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That’sthe song he’s been reassuring me with this whole time? That’s like chasing away a nightmare by telling someone a ghost story.

There’s a beat of silence, and then Des’s laughter fills the chamber. “Yeah, cherub, it really is.”

Chapter 8

I glance aroundme at the sun-scorched earth.

This is … not what I’d been expecting. I mean, I’m not sure what Ihadbeen expecting when it came to Galleghar Nyx’s resting place, but I think I’d assumed it would be somewhere in the Night Kingdom—and that a cemetery would be involved.

To be fair, the place feels about as morbid as a cemetery.

After I’d had coffee, a bath, and a wink—er, okay, a fuck-ton—of sleep, Des and I headed off to visit the tomb of Des’s father.

Which, apparently, is this wasteland of a place.

My eyes sweep over the landscape again. The dry, dusty earth stretches out for miles and miles around us, only interrupted here and there by a boulder. Off in the distance, some craggy cliffs rise, looking just as barren as the land. The wind whistles a lonesome, loveless tune as it tugs at my hair.

It’s more than just the austere look of the place. There’s something about this land … like color is seeping away and the senses are dulling—it feels as though the earth itself is sucking the life out of me.

“What is this place?” I ask.

“The Banished Lands,” Des says, squinting at our surroundings. “It’s a section of land that divides the Flora and Fauna Kingdoms. This is where exiled fairies go.”

You know what, I didn’t even know fairies could be exiled. I assumed fae rulers just made their criminalsdisappear.

I guess you learn something new every day.

“And you buried your dad here,” I say, putting the pieces together.

The Bargainer stares at the landscape, a troubled expression on his face, before his gaze meets mine. “This is as close to desecrating his body as I could get,” he says.

The admission sends a shiver through me. Des is so good to me that I often forget just how ruthless he can be.

Night’s falling here, and for once since I met Des, the darkness doesn’t feel welcoming.

I take the Bargainer’s hand. “Show me where your father is buried.”

We cut acrossthe landscape, Des leading me towards an unassuming cluster of stones, the biggest of which is as large as a car. When we get to them, Des lifts his hand, his expression grim. Down our bond I sense the pull of magic, and then I feel it around us, saturating the parched air.

With a groan the massive stone in front of us drags itself aside, revealing a small and crudely made pit.

For a while, the Bargainer simply stares down into the inky darkness, his face expressionless.

I lick my parched lips. “Is this … ?”

“My father’s resting place,” Des says, his eyes never wavering from that hole in the ground.

As far as burials go, this one is pretty much the equivalent of giving the dead the middle finger—a finalfuck youto send them off to the afterlife with.

So I guess it’s fitting for his A-hole dad.

“Why give him a tomb at all?” I ask.

I would’ve thrown his carcass to the wolves.

“Believe me, I didn’t want to.” Des takes a deep breath, then tears his gaze away from that hole. A sardonic smile pulls the corner of his mouth up. “After Galleghar died, I left his body out for carrion to eat,” he says, “but no creature would touch it. When that did not work, I set his body to sea—but the waves returned it to me.”

I stare at him as he talks, sensing his restlessness. My own unease is growing.