Deals With the Devil

The King

At the end of what felt like a mile long hallway stood a black, majestic throne. A man - no. A mere boy - sat upon it with a golden crown resting on his head. He couldn’t have been much older than the girls; sixteen. But he commanded his men with such authority and confidence that the warriors actually followed his orders. As the trio neared his throne, they saw his messy, honey blond hair partially covering his eyes, which appeared to be blood red.

Beth’s grip on Molly’s hand tightened for a second when she saw another man walking behind the man’s throne and into a room hidden beyond their sight. Molly gave her a soft, knowing smile.

“Now you’re scared, little sister?” Molly teased, giving Beth’s hand a squeeze.”He’s only our age.”

“It’s not him that I’m worried about. I thought I saw someone I used to know,” Beth said before mumbling more to herself. “Although that boy looks familiar too.”

“These were the girls that we caught trespassing in the forest,” Lord Sadiki said, bowing low to his king. “Just like you said they would.”

“What do you mean, ‘Just like you said they would’?” Beth asked, glaring at the boy.

“You’ve been spending multiple days hiding out in my forest, so I assumed that you would be back again,” the boy replied with a smirk. “And it appears that I was right.”

“Why didn’t you stop us before, since you clearly knew we were here?” Beth asked, taking a threatening step forward. “What kind of a boy are you?”

“Because I enjoyed hearing your stories,” the boy said calmly; calmer than either girl expected him to be. “It gets rather boring down here most days, so I listened to your stories whenever I could.”

Molly gave a soft sigh as she released Beth’s hand. Like her mother, she did not like to dislike people who were lonely or in need. “I feel like we should do something for him. He seems so sad and lonely.”

“He’s hiding something,” Beth replied, watching the boy carefully. “And I want to know what it is.”

“Well, ladies,” the boy said, standing up and growing serious. “Since you were caught trespassing, we have two possible options. We could turn you in and have you charged with trespassing, which I doubt either of your parents would approve of.”

“Or?” Beth prompted.

“Or, you can stay here and help out for two weeks for every time you entered my forest.” He counted on his fingers quietly. “That would be twelve weeks if my math is correct.”

Molly instantly started whispering to Beth in a slightly carrying voice. “Let’s do the work. It’s nothing new to us, and I don’t want people to know that I have trespassed; some males won’t like me as a mate, nor will people respect me if I do. And it’s only twelve weeks; it won’t take that long.”

“So, is that your final decision?”

Beth glanced at her best friend. She knew how important becoming a Luna was to her, and she would never do something to hurt her chances if there was another option. “Yes.”

At the boy’s signal, a servant entered with an empty box. The boy directed her to Beth. “Before you are allowed into the compound, you must remove all of your weapons. They will be kept safe, and I promise that they will be returned to you after your time here is done.”

Beth reluctantly placed her dagger in the box. Molly never had weapons because she knew a lot more about physical fighting, and her wolf would be able to help her in less than two years. “Now can we go in?” Beth asked.

“I believe I said all of your weapons.”

“What do you mean? I only have one dagger,” Beth replied with a frown. “Unfortunately, I left all my other weapons at home today.”

The boy and Lord Sadiki both gave Beth the “I don’t believe you” look. Molly just rolled her eyes at her sister’s tactics. After a few moments of silence, Beth gave in. She removed daggers and blades of assorted sizes from hidden sheaths all over. They were hidden in her boots, pants, and one was even hidden up her sleeve. All of the weapons were placed in the box.

“And the last one?”

With an angry snarl that rivaled that of a true wolf, Beth unclipped the sheath of a medieval-era sword along her spine. Handing it to the servant holding the now full box of weapons, she turned back to the group.

“There. I have no more weapons on me.” She held out her arms to emphasize her point.

“What about your earrings and necklace?” Lord Sadiki asked. “Are they weapons as well?”

“They are not. My parents and I picked them out for her ourselves,” Molly interjected before Beth could speak.

“Do you believe the girls, King Seth?” Lord Sadiki asked, turning to the boy.

“I will trust her for now,” King Seth replied absentmindedly, not looking away from Beth. She noticed that his already strange eyes had tiny details that swirled around as he stared at her. “Why don’t you escort the girls to their new room, Lord Sadiki?”

“Of course, my King,” the lord said with a bow. “Follow me, ladies.”

Lord Sadiki led the two girls down a hidden hallway and to a set of double doors that were smaller than those to what they call the throne room. Inside these doors was a bedroom larger than the two of their rooms back home combined. There were two, four-poster beds along the far wall with a small fireplace between them. To the left was a wooden table with two matching chairs. On the right stood a large wardrobe and a door to the washroom.

“This will be where you two spend any free time. Tomorrow morning, a maid will show you to your workstations,” Lord Sadiki said as she left the two alone.

“What have we gotten ourselves into?” Molly asked once they were alone. “And how have we never known that they were here?”

“I don’t think Dad goes into the forest. This place is too well established for our warriors to have missed it unless they were told to leave it alone.”

Molly nodded, accepting Beth’s theory. As she changed into the nightgown that was laid on her bed, she swore.