Dead Man's Deal The Asylum Tales - By Jocelynn Drake Page 0,63

settling on Trixie. He gave a small, distracted smile. “Hello, Ro.”

“Hello, Lori,” Trixie said with a soft catch in her voice. Tears shimmered in her eyes and it looked like she was struggling to stay standing still when she badly wanted to launch herself at the newcomer.

I took another look at him. He didn’t look like an elf. While their paleness seemed healthy and glowing, his was powdery. His pale blond hair was fine, almost like feathers on the top of his head. He was also soft and round, where the elves were all slim and elegant. But there was a grace to him, as if he were trapped in perpetual slow motion. He wasn’t an elf, but I was willing to bet that he was fey.

Despite the growing heat of the day, he wore brown slacks and a pale yellow shirt under a heavy green corduroy jacket, while a blue-and-black scarf was wrapped loosely around his neck. He was reminded of pictures of bohemian artists lounging along the Seine in Paris or even the descriptions of the old Romantics who were troubled with the same soul-weary ennui as Byron.

“It’s good that you could join us,” the queen said a bit frostily.

Lori shrugged, unperturbed by her mood. “When I heard that little Rowena was stopping by, I knew that I had to get a peek at her.” He tilted his head to the side a little as he looked at Trixie. “You haven’t changed.”

“Nor you,” Trixie said, her voice growing firmer.

“You seem eager to help Rowena with her little problem,” the queen interjected into the conversation, her crisp tone chilling as she fixed her narrowed gaze on me.

“Yes.” I waited, wondering what price I would have to pay for the slaughter of her people by the Ivory Towers. And while she was busy taking her pound of flesh from me, would she punish Trixie as well for the trouble caused by her husband?

“Then, since I was so pleased with the feeling of you bowing to me, I think you will be my servant for the day,” she announced with a growing grin. My eyes darted to Lori, weighing his sudden appearance at her side, standing close at hand like a servant waiting to do her bidding. Was that how he had gotten ensnared? Promising to serve the queen for a day?

When I looked back at the queen, her smile was positively sharklike, as if knowing where my thoughts were traveling. Trixie grabbed my hand, squeezing tightly, but she didn’t argue. Not too reassuring, but at least I didn’t have to fight anyone. “What are my tasks?” I asked.

“Nothing much,” the queen said. Her small hand drifted back to her teacup, her finger sliding around the rim. “I’ve decided that I would like some mint for my tea. You will fetch it.”

I nodded, stopping myself from thinking that the task sounded easy enough. “Fine. I know a shop not far from here that sells fresh mint. I’ll—”

“No need to travel so far,” she purred, her voice seeming to warm for the first time. “I have a friend who lives in a house at the edge of the park. She grows many useful herbs. You will fetch me some fresh mint from her.”

I hesitated, meeting Trixie’s wide eyes. My heart pounded at the idea of leaving her alone with the elves. She had spent so much time on the run from them, surviving on her own. I hated the idea of abandoning her in their midst with no one to watch her back. “And Trixie will be safe?”

“No one will touch a hair on her head while you are gone.” The queen was too eager to agree to Trixie’s safety, which only failed to reassure me. But there was nothing I could do. I had to play along with her little game if we were going to reach any kind of agreement that would end the pursuit of my girlfriend.

“Where’s the house?” I asked.

The queen gave a little wave of her hand. “Lori will escort you.”

The pale man sighed but ambled around the gazebo and down the steps. He paused, and stared up at the sky with a grimace at the sun before reaching into one of his jacket pockets and pulling out a folded, floppy straw hat. Plopping it on his head, he continued across the park.

I gave Trixie’s hand one last squeeze before I followed after Lori. A couple jogging steps allowed me to catch up with him and then