Page 7 of Taken By the Lord of the Nocturne Court

Kyranis frowns. “It doesn’t have to be, but test my patience, and it just might.”

I swallow the cold lump in my throat. My big mouth often gets me in trouble, but I don’t want to prod this guy too much until I know more about my situation. He seems unhinged, but what happened in the parking lot with my shadow is still vivid in my mind. It wasn’t a dream. I’m dealing with something beyond my understanding.

I’m taking the lack of shackles on my wrists as a suggestion that he’s not afraid of anything I might do. Which either means he’s underestimating me, or he’s so confident in his own prowess he thinks he can subdue me with ease.

I’m about to ask more about this ‘marriage’ and what it means, why me, and a million other questions that could help me find my feet, but then we stop.

There’s athud, and after a short knock on the door, the coachman opens it.

To my relief, he does have eyes, they’re just a strange milky blue with barely visible irises. He’s wearing a tricorn hat, but his long black hair is soaking wet to the point of dripping onto his simple leather coat, and… is that seaweed tangled into it? I have to admit he’s handsome even though he doesn’t seem to have eyelashes. But where Prince Kyranis isthe picture of deadly elegance, about to either stab someone or sniff a glass of wine, the coachman looks as if a witch dragged his pale body out of the ocean, then charmed beauty into him by force. There’s just something… sinister about him.

“We’re at the tollhouse, Your Highness.”

Kyranis rises as much as the carriage allows his tall form and, to my shock, reaches out to pet my chin. “I will be right back, my sweet,” he says and walks out with a swish of his cloak.

The coachman glances at me as if he can see through me. Like I don’t deserve to be here. I didn’t ask to be abducted, thank you very much. But I still feel a bit underdressed in my Best Burgers Bonanza uniform.

When he shuts the door on our staring contest, I give into childishness and stick my tongue out.

That’s where my silliness stops though. I need to get out of here while I have the chance. My hand trembles when I reach for the handle of the door on the opposite side to the one through which Kyranis left, but it opens without issue. I leave as quietly as I can, my heart already rattling. I’m no super spy. I’m not used to any of this.

I swallow at the gust of cold wind and the thick scent of forest undergrowth.

The tollhouse is on the other side of the carriage. I can just about see its chimney, flanked by a moon that is a sliver away from being full. I stumble, shocked by how giant its glowing face is. I don’t think I’ve ever seen it this large, this close to earth, or this bright. Even though it’s the middle of the night, it bathes the forest in cool moonlight.

Looks like I have an ally after all, because otherwise I would have only my phone to guide—

I rush between the trees, already planning to alert as many people as possible to my situation. If I call the cops, will they be able to track me based on the GPS in my phone?

My heart sinks when I spot the exclamation mark signaling no connection. Not a single bar available. I send a message about the abduction and how it’s not a joke, to several people, unsure who will get it first, or when it might reach the recipients.

For now, my fate is in my own hands.

The deeper I go into the trees, the damper the ground. I move low, to avoid being spotted, but my boots sink into moss so wet dirty water pools where I step. To make matters worse, there isn’t a hint of a path as I try to find my way through thorn-riddledbushes.

I bite back a yelp when a particularly sharp one manages to rip not just my pants but the skin on my legs as well. What kind of razor thorn fuckery is this?

I push on in frustration. I will not be stopped by somebushes.

I can barely see the carriage from here, so I’ve made good progress, but I have to admit to myself that I don’t know what to do once I’m out of Kyranis’s clutches. I can probably survive a night out here—

The howl of a wolf leaves me stiff as a rock. It’s so easy to forget how mortal you are when you live in a town, have enough food to survive, and a roof over your head. The threat of bodily harm hasn’t happened all that often to me since I left school, but as I push deeper into the thorny bushes, I have to face the reality.

I’m frightened. I want to cry. I’m getting cold. I don’t know where I am.

I hurt my legs in several places when trying to free myself from the bloodthirsty branches, but all it’s done is get me more tangled. Wherever this strange place is, it doesn’t seem…natural.

Just as I think that, a buzz of wings makes me yelp. I’m unable to hold it in this time and hope my abductor doesn’t hear me.

I turn around to find the source of the noise, because it’s always better to know what you’re up against, but I’m not ready to face the beastie once its four beady eyes meet mine.

Its furry body is about the size of a kitten’s, but not nearly as cute, since it’s a giant-assmoth. The tree branch it’s sitting on bends under its weight. Every now and then, it has to flap its wings so it doesn't fall off. This creature would be the stuff of nightmares in Australia, let alone inMaine.

The moth blinks as I get used to its presence all too close to my shoulder. That’s even weirder, because moths don’t have eyelids. Colors shimmer in its dark fur and wings as if it's been dipped in an oil spill. For just a moment, I forget the perilous predicament I’m in, and the rips in my pants, entranced by the creepy beauty of this… thing.

“Whatareyou?” I whisper.

And then it flies at my face.