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Chapter Seven

“ I can explain,” said the man who had been completely deceiving her for the past few days.

He took a step forward, and she flinched, making him stop in his tracks.

“Who are you?” she repeated, her voice raising an octave.

“That is…a complicated qu estion.”

“Stars…I can’t believe it.” She ran her hands agitatedly through her hair.

“I knew something was off about you—you knew too much about things you shouldn’t, and you look nothing like a scholar.

But I just thought you were an eccentric academic who was dabbling in some illegal magic for his work. Is your name even Kai Gray?”

He looked away, and this time, she could see the guilt plain on his face.

Her heart seemed to crack a little. She had been a fool, a delirious idiot who had no idea what the world was like, exactly the kind of na?ve girl her family had always said she was.

Letting a man she had never met deceive her so completely, to make a mockery out of her.

He had probably thought she was the most pathetic person he had ever met, the way she had basically shoved her friendship at him, the way she had let him into her home, into her life, so easily.

She had thought they were becoming friends.

“Serena,” he tried again, and she realized this was the first time he had ever said her name.

“Don’t.” She was ashamed of the fact that her voice wavered. “Don’t you dare say my name when I don’t even know yours!”

She didn’t even know his real name.

A fool, a fool, a fool.

“Look, please just let me explain.”

“Explain?” she cried. “Why should I believe even one word that comes out of your lying mouth?”

“Just—”

“Get out !” she cried, the tears flowing freely down her cheeks now. “Please, if you have even the slightest bit of pity for me, you will leave me be.”

He didn’t point out that they were both cursed.

He didn’t argue .

She hated him for that, for his understanding, for his acceptance.

He turned and left the room, and she crumpled to the floor, heaving sobs. How had everything gone so terribly wrong? An hour ago, she had been feeling happy and content for the first time in a while—like she was no longer alone.

Now, fear and dread consumed her, and she was unable to wrap her head around the fact that she had been cursed and betrayed all in the same day.

Was she really going to die if she did not get through all his trials?

There was no way she would even consider the alternative—giving up her soul to that monster.

She could still feel his clammy magic, sucking the life and happiness out of her.

Why had she ever wished that her life would be more exciting, that more things would happen to her?

If only she could go back to this morning when her biggest problem was that she didn’t know if she was going to move back home and if she would have to give up healing if she didn’t get enough patients.

There was no one she could talk to, no one who could help her.

She wasn’t even sure what she would say if there was.

The handsome scholar, whom she’d been helping find a certain book, was a charlatan who had been fooling her for his own unknown purposes?

An evil immortal trapped in a book had cursed her to die unless she could pass some trials that he had concocted based on fairytales?

Any normal person would think she had lost her mind, and she wasn’t sure she would blame them.

Careful what you wish for.

The thought flashed through her mind, and tears fell anew. She wondered just how she was going to get out of this mess.

A hammering on the door awoke her. She lay in bed, intending to ignore it, knowing exactly who was making the racket.

When it did not cease, she dragged herself out of bed and got dressed.

Stomping downstairs, she opened the door to face the person she wanted to see the least. She opened her mouth to yell at him some more, but he stalled her with his raised hand.

“My name is Grim. Just Grim, no last name,” he rushed out.

“Yes, I came for the book, but not for scholarly reasons. I am not an imperial scholar, and I have only been to the capital a handful of times. This was supposed to be a quick mission, just popping in and grabbing the book, but I couldn’t find it, and then you insisted on helping.

“I’m not blaming you,” he said quickly, spying her outraged expression. “I’m just trying to explain that I did not set out trying to trick you. None of this was meant to happen.”

She tapped her foot impatiently, not really wanting to forgive him so easily. She had just resolved to not be so trusting anymore; she wasn’t caving simply because of some latent honesty.

“Look, can I come in so we can at least discuss this?”

When pigs would fly.

Sensing her reticence, he fished out a very familiar looking package from the bag on his shoulder.

“I got you tea from the village,” he said a little hesitantly. “I asked around a little until I found out where you usually get yours from.”

All right, so pigs had wings, and she was the biggest fool in the kingdom, because she couldn’t help but be slightly charmed by the gesture. He opened the package then, and she felt her breath hitch.

For in the brown paper, lay the camellia leaves blend she had complained about running out of the day before.

“You were listening,” she whispered .

He looked away, his cheeks slightly pink. “It isn’t a big deal. I just remembered you complaining about running out, and well… you probably ran out earlier because you gave some to me as well. Consider this repayment.”

How did she explain that she didn’t remember the last time someone had taken great pains to get her something she loved and just the way she liked it.

To listen to her and pay attention so completely.

Her vision threatened to blur with tears, and she wordlessly moved away from the door to let him in.

Relief melted his features, and he stepped inside.

“Would you like me to make you some?”

“Do you know how to brew it? The one you’re holding is made a little differently.”

“I can manage.”

A few minutes later they were both seated in front of each other, and Serena had a startling feeling of déjà vu of her first night living at Primrose Cottage, when her aunt had handed her tea and sat in front of her the same way, looking at her the way Grim was right now—with concern and wariness as if the wrong word might push her over the edge.

Eyes stinging at the memory and a queer little squeeze in her heart, she bent down to hide her face with her hair and sipped her tea.

It was perfect.

“Is the tea all right? I made it the way you mentioned once before.”

Not only had he gotten her the right blend, but now he had also brewed it flawlessly. How could one be angry at someone who gave them perfect tea?

“It’s passable.” She sniffed.

He frowned, looking vaguely troubled .

“I did use the precise measurements though… maybe it was the brewing time that was all wrong? But I was sure it was exactly one minute for the tea to seep, and thirty seconds to mix it after the sugar and milk.”

He looked so serious while talking about this, that she couldn’t help it, she burst out laughing.

She laughed the loudest she had in a long long time, so much so that her throat dried up and tears came into her eyes.

Very soon those tears turned to tears at her predicament, all the excitement of the past day rushing back to her, and soon she was sobbing while an alarmed looking Grim hovered over her, incredibly unsure of what to do.

This made her giggle again through her hiccups and sobs.

“Are you—” He frowned. “Are you all right?”

The laughter and tears dried up at that question, and she wiped her wet eyes and sniffed.

“Can one truly be all right when they’ve been cursed by an evil, vengeful immortal.”

He had no answer for that.

“That was really stupid of you, you know,” she said.

“The Right of Accompaniment is usually only evoked by friends or family. This essentially means you’re tied to me until the curse is lifted; whatever I go through, you will as well.

What were you thinking, getting yourself cursed for someone you barely know? ”

He raised a brow.

“Don’t flatter yourself, Princess. Maybe there’s something in it for me.”

She set down her empty cup before turning to look at him seriously. “Tell me, then.”

Grim looked a little uncomfortable, as if he really didn’t want to get into this conversation. “What do you want to know? ”

“Everything. You said you would explain, so I’m giving you a chance to come clean about why you’re here.” When he didn’t reply, she prompted, “You said you didn’t want to deceive me.”

“It’s not that.” He sighed. “It’s more like I don’t think you would believe me if I told you.”

“You could try.”

He took a deep breath. “I have been sent here by the Old Ones of the Woods to bring back a magical artifact that’s trapped inside that book. I was instructed to not open the book, just to bring it back to the spirits.”

He winced, and she was certain he had just remembered his promise the book would remain with her. She raised her brows to let him know she had noticed the slip but let him continue.

“I had no idea there was an immortal being trapped inside it. When the book reacted to your presence, I expect the resulting magic was more potent because it is Samhain.”

“The Old Ones sent you,” she repeated. “The ancient beings who no one has heard from in centuries. Do I truly seem that gullible to you?”

“It’s the truth whether you believe it or not.”

She scoffed, but her mind was already wandering to the strange happenings of the past week—the fire spirits, the laughing in the wind.