Please. The Corruption writhes beneath my skin. My wrists, my throat, my heart, my lungs. Lie still, stay quiet.
At first, it fights. Pain sears through my bones, inside my chest. A flood of water fills my mouth. Please. I think of warmth and light. Of my skin, freckled and sunburned and unmarked by poison. I think of a deep, slow breath that doesn’t taste of lake water. Don’t hurt me. Let me go.
And then it all softens. The poison curls up, nestles between my ribs. The tightness in my throat and chest slackens. I take a desperate breath, run my hands over my skin to soothe the ache. But even though the Corruption has quieted, I can still feel its hunger. I know that soon it will reawaken, too strong for me to fight.
A drift of wind stirs through the needle-leafed branches. And the darkness whispers to me. I won’t hurt you. Let me claim you.
I shake my head. No. I look at the Lord Under, who watches me in careful silence.
“Come here,” I demand. My voice sounds like the lake. Deep, dark water that wants to drown the world.
He comes toward me, slowly, tensely, almost as if he’s afraid of me. Maybe he never lied, but he never told the whole truth, either. And now I want to know. I’m not going quiet into the dark until I’m certain there’s no other choice.
I meet his pale eyes with my own glare. “I’m going to ask you a question, and you will answer honestly.”
He waits, expectantly. I consider each word, weigh it carefully before I go on. “Can your magic mend the Corruption, now that it’s only inside me?”
He doesn’t move. At first I think he will refuse to answer, but then his mouth curves very slightly into the barest hint of a smile. “Yes, it could.”
“You could stop this?”
His smile widens until I can see the sharp points of his teeth. “That would depend on what you were willing to offer me.”
I know I only have one chance at this. I think of how he swallowed my blood, my fear, my memories. Everything I gave up to him at the altar. He could so easily let me be devoured. Whether he bargains with me now, or watches me die at his feet, either way he’ll win. I need to make him realize that there is value in my safety. To make him want me, whole and alive.
In the Vair Woods, I was small and frightened and powerless, and I thought I had nothing to offer him. But now I have so much. I have family and love and a home. I have magic and strength.
I feel the shape of the word in my mouth. Let it sit on my tongue, until I can taste it. Then I tell him my offer. “Power.”
He looks at me curiously. “Go on.”
“You told me once there is power in fear. Well, I won’t fear you. But if you can make me safe from the Corruption—take the poison from me—I will give you power.” I press my lips together, holding myself steady, though inside I am alight with desperation. “I will love you. I will worship you. I will never forget you, even after I go home.”
He steps closer, a pale glow against the quiet shadows of the darkened forest. His frosted-glass eyes, the fringe of his lashes, his hair like a veil of mist. Slowly, he lifts his hand and strokes my face. His claws are gentle as he traces the edge of my jaw. When he touches me, I remember how it felt when we cast the spell together. How raw and bared and close it all was. The cold burn of his shadows as they sang through me.
I lean my cheek against his palm for a moment. Then I put my hand over his and still his touch. “Will you accept?”
“I am considering it.” He tips his chin toward the stones. “Sit.”
My stomach twists into an anxious knot. He hasn’t refused. Not yet. I ease myself back, until I’m sitting on one of the charred granite stones. He lowers himself to kneel at my feet. He looks down at my boots—sodden with inky water, clotted all over with mud from the churned ground.
“Do you think so highly of your company, my Violet in the woods?” He takes one of my boots in his hands and starts to untie the laces. “Perhaps I’d rather your soul. It would be much less trouble.”
“But how much power is there in one soul?” When he doesn’t reply, I go on. “Tell me, truly. Would I be worth as much to you if I was just another voice, whispering inside one of your trees?”
All I can hear is my heartbeat as I wait for him to answer. Finally, he laughs darkly and shakes his head. “No. Though I suspect you’d argue much less.”
Relief sinks through me, and I force myself to smile at him. I fold back my skirts, so he can reach my feet more easily. “Oh, I don’t know. I’m sure I’d find a way. As for my company? I’m the only person alive who can see you and summon you. I can touch you. I can walk in the land of the dead. I can hear the voices of your souls. So yes. I do think of myself that highly.”