will spell her end, not only will she die, she would also be betraying the order and their purpose. "You are a witch, your presence in this kingdom is prohibited." Levi stated impassively.
"I will be killed. The king will kill me without hesitation." She retorted fiercely. Now she was seriously considering invading his mind and tampering with his memories.
"You should be grateful you are not lying dead at my feet right this instant. Consider this an act of mercy." He said, looking at her in a way that told her he was daring her to make a move.
"Mercy or not, I would still get executed either way." Maya hadn't noticed how her voice had risen. Suddenly she felt like the vulnerable and weak little girl she had once been again, fighting for her survival and being under the mercy of others.
She shook her head again, "No, I won't do that. Why don't you go ahead and execute me?" Maya knew he wouldn't hesitate when it came to that so she prepared to defend herself if he made any move to kill her, although he was still firmly rooted to a spot with both of his arms still folded.
Levi watched her. The silence stretched until it hummed. Then, when he spoke again, it carried a different edge, not the murderous edge she’d expected but the weary edge of a man making calculations.
"You have the stance of a fighter, yet you look…" Levi let the thought hang, watching her closely. The moonlight sketched hard planes across his face and the steady, quiet way he spoke made the words heavier than any shout.
"Young," Maya finished his sentence, her voice small. She tried to tuck away the momentary vulnerability, straightening her shoulders. "I don’t intend to fight you." Levi said, although his eyes didn’t soften.
"I could hand you over to the council," he said. "A witch found in the royal grounds, there’d be no questions. But I’m not fond of blood for blood’s sake." He said.
"That's ironic, considering the number of people you have slaughtered for the sake of your kingdom." Maya said, her voice barely above a whisper.
"I’ll give you a choice, and once you take it there is no walking back." Levi continued, ignoring her snide remark.
Maya’s heart thudded against her ribs. “What choice?”
He stepped closer, lowering his voice until it was only for both of them. “You swear to stand down from whatever causes you to hide in the shadows of my kingdom. In exchange, I will not turn you in. I will hide you from the council, as long as you do one thing for me when I ask. A favor in the future. Small now, but proof of good faith. Bigger later, if necessary." He stated, his expression still as stoic as ever.
"And what makes you think I have some sort of hidden motive?" She asked. "The biggest mistake you could ever make is take me to be a fool." Levi replied, a small smile tugging at the corner of his lips.
"So you want me to be your spy." Maya blinked, unable to believe where this was going. One moment she was certain he was going to kill her and the next he's offering her a deal to become his spy in exchange for keeping her secret hidden.
Levi gave a hard little sound that could have been a laugh. "Call it whatever you like, what matters is that you understand." He stated.
"I do not trust you." Maya said, seriously considering taking up the offer to be his spy. She'd be jeopardizing herself and the order by doing so but it's the only way she can free herself from the tricky situation she was currently in.
"I don’t trust witches and unknown cloaked figures either but I'm willing to bet." He said, shrugging lightly.
“And if I refuse to be your spy?” she asked, because asking was a shield.
“If you refuse,” Levi said, voice flat and final, “I will still give the council what they want. You will either die here, in custody, or vanish into something worse. I’m not bluffing.”
There was no warmth in that, but there was a bargain offered in steel. Maya’s mind raced. The order had trained her to survive, to manipulate memory and mind, to hide in plain sight. She could say yes and become Levi’s tool thereby risking exposure to a Lycan she did not yet trust, or she could say no and be handed over to people who made Lucius look gentle.
"I'll be your spy." She finally said after a long silence. "The better choice." Levi said. Maya wanted to scream, she had no idea on how she was going to navigate this new twist. Why did fate had to send the devil's incarnate in the body of a huge Lycan soldier in her way?