I should have gone straight back to my room. That would have been the sensible thing to do. Instead, I found myself sitting across from Alexander in his room, staring at a plate of late supper that neither of us seemed particularly interested in eating.
I wasn't even sure why I had agreed to come. Perhaps I was curious. Perhaps I wanted answers. Or perhaps some foolish part of me thought that if I could get Alexander to see me as a person rather than as the convenient key to finding Aetheron, he might finally reconsider keeping me captive.
Whatever the reason, here I was.
The room was quieter than the tavern downstairs. Only the occasional burst of laughter drifted through the walls, along with the muffled clink of glasses. A small lamp on the table cast enough light for me to see Alexander's face clearly. That was unfortunate.
He had been watching me for several minutes. Not discreetly, either.
"What?"
He didn't answer immediately. His attention remained on me, his eyes moving across my face as though he were trying to solve a puzzle.
I resisted the urge to touch my cheek. Was there something on my face? Or was he simply trying to figure me out again?
"What were you thinking?"
I picked up my cup, more to give my hands something to do than because I wanted another drink. "Nothing." The answer came too quickly.
Alexander's expression told me he knew it. "That isn't true."
I lowered the cup and gave him a suspicious look. "You've been staring at me."
"So I did." There was no embarrassment in his admission. If anything, he looked mildly amused. Of course he did.
I sighed and leaned back. "You could at least pretend to be subtle."
"Why should I?" Because normal people didn't stare at someone as though they were trying to read their mind.
Then again, Alexander had already established that normal behaviour wasn't exactly his strength.
I looked down at my hands. The truth was, I had been thinking about him. Not in the way he might have assumed. I was trying to understand his intentions.
Everything he had done since I arrived in this world seemed contradictory. He had kidnapped me, yet allowed me to wander around freely. He had threatened to use my ability, yet protected me from the drunken men earlier. He refused to let me return to Astoria, yet he hadn't locked me in a cell.
What exactly was I supposed to make of him? "I was thinking about your intentions."
That finally caught his attention. He leaned slightly forward, resting one arm against the table. "And what have you decided?"
"Nothing yet."
I watched him carefully. His expression remained calm, but there was a faint curiosity in his eyes. That curiosity was mutual. Unfortunately.
"Then I suppose I should be concerned." A crooked smile appeared on his face. That smile. There was something irritating about it. One side of his mouth lifted slightly higher than the other, giving him an expression that was somewhere between amusement and uncertainty.
I hated that I noticed. I hated even more that my heart gave a small, traitorous flutter. Don't.
I looked down at my cup. This man had kidnapped me. He had threatened to use my ability to hunt Aetheron. He had made it clear that I wasn't free to return to Astoria. There was absolutely no reason for my heart to react to his smile. Apparently, my heart had terrible judgement.
I took a slow breath and decided to change the direction of the conversation. "I've been wondering something."
Alexander tilted his head slightly. Yes?"
"You're abducting me."
He raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure?"
I almost laughed. Was he seriously going to argue over terminology? I leaned forward, resting my elbows on the table. "You're not letting me return to Astoria. You're taking me towards Luminar. You want me to help you find Aetheron. You told me I couldn't leave." I laced my fingers together beneath my chin, watching his reaction.
"Sounds like an abduction to me." His smile widened. "My, my, Princess. I never realised you were this playful."
I felt a flicker of satisfaction. Good. He was playing along. That was what I wanted. If I kept the conversation light enough, perhaps I could get him to lower his guard. Maybe I could find some weakness in his argument—or at least understand what he really wanted from me.
"I can be many things, Xander." The nickname slipped out naturally.
His expression changed. Only slightly. But I noticed. His eyes lingered on me for a moment longer than before. My stomach gave another annoying little flip. Stop that.
I had no business reacting to him like this. I straightened in my chair. Enough games. The playful tone had served its purpose. Now I needed to get serious. "I have a proposal."
The amusement disappeared from his face. "What kind of proposal?"
"Instead of pretending to abduct me, why don't we make a deal?" The words sounded much more confident than I felt. Inside, I was scrambling. I needed leverage. Anything.
I couldn't simply demand my freedom. Alexander had already made it clear that he wouldn't release me while he believed my ability was necessary for his hunt. So if I couldn't force him to let me go, perhaps I could make cooperation more attractive than captivity.
He leaned back. "Who said I was pretending?"
My confidence faltered. Just for a second. I hadn't expected that answer. I studied him. There was no amusement in his expression now. No teasing. He was serious. I swallowed. "I..."
He waited.
Damn it.
I had walked straight into that one. Alexander folded his arms. "I've told you what I want. I need your help finding Aetheron. You want to return to Astoria. Those two things are not exactly compatible."
He wasn't wrong. That was the irritating part. I looked away for a moment, trying to organise my thoughts. Then I faced him again. "Which is why we need an agreement."
"What sort of agreement?"
"One where I help you voluntarily." My voice sounded steadier this time.
"And what do you want in exchange?"
"My freedom."
Silence.
Alexander didn't laugh. He didn't immediately reject the idea either. That gave me a small sliver of hope. Maybe. Just maybe. I had finally found something he couldn't dismiss. His fingers tapped once against his arm. "You seem to have misunderstood something."
My hope vanished. "What?"
"I have never considered you a prisoner."
I stared at him. For a moment, I genuinely wondered whether I had heard him correctly. Then I almost laughed. "Really?"
"No." He leaned forward. "I consider you a princess of a neighbouring kingdom who has been placed in an unfortunate situation."
An unfortunate situation? That was one way to describe being kidnapped. I folded my arms. "That's a very elegant way of describing kidnapping."
"I respected your position."
"You kidnapped me."
"I gave you food."
"You kidnapped me."
"I gave you your own tent."
"You kidnapped me."
"I allowed you to walk around the camp."
I paused. That one actually made me hesitate. He had a point. An annoying one. I remembered all the times I'd wandered through the camp without anyone stopping me. I had assumed his guards were incompetent.
They weren't. They had been following his orders.
Alexander continued, his voice calm. "I've allowed you to speak with my soldiers. I've allowed you to leave your tent. I've allowed you to wander around the camp at night. I've never chained you. I've never locked you inside a room."
I stared at him. It was difficult to argue with the facts. But facts didn't change the fundamental problem. I still couldn't go home.
"You still won't let me return to Astoria."
His expression hardened. "No."
There it was. The one thing that mattered. "Then you're still holding me against my will."
"I suppose that depends on how you define captivity."
I stared at him. "You really know how to twist words."
"Perhaps." He stood.
My body tensed immediately. I hated that it happened automatically.
My mind hadn't even caught up with the movement, but my body had already reacted. After everything that had happened since Frostbane, I had learned to be cautious whenever Alexander moved towards me.
He noticed. Of course he noticed. He took a step forward. I pushed my chair backwards. The legs scraped against the floor. He took another step. I took another. My heart began beating faster. This was not how I had imagined the conversation going.
"Alexander."
He continued forward. My chair struck the wall. Damn it. I had miscalculated. I glanced towards the door. It wasn't far. Maybe three or four steps. If I moved quickly—
Alexander stopped in front of me. The space suddenly felt much smaller. "You wanted to make a deal," he said.
I forced myself to meet his eyes. "Yes."
"Then tell me what you're offering."
"My ability."
"And in return?"
"My freedom."
"You've already asked for that."
"Then something else."
His eyebrow lifted. "Such as?"
I opened my mouth. Nothing came out. Because I hadn't thought that far. That was the problem. I had entered this conversation believing I could somehow outmanoeuvre him with a clever proposal. But now I was backed against a wall, trying to invent a bargain that would give me some control over my own future.
Alexander seemed to realise it. A faint smile returned. "You challenged me without knowing what you wanted."
"I know what I want."
"Do you?" His voice was quieter now.
I hated how close he was. Not because I thought he was going to hurt me. At least, I didn't think he would. It was the uncertainty that unsettled me. I couldn't tell what was going through his mind. And I was beginning to realise that this was the dangerous part of dealing with Alexander. He could make me feel as though I had control of the conversation while quietly steering it somewhere else.
"I want to be free to make my own decisions."
He studied me. "That's not unreasonable."
"Then let me have it."
"I can't."
"Why?"
"Because you don't understand what you're involved in." There it was again. That answer. The same answer he had given me before.
I felt my frustration rising. "You keep saying that."
"Because it's true." His voice lost its teasing edge. "If other kingdoms learn what you can do, they won't ask you politely for your cooperation."
I stared at him. "Neither did you."
He went still. The words had come out more quietly than I intended. But they were true.
"You took me because you wanted something from me."
"Yes."
"And now you're telling me you're different from everyone else who might want to exploit me."
"I am."
I searched his face. "Why?"
He hesitated. That surprised me. For once, Alexander didn't seem to have a prepared answer. When he finally spoke, his voice was quieter. "Because I don't want to see you become a weapon in someone else's hands."
I studied him. There was no smile now. No teasing. Just a seriousness that made me hesitate. "And you don't see the irony?"
"I do."
"Then you understand why I don't trust you."
His gaze remained on mine. "I understand."
The answer should have satisfied me. It didn't. If anything, it made me more confused. Because I could believe that Alexander genuinely thought he was protecting me. That was what frightened me. A person who knowingly did something wrong could be reasoned with. But someone who believed his control was justified?
That was much harder. I looked towards the door. Alexander followed my gaze. "You can leave."
I blinked. "What?"
"I said you can leave." He stepped aside.
The path to the door was clear. I didn't move immediately. I had expected another condition. Another threat. Something. Instead, he had simply stepped away. Was this another game? Or was he actually giving me the choice? I watched him carefully.
"You're letting me go?"
"Back to your room."
"Oh." I suddenly felt foolish for having assumed something else. I walked past him. My hand had just reached the door when he spoke again.
"Elysia."
I stopped. For a moment, I considered pretending I hadn't heard him. Then I turned. "Yes?"
"Your proposal."
I waited. "We'll discuss it tomorrow."
I frowned. "You mean you're actually considering it?" "I said we'll discuss it." That wasn't an answer. But it was more than I had before.
I rested my hand on the door. Maybe I had gained something tonight. Not freedom. Not yet. But a possibility. A negotiation. A small opening I could use. I looked back at him. "And Xander?"
His expression softened slightly at the nickname. "Yes?"
"Don't mistake my willingness to negotiate for trust."
A faint smile appeared. "I wouldn't dare."
I left before he could say anything else. The door closed behind me. I stood in the corridor for a moment, staring at the wooden panel. Then I let out the breath I'd been holding. That had gone better than expected. Or perhaps worse.
I wasn't sure yet. But at least I had something now. A possible bargain. A way to regain some control over my own situation. The problem was that Alexander had gained something too. He now knew I was willing to negotiate. And somehow, I had a feeling that was exactly what he wanted.