Virtue - a Fairy Tale (2 page)

“At your service.” Lux flashed her a dazzling smile, and he was pleased to see it had some effect on her. Not much, but she was a far wiser woman than he usually pursued.

“I am Lady Scelestus, and this is my home.” She gestured expansively to the area around her, but she did it with a sneer, and his interest in her grew. “I trust you found the ball satisfactory.”

“Very satisfactory,” Lux replied dryly.

Scelestus threw back her head and laughed that perfect evil cackle he’d always been partial to.

“It was my husband’s idea,” she said darkly and sat back on one of the sofas, spreading her gown out around her. “He is such a bore. As if ten years in this palace is anything to celebrate.”

Jinn hobbled across the room to where a cantor and several glasses sat on a small table. He poured something dark into tall glasses, and brought a glass over to the Lady first, then Lux.

He took it willingly, but before taking he drink, he sniffed. It smelled of Scotch, but that only meant that he couldn’t smell any poison, not that there wasn’t any.

“You don’t trust me.” A corner of her mouth curved up as she watched him inspecting his drink. “I like that.” In response, he threw back the drink in one quick gulp, and she laughed loudly.

“Thank you.” He handed his empty glass back to Jinn, then sat down on the sofa across from Scelestus. “Shall we get down to business?”

“Yes, I suppose we’d better,” Scelestus agreed reluctantly. “I have to get back to that dreadful party before they notice I’m missing.” With that, she finished her own drink. “Did your master explain to you what you’re to do?”

“No, he was very secretive about the whole thing.” Lux crossed his leg over his knee and settled more deeply into the couch. The Scotch hit him warmly, and the beautiful sorceress across from him had him almost forgetting the earlier kiss entirely.

“Good.” She twirled the glass absently in her hand, watching as the light refracted through it. “It’s very important that we keep this all quiet, at least until everything is finished. My husband must never find out. I told Valefor to send the one he trusted the most, and he sent me you.”

“For good reason,” Lux smiled, feeling a hint of pride at being chosen by his master. “I keep my secrets.”

“Excellent.” Scelestus looked at him fully. “I’ve made an arrangement with Valefor. You are to take my step-daughter to him.”

“That’s all?” Lux raised an eyebrow. He’d been expecting a task far more difficult. If there was one thing he could do, it was getting a girl to leave a party with him. “I don’t need to return anything in exchange?”

“No, Valefor will take care of that part himself.” She smoothed out the silk of her dress and sat up straighter. “It’s absolutely imperative that he get her as soon as possible, and he get her in
mint
condition.”

She stressed the
mint
part, and while that might be a bit of inconvenience for him, he could manage. He didn’t have to sleep with every pretty girl with a pulse.

“Done.” Lux shrugged. “Now how should I find this lucky girl?”

“Her name is Lily.”

For a second, Lux didn’t breathe, but he forced his expression to stay even. His hand wanted to go to the back of his neck, to touch the hair she’d been twirling her fingers in, but he made it stay down on his down at his side.

His mouth felt stiff and dry, and he couldn’t understand what had come over him. The mere mention of her name, and he fell to shambles.

“Is there a problem?” Scelestus eyed him suspiciously.

“No, of course not.” He smiled and shook his head. “How… how will I know her?”

“She’s down in the ball somewhere, probably hiding in a corner. She keeps to herself.” Scelestus didn’t even try to hide the disgust in her voice. “She has on a white gown, long dark hair, and her skin is as white as… well, a lily. She’s quite pretty, I’ve been told, not that she ever has any suitors. She’s as scared and timid and dull as a field mouse. She is an absolute bore, just like her father.”

“It shouldn’t be too hard to get her away then,” Lux heard himself saying, and he was grateful that his words sounded normal and didn’t belie the panic he felt.

“I wouldn’t think so. She’s a half-wit, at best.” The sorceress shrugged. “Be sure you don’t make a scene. I thought a party would be the best way for her to slip out unnoticed. By the time her father realizes what’s happening, it will be too late.” She smiled again, a sight that had been pleasing to him seconds ago now revolted him.

“What does Valefor want with her?” Lux asked. He shouldn’t even be asking. He always made a point of not knowing the things his master did. It made his life so much easier that way.

“I’m not sure exactly. Whatever it is he wants with any young girl, I suppose.” Scelestus shook her head, as if it hadn’t even occurred to her why someone like Valefor would want her virginal step-daughter. “You know better than I the things that your master wants.”

“That I do.” Lux breathed deeply and tried to remind himself that this didn’t matter. That
she
didn’t matter. His purpose in life had nothing to do with a silly girl or her well-being.

“I should return to the ball,” Scelestus sighed and got to her feet. “And you should retrieve Lily before the attendance starts to dwindle.”

“Yes, of course.” Lux stood up.

“Do you know how to get back to the ballroom? It’d be best if we didn’t return together.” She smiled, attempting something seductive, but it fell short.

“Yes, I do,” Lux nodded, but he didn’t feel certain of it.

He didn’t feel certain of anything. In the course of half an hour, his entire world felt tipped upside down. He wanted a moment to collect his thoughts, but he didn’t have the time. Scelestus expected him to do his job, and more importantly, so did Valefor.

Valefor was the last person on Earth he wanted to upset. That meant he had to do what he was told, the same as he always had.

Lux would’ve liked to say that he had felt uncomfortable about the things Valefor had asked him to do in the past, but he hadn’t. Since deciding to serve him, Lux hadn’t second-guessed anything. Some of things he did weren’t pleasant, but that was the price he paid, the price he had
chosen
to pay.

As he walked out of Lady Scelestus’s secret chambers, Lux found himself thinking that, for the first time, he might not be able to go through with his orders. All because a ridiculous girl had decided to wrap his hair around her finger, and he couldn’t get her out of his head.

2

In the ballroom, everyone twirled in time with the music. The gowns flowed out around the girls, shimmering and swaying in the light. They linked arms with their dance partners, using their free hands to hold the masks in front of their faces, while the spectators on the fringe watched with fascination. It all seemed a little too entrancing, and Lux wondered whether a spell from Scelestus had anything to do with their fervent interest.

He stood at the edge of the room, debating what to do, and he couldn’t believe he was even debating. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Scelestus sitting at the head of the room, next to her husband. Lux had been hoping that the Lord would sense something was amiss, but he watched the dancing with the same foolish grin as everyone else. As if what they were doing were magic instead of a glorified waltz.

Lux’s real focus was on Lily. As soon as he’d walked into the room, he’d spotted her, his eyes drawn to her. She tried to stay hidden on the far side of the room, all but pressed up against the wall. Her eyes were on the dance floor, but her expression had a blank faraway look, as if her thoughts were elsewhere entirely.

No matter what he decided to do, Lux couldn’t stay away from her any longer. Something inside him seemed magnetized to her, and it was exhausting fighting it. He plummeted into the crowded ballroom floor, clumsily pushing through the dancers to get to the other side. Going around the sides of the room would be easier, but it wouldn’t be as fast.

As he pushed people to the side, they swore at him, and he created a small scene. His gaze still fixed on Lily across the room, he noticed the instant she saw him. Her eyes widened, her lips parted, and an embarrassed shade of crimson highlighted her cheeks. She looked like she wanted to run but hadn’t mustered up the nerve yet, and Lux quickened his pace to get to her.

When he finally made his way out of the crowd, to the empty space on the side of room where Lily hid, he stopped. She was only a few feet in front of him, and he took deliberate, slow steps to her. By the sounds of the dancing behind him, everyone had forgotten about him already. Lux and Lily were alone, without an audience to witness or care what they did.

“You’re not dancing,” Lux said when he reached her.

“Neither are you.” She tried to keep her voice even, but the heavy rise and fall of her chest gave her away. It’d be easy to mistake her reaction as fear, but when he looked into her eyes, he saw an emotion he was far more familiar with.

“I didn’t have a suitable partner.” He smiled at her, and she lowered her eyes again.

“I’m sure you could find one.”

“I think I have.” Lux held out his hand to her, not that he meant to dance with her. He had no idea what he meant to do, but he’d feel better once he had her hand in his.

She shook her head demurely and didn’t take his hand. “I don’t dance.”

“You don’t like dancing, you don’t like parties. What is it that you do like?” He smiled and moved closer to her, so she could feel the imposing sense of his body. “You’re unhappy here. Why don’t we go somewhere that you can be happy?”

“Where?” She looked up at him, her eyes unabashedly hopeful, and it pulled at something inside him.

“We’ll decide when we get there.”

Lux offered her his hand again, and this time, she took it. Her hand felt small and cool in his, her skin softer than satin. He would’ve been content to simply stand there and hold her hand forever, and that thought frightened him into motion. This time, he couldn’t risk a scene, so he stayed to the sides of the room, walking along the walls until they could slip out the doorway.

She followed him without question, and her naivety upset him. Normally he liked anything that made his job easier, but anything that innocent wouldn’t last long with Valefor. He pushed the thought from his mind and quickened his steps. She hurried along behind him, lifting the length of her dress to keep from tripping.

When he stepped outside through the front doors, he signaled the valet to fetch his horse, and it startled him how cold the night air had gotten. He looked over at Lily, her bare shoulders dimpling from the chill, and he nearly offered her his jacket before he stopped himself.

His slick black horse rounded the driveway in front of them. Lux let go of her hand to help her up onto the horse. He’d expected to feel some relief at that, but instead he felt pain at the separation. He was already looking for an excuse to touch her again.

It occurred to him after he’d climbed on the horse with Lily’s arms wrapped tightly around his waist and he’d sped off down the road – this all had to be some kind of spell. Maybe Scelestus put one on him to make him more dutiful.

But that didn’t make sense, since he had the urge to protect Lily from his master, and that was the opposite of what Scelestus wanted. Maybe Lily had done it.

When her arms tightened around him, his stomach swirled with something warm.

Yes, that had to be it. She dabbled in the same dark arts as her step-mother, and she concocted a plan to protect herself. She kissed Lux and put some kind of spell on him, so he’d want to save her instead of taking her to his master.

That didn’t explain why Lux felt drawn to her the second he heard her speak, or how innocent and uncertain she looked. If she had put a spell on him, why bother with the pretense? She could drop the act and simply order him to help her, and he’d follow.

“Where are we going?” Lily asked, her soft words in his ear.

“You can drop the act,” Lux blurted out, hoping to startle her into admitting she cast a spell on him.

“What?”

“I know you put a spell on me.”

“I-I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Lily stammered and her arms loosened around him. “I’m not sure what’s happened to you, but I’ve had nothing to do with it. My step-mother might know something about it. Maybe she will help you.”

 “Drop the innocent act.” He rolled his eyes, trying to hang on to some anger and irritation, but he didn’t have any. At least not for Lily. “You kissed me the second you met me and then ran off into the night with me. That’s not something a virtuous girl would do.”

“You’re absolutely right.” Lily lowered her head. “I have no idea what came over me. I’ve never kissed anybody before.”

“You mean you’ve never kissed anyone like that before.” Lux slowed the horse and felt a strange ache inside him because he was upsetting her.

“No. I’ve never kissed anyone. Ever.” She shook her head. “I’m sorry. I know how foolish I am. Please. Just take me home.”

Lux swallowed painfully. He couldn’t take her back home. Scelestus would find a new way to get rid of her, and Valefor would send someone else after her
and
after Lux. He definitely couldn’t take her to Valefor. He would eat her alive, probably quite literally.

But Lux had nowhere else to take her. What few consorts he had were nearly as bad as Valefor, and he couldn’t leave a girl like Lily with them. Nor could he go on the run with her. She stood a better chance without him. She was just one stupid girl, but Lux had vowed to serve Valefor. If he went astray, Valefor would send everything after Lux until he was destroyed.

“Damn,” Lux cursed and pulled the horse to a sudden stop. It snorted with irritation, and Lily squeezed onto him tighter to keep from falling off.

“I’m sorry!” Lily said, assuming his anger was with her. “I never meant to bother you!”

“No, no, you’re not. You’re…” Lux trailed off. Once again, he felt the urge to comfort her, but he had no idea how, so he stopped. “You didn’t do anything wrong. Just let me think.”