King of the Unsightly (Tempting Trickery #1)

Murk and Ripples

“O kay,” I agreed, mid-panic.

I mean, what other options did we have?

“It’s a deal.” Fell clapped his hands, and it resounded off the walls.

With one blink, he launched me into an arena.

The rusted walls shot up for miles, dyed with gruesome scars of past battles. A crowd magically materialized—their cheers and chants made the bloodstained walls convulse.

Death lingered in the air, and one emotion resonated deep within me.

Dread.

Fell’s voice echoed around us, but he remained hidden. “Should you fight the beasts behind the wall, or should I have you learn the true meaning of fear ?”

I stepped back, my heart palpitated as Fell’s words slithered across my skin.

A deep sigh encircled me. “You’re taking too long. I’ll make the decision for you.” Fell hummed and its rhythmic patterns sounded like a clock ticking. He spoke again and it cut through the stadium. “If you reach the end, you succeed, but I have to warn you. My last participants didn’t survive long,” he sang out, his voice full of delight. “Good luck.”

Roots broke loose from the soil, throwing me off balance.

They stitched together, creating mountainous walls, and enclosed me on all sides except for two.

Kaschel dropped next to me and rose to his feet. He looked entirely too good for the shit we just went through.

“What the hell did you agree to?” he snarled, cutting his words short. “You never make a deal with a fae, let alone the king of tricksters. Fuck .” His jaw clenched and his neck muscles strained in response.

“Do you even hear the hypocrisy in what you said?!” I shot a glare at him. “And that man had shadow creatures behind him. Aren’t shadows supposed to be your thing since you ... I don’t know ... control them?!”

Kaschel’s scowl darkened, and a flicker of an emotion I hadn’t seen before crossed his face.

Was he ... pouting ? At a time like this?

“They are not mine to control.” Kaschel huffed.

Shadow daddy, my ass . Levisus lied.

Massive metal doors slammed in front of the pathways—symbols burned and etched into both.

One door had a realistic grieving face with vibrant eyes, and its mouth was full of fangs. It looked like the embodiment of two conflicting emotions.

The other mask emitted a malevolent aura with its serpent-like eyes and tongue split in two as it hung out of its mouth.

I gulped. Did we really have to choose?

I couldn’t read the chicken scratch symbols on it. So, how would we know which door was right?

I glanced back at Kaschel, hoping he looked more confident than I felt.

“If we split—”

My heart hammered violently as those words left his lips. “Fuck no. Have you never seen a horror movie?!” I looked at him with incredulity. “You never split up, and I’d be the first to die.” I mumbled the last part.

“Movies are not real life.” He creased his brows like I was the idiot here and not him.

“No. It’s crazy. It seems like you quit thinking altogether.” I enunciated the word you .

“If you long to be by my side that badly, you just had to say so, little flea,” Kaschel said in a condescending tone as he stepped closer to the metal doors.

For real? “Sure. You figured me out.” I rolled my eyes. “Strap me to your chest, baby. I can’t stand being away from you.”

His cool and collected attitude pissed me off. How could he be so ... insufferable ? Didn’t he just say I royally fucked up our situation?

Kaschel ignored my remark and muttered under his breath. “I think it doesn’t matter what path we take, there will be hardships regardless. Some will be worse than the others.”

I leaned closer to the masks, analyzing them a little more carefully.

If we chose the vicious looking one, would it be too obvious we hoped it would be the opposite? Or do we need to take the one sporting two emotions, hoping our initial instinct was incorrect?

Oh my god, I had no clue.

Kaschel pressed his hand on my shoulder, and I jerked forward.

He lowered his gaze to me as I squeezed my hand to my chest to catch my breath.

“Calm yourself. You don’t need to work that little brain so hard. We’ll take the double-edged sword one. I’m guessing it could have two paths within it, and one will be the right choice.”

Kaschel didn’t have to elaborate to get his point across. I knew what he meant; if we chose the wrong path, we were done for.

But if he thought insulting me and reassuring me would help—it didn’t.

My anxiety went through the roof now. “Fine, but you go first.” I pointed at the door, ushering him forward.

I had no shame anymore. Not after all the hell I had gone through in the last forty-eight hours.

Kaschel shook his head and walked past me. “How thoughtful of you.” He emptied a dry laugh from his throat.

“Well, this knight in shining armor can only save the princess so many times before their luck starts to run out,” I said half-mockingly.

I called him a princess and useless. My mouth had a mind of its own, and it really wanted to throw hands at the worst times.

Kaschel smirked, and it was wickedly delicious as his face shimmered in excitement like it could devour me with just a glance. “You seem in high spirits despite your insipid decision-making skills.”

Kaschel didn’t utter another word and pried open the two-faced door and walked through as I followed behind him into the night.

I stepped forward and my foot sank; half-submerged in murky water, I faintly caught glimpses of Kaschel’s back as he disappeared into the dark. The water thickened and I scrambled to match his speed.

Kaschel grunted, stopped, and turned back around. He appeared as a silhouette against the dim light until he closed the distance between us; his amethyst eyes radiated before me.

I didn’t notice Kaschel’s movement as he snatched my hand and dragged me behind him.

But I didn’t complain or comment.

I knew with one misstep we could get separated, and I had no clue what awaited us.

Kaschel held my hand tightly in his—his rough skin against mine as I squeezed his in response—and my fears slowly melted away.

I didn’t know if he heard my heartbeat settle and pick back up again as he squeezed my hand in return, or if he allowed his face to relax in the darkness, revealing his true desires.

But I wanted to know. I craved to know.

To see what he hid beneath that mask of his.

Was he ever genuine?

Was I?

A small splash rippled through the water, meters away from us.

Kaschel’s grip tightened, and he gained momentum as I pushed myself to maintain the same speed.