That was a lie.
My hand trembled, and I quickly hid it in the folds of my stained dress. The female fae remained quiet, still standing by the door.
“Be a good girl,” Aric murmured.
Anger flushed me as my gaze flew to his. I’m going to kill you. A shudder rocked me as I forced myself to take a breath. I’m going to rip your fucking head off. Slowly, I lifted my hand and reached to the plate—
He tipped forward suddenly, and I couldn’t stop my reaction. Flinching, I pressed back against the stone, waiting for the blow.
This was why food equaled fear. Why hunger had truly become painful and something to dread. It was another form of torture, one both physical and mental. I was Aric’s messed up version of Pavlov’s dog, but instead of salivating at the sound of a bell, I saw food and experienced horror.
Classic fucking conditioning at its finest.
“Take the food,” he ordered when I didn’t move. “Take the food, or I will take from you.”
Ice dripped down my spine as I found myself stuck between a rock and a more messed up rock. Reach for the food and most likely get punched or kicked or slapped or grabbed? Don’t reach for the food and he’d feed.
I chose the former, lifting my arm once more.
His other hand whipped out, catching mine. My heart jerked to a stop as he squeezed—squeezed until the bones of my hand ground together. I gasped back the cry of pain.
“You do not learn, do you, you stupid cow?” His smile twisted into a snarl that made him look more rabid animal than human. “What are you supposed to say?”
What he wanted tasted of bitter ash on the tip of my tongue.
“Say it.”
I knew what was coming.
His lips peeled back. “Say it.”
I said nothing because all I had left was my will, and I clamored to preserve that even when I knew he was going to take that, too.
“Say it!” he roared.
I swallowed hard. “Make me.”
Letting go of my bruised hand, he grasped my chin, digging his fingers into the skin. He yanked me up onto my knees with his grip. His eyes caught mine, and there was no looking away, no blinking as his pupils seemed to constrict to pinpoints.
Without the four-leaf clover, I was like any other mortal, fully susceptible to a fae’s glamour, and it took nothing for Aric to seize control of my mind.
And in a sick way, it was sort of a relief the moment I felt the icy brush against my consciousness. Because then, I felt nothing. No fear. No hate. No dread.
Nothing.
“Say it,” he whispered, but his voice echoed throughout me. “Say please.”
“Please,” I repeated.
Aric’s smile returned. “Good girl.” Letting go of my chin, he dropped the plate of food in front of me. “Eat.”
I ate, using my sore fingers to pull apart the cooling meat.
“When you’re done, you will be bathed,” Aric explained. “You reek of sweat and humanity.”
Pausing mid-chew, I glanced over at the female fae who remained silent by the door. Was that why she was here? There was a niggle of concern as if the idea of being bathed should concern me, but the sensation floated away, and I resumed eating.
Once the plate was empty, the female hurried over, placing the tote beside me. She went back to the door, disappearing for a moment only to return with a small army of fae. They carried a copper tub, dropping it in the space between the stone slabs. Water sloshed over the edges, hitting my legs. I jerked my feet back. The liquid was cold.
Aric snapped his fingers, and the other fae quickly left. Only he and the female remained. He turned to me. “Stand.”
I climbed to my feet.
Aric tilted his head, his pale gaze flickering over me. “You’re so much easier to deal with like this.” He approached me, curling his fingers around my chin and tilting my head back. “Which means, this will go so much more smoothly. Because I know the minute I release my hold on you, you’re going to fight this.”
I blinked slowly as he reached around, unhooking the band secured to my neck. He placed it on the stone.
“Because I know you’ll find every second of this utterly humiliating, being stripped and tended to as if you are nothing more than a child. I want to see that. The red flush of embarrassment, and the futile attempts to cover yourself.” His eyes closed as he sighed. “It would truly be a marvelous sight to behold. But alas, I fear it would break you, and since you’re my favorite new pet, I’m not done playing with you.”
He opened his eyes. “Plus, I have important business to do today.” Slipping his hand from my chin, he stepped back and motioned the female forward.
I stood still, waiting.
Aric pivoted, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a cellphone. He stared down at it as the female picked up the tote and began taking out items. Removing two pitchers, she filled them with the water from the tub.
“Undress,” she said, her voice sharp as an icicle. “And get in the tub.”
My gaze flicked from her to the Ancient’s back.
The female beside me sighed with annoyance. “My lord.”
He glanced over his shoulder and, a moment later, he chuckled. “Undress and get in the tub, little bird.”
I did as he requested, letting the soiled clothing fall to the floor. The water was a shock, stunning me into immobility as the cold shot straight up my legs and my spine. There was no time to adjust. Hands landed on my shoulders, forcing me down so I was sitting. Gasping, I reached out, clasping the sides of the tub.
The female got to work, working a lavender-scented bar of soap against my skin. The sting against the raw cuts warred with the numbing properties of the frigid water, and eventually, the water won. The smarting pain faded as the female moved to a cloth, dragging it down my arms as she knelt behind me. Quickly, the once-clear water turned murky.
Aric moved to the other slab of stone, stretched out on it, reclining as if he were lounging by a pool. “Ask me what business I have to take care of, little bird,” he said, looking up from his phone.
Teeth chattering, I winced as the female dragged the soapy cloth along my back. “W-what business d-do you have to t-take care of?”
“Well, since you asked.” He returned to thumbing through his cell. “I have a very important meeting with a…certain member of the Summer Court who, like me, wishes to see the return of the Queen. For very different reasons, but reasons nonetheless.”
My head jerked back as the female scrubbed at my tangled hair, lathering the oily strands.
“I’m so close to reopening the doorway and freeing my Queen.” Looking up from his phone, Aric glanced over at me just as the female tugged on my hair once more. One eyebrow rose as his gaze dipped. The corners of his lips tipped up. “Do you know how I will succeed? Answer me.”
My spine bowed as the female guided my head. She picked up the pitcher. “No.”
Swinging his legs off the stone, he stood and approached the tub. “Obviously, the likelihood of the King having a child with a halfling is slim, but there is one way that the gateway could be opened. The King himself can do it.”
He dropped to his knees in front of the tub, snapping his fingers. A moment later, he held the pitcher. “But why would he?”
Shivering, I waited for him to continue.