Page 56 of Hell Fae Captive

That seemed to intrigue him. “How?”

“I don’t know yet,” I admitted. “Maybe I’ll create my own deal with Lucifer.”

His eyes lit up at the prospect, and he released a surprised laugh before shaking his head. “You certainly have a high opinion of yourself, Camillia De la Croix. I’ll give you that.”

“Cami,” I corrected him, tired of hearing my full name on his tongue. It sounded too…intimate… and I wanted that intimacy to go away. “And it isn’t about having a high opinion of myself. It’s about being unwilling to accept this situation. They are entirely two separate scenarios, but I wouldn’t expect someone like you to understand.”

“Someone like me?”

“A blind follower,” I replied, waving a hand at him. “I mean, that’s why you’re here, right? You agree with all this bullshit?”

“Why I’m here is none of your business.”

I shrugged, unbothered. “Your reasoning means nothing to me. Your actions say everything I need to know. You’re a minion with a desire for power. And you’re enjoying wielding it over me now.”

“What power am I wielding over you?” he countered. “I’ve literally left your door open, and I’ve removed the enchantment from your furniture, yet you choose to remain on the ground.”

“Because it’s all a power play.” And if he thought I didn’t see that, then he severely underestimated my intelligence. “You want me to feel indebted to you for releasing the enchantments around my cell, just to put them back in place later to reaffirm my place as a prisoner. It’s a boring game, and I’m not interested in playing. So find another captive to fuck with because I’m not your girl. And Iwillfind a way out of here. Just wait.”

He studied me for a long moment, the lines of his jaw tightening with a severity that chilled the air. “You know nothing about me, Camillia.”

“And I would argue that you know nothing about me,” I told him, holding his gaze. “You can underestimate me all you want, but I will survive this. And I will not become a bride. I choose my fate, and no one will ever take that away from me.”

I uttered the words with a conviction I felt to my very soul. It was key to my survival, imperative to my continued existence, because without it, I’d crumble. And I refused to bow. I refused to submit. I refused to play this fucked-up game.

The blue rim around his pupils smoldered with an emotion I couldn’t define. Anger? Sadness? Some mixture of both? I couldn’t say, but I sensed the fury vibrating off of him. However, it didn’t seem to be directed toward me.

Silence fell between us as he battled with some sort of decision. I could see it playing out through his hypnotic irises, some kind of haunting revelation that he appeared to be chasing through his mind.

Power radiated from him, his Midnight Fae heritage strong and lethal.

There were several types of Midnight Fae, all of them possessing links to different forms of magic. I didn’t know much about their respective classifications, but I caught the purple tint circling the tip of his wand. He’d stuck it back into his cloak pocket, just not all the way, and an incantation appeared to be curling around the top of it.

If he noticed, he didn’t show it.

Instead, he pegged me with a severe look. “Sometimes we have no control over our fate.”

“I refuse to believe that.”

He smiled, but it wasn’t an expression of joy. “Then you’re sadly naïve.” He stood, his palms brushing over his thighs as he stepped toward me.

I looked up, maintaining eye contact, determined not to show an ounce of fear.

“What you’re missing upstairs is an opportunity to network with the Hell Fae men and garner favor,” he murmured. “And by ‘favor,’ I meangifts. Items to help you survive. Food. Clothing. Water. Because you’re about to be dropped into your first trial. A trial in an inhospitable landscape designed to kill you.”

He paused to let that sink in.

But I didn’t react.

Because being in a new land meant I would be venturing through a portal or some other form of magic. And that magic might provide freedom.

I really need that book to tell me more about portals,I thought.Too bad it’s in my room, not in this cell.

“Each Hell Fae is allowed to give a candidate of his preference up to three offerings to aid in the captive’s journey,” Ajax continued, making me wonder what thisjourneywould entail. “Without any aid, you will die, Camillia. And unfortunately, you’re missing your one and only chance to network upstairs. So not only are you entering the first trial malnourished—because the other females are all being fed as we speak—but you are also entering it without any aid whatsoever.”

A chill skated down my spine at how resolutely he spoke, as though my fate had already been decided.

“If there’s anything I’ve learned in life, it’s that destiny has a plan for us all. And only the naïve believe there’s an alternative.” His gaze met mine, an acute sadness lurking in his depths. “I know this because I once tried to alter fate, and the path my alteration created was something far worse. So I sincerely hope you don’t make the same mistakes I did. Because even if you do somehow manage to survive, your choices will haunt you for the rest of your life.”