Deals With the Devil

Deal or No Deal

After working twelve hours a day for a mere three days, Beth and Molly were beyond tired. They would work whatever jobs were given, train with each other for an hour or two, then crash for six hours. Once the one-week mark hit, they would instantly become nervous whenever they heard someone walk past. How much longer could they last?

Shortly after eight o’clock on the seventh night of their stay, the girls were trying to play a game of tic tac toe when they heard a knock on the door. The girls glanced at each other fearfully before Beth rose and opened the door. Standing in the doorway was a girl they hadn’t seen before.

“His Majesty, King Seth, wishes to speak with the girl that he made the deal with.”

“That would be me. Do you know what he wants?”

“No, Miss. I just know that he wishes to speak with you.”

“Could I have a moment to become more presentable?” Beth asked quickly. When the girl nodded, she slipped into the bathroom.

Less than two minutes passed before she returned. Her hair had been brushed to perfection. She also put in her earrings and readjusted her necklace.

“I’ll be back, Molly,” Beth said with a smile as she followed the girl out of their room.

Instead of taking a right toward the throne room as Beth had expected, they took a left. The girl led Beth to a set of double doors on the right side of the hallway. They were similar to those of her own bedroom, but these ones were obviously crafted with much more care. The intricate flowers spread across the door like a beautiful garden.

“King Seth is waiting for you through these doors,” the girl said before she left. “But don’t keep him waiting. He does not like it.”

“Then he mustn’t be kept waiting,” Beth replied sarcastically, rolling her eyes. “He is the king, after all.”

“Come in,” King Seth called after Beth knocked. His patience had started running thin, as patience was one virtue he failed to receive.

“You wished to see me?” Beth asked, taking a seat in one of the two chairs across from the King.

“I did,” King Seth replied, his slight annoyance filling his voice. “What would you say about making another deal? One where you and your sister won’t have to work anymore.”

“And what is the cost? A deal works both ways.”

“You agree to marry me,” he said, leaning back in his chair. “Some may call it a betrothal.”

“What the Hell! Why do you want me to marry you?”

“I told you when we first met. I’m lonely.”

“I need to discuss this with Molly.” When she saw King Seth’s confused face, she explained, “Molly is my sister.”

“Of course. Matilda,” King Seth said, continuing when the girl arrived. “Please summon Molly and Lord Sadiki.”

“Why is Lord Sadiki coming here?” Beth asked. “Do you need help making deals?”

“I can make deals without any help,” the king snarled, once again sitting up with a perfectly straight back. “Lord Sadiki is just going to be another witness. We can’t have you changing your side of the bargain, now can we?”

Beth chuckled. “Of course not. But before they get here, I have one last question for you.” After a nod from King Seth, she continued. “Why me? Why not make this deal with Molly? She’s much prettier than me.”

“In short, it’s because you interest me; there is something different about you compared to Molly. Those daggers of yours are some of the finest I have ever seen. I must assume that you are able to handle them properly.”

“If you give me one dagger and a worthy opponent, I’ll show you my skills with them.”

“Perhaps another day,” King Seth said as they heard a knock on the door. “Come in.”

Lord Sadiki led a frightened Molly into the room. The Lord took his place standing behind King Seth and slightly to his right. Molly sat in the seat beside her sister. She grabbed Beth’s hand tightly.

“I understand why you summoned the girl, my Liege,” Lord Sadiki said with the bow of his head, “but why do you need my presence?”

“Like I told the girl, I need you to be my witness,” King Seth explained once again. “Then none of us can change the bargain.”

“And what is the bargain?” Molly asked fearfully.

“If your friend here-”

“My name is Beth.”

“Thank you,” King Seth said with a nod. “If Beth agrees to become betrothed to me, both of you will be released from your work. You still have to remain here for the full six weeks, but you will be free to mill around as you wish. The two of you may discuss.”

“Why did you need me, Beth? It’s you that would be stuck here for the rest of your life,” Molly whispered.

“Because I need you to help me make this a better deal for us,” Beth explained. “There is nothing to do down here, so you should insist that we get my bag back.”

“Yes! You also need a way to get to know him. Make a side deal relating to that!”

“See? This is why I need you to be here. I wouldn’t be able to survive this without you.”

“Oh, stop it! We both know you’d be perfectly fine without me.”

“I’m not so sure,” Beth muttered before raising her voice to include King Seth and Lord Sadiki. “While we have come to a decision, Molly brought up a few important points.”

“And what are those points?” King Seth asked, leaning forward.

“I will agree to your deal if you agree to mine.”

“What might your deal be, little one?”

“The two of us do something together to get to know each other in exchange for the return of our possessions,” Beth said slowly. She couldn’t mess this up now. “That includes my blades.”

“You drive a hard bargain, Miss Beth, but I must insist upon a minor change,” King Seth said with a smile. He clearly enjoyed making deals. “I will return your bag with everything in it, but I will take all the lead from the pencils. And I cannot in my right mind give you all of your weapons while you remain in your sentence.”

“How will I get the lead and my blades back?” Beth asked, glaring at the king. “My pencils are useless if they don’t have a piece of lead! And the dagger that I kept on my waist was given to me by someone important!”

“If I may,” Lord Sadiki interrupted. “I have a suggestion for what you could do to get back the lead, Miss Beth.”

“Tell us,” King Seth said before stage whispering to the girls. “This could be interesting.”

“A kiss. For every time Miss Beth gives King Seth a kiss, a piece of lead shall be returned to her.”

“No,” Beth ordered, struggling to hide her surprise.

“I think I like Lord Sadiki’s suggestion,” King Seth replied. “But I will make it three pieces instead of just one, my dear.”

“I will read you one of my books for all the pieces of lead,” Beth countered.

“Nah. I’ve already heard most of your books,” King Seth replied. “Do we have a deal with the previous offers?”

“Damn you.”

“Is that a yes?” King Seth asked with a proud grin slipping onto his face.

“Remind me of all our deals that we created today.”

“Let’s see. You agreed to become betrothed to me so you and Molly won’t have to do all kinds of strenuous work. We go on a date to get back your bag with everything in it except for the lead. Yes, I’m calling it a date for simplicity,” King Seth said. “A kiss for three pieces of lead.”

Beth glanced at Molly, who just shrugged. “I will agree to these bargains.”

“Then let’s shake hands with Lord Sadiki and Molly as witnesses.”

King Seth held out his hand. After a short pause, Beth gave him a firm handshake. The deals were made and agreed to by both parties. Both were bound by these deals.

“Beautiful,” King Seth said, leaning back as if he had taken some of Beth’s energy with the deal. “I will have a dress sent to your room tomorrow afternoon. Be ready to go by four o’clock sharp.”

“And our bag? I will be needing a few items from in it,” Molly asked.

“Matilda will bring it to your rooms.”

“Thank you. I will be ready by four tomorrow,” Beth said as she stood up. “Come on, Molly.”

Once they reached their bedroom, Molly erupted. She started laughing and hugging her best friend like they had won, a feeling that Beth did not share. She felt like they had lost because Molly wasn’t going to be able to go back to her parents.

“What is wrong with you, Molly?” Beth asked. “We didn’t win. I wanted to be able to send you home.”

“You are going on your first date tomorrow!” Molly squealed. “And it’s with a good looking boy!”

“Yeah. The same, good looking boy that is pretending to be a king,” Beth reminded Molly with so much less excitement. “And I didn’t have much of a choice about it.”

“Still. You told every boy in our pack that you would never go on a date with anyone, but now you’re going on one tomorrow!”

“I only agreed because I need to know more about him,” Beth said aloud. But then she continued more quietly and to herself, “Although he does remind me of a boy I used to know years ago.”