Page 60 of Adversary to the Villain

Sage was panicking quietly, her curls bouncing when she bobbed her chin. A wildness shone in her eyes, signaling her impending explosion. “Yes. Naturally.” She tore across the room, ripping the glass of rum from Gideon’s hands and swallowing it in one gulp. “Thank you. Pour more.”

“Eve, do you think—”

“Pour the damn alcohol, Gideon,” she bit out, slamming the glass on the desk.

Gideon was pouring before it hit the wood.

“Tell me there’s a concrete way to stop them from rewriting the story.” Trystan spoke quietly. “I’ll pay any price.”

Lionel whistled. “I’ll give you a professional courtesy and say that you should never offer such a thing. To anyone. But no need. Some curses, like His Highness’s, are small—no pun intended, of course,” Lionel added jovially.

Alexander rolled his eyes. “Die.”

Sage spoke through a strangled giggle, a drop of rum running down her lip and drawing all of Trystan’s attention. “This wouldn’t be a small curse, Lionel. This would change the fabric of Rennedawn as we know it.”

Lionel shrugged. “A curse ofthismagnitude needs an anchor.”

“As in a ship?” Gideon clarified.

“As in something immune to the curse. Something that could be used to undo it if necessary. A way to unlock it, so to speak.”

“How would someone unlock a curse?”

Lionel grinned. “With a key.”

“Unhelpful,” Trystan replied flatly, folding his arms. “What sort of key would Benedict use as an anchor? Spit it out.”

Lionel rolled his eyes, the blue streaks in his hair catching the light as he paced by the window. “No one likes being stunted for having dramatic flair, Villain.”

Trystan’s thread of control had snapped. “No one likes having you as a house guest, Lionel. Where is the fucking key?”

A cake appeared in front of his face, Sage’s stern mien above it pinning him in place. “Eat,” she ordered.

All eyes in the room were on the gesture, but Trystan couldn’t have cared less. His hand flew up to grab her wrist, pulling her closer, and he observed the hitch of her breath, the blush blooming on her cheeks. He took a large bite, releasing her just as swiftly as he had grabbed her.

“Gods, you two are nauseating.” Lionel’s lip curled in disgust.

Gideon held his hands over his eyes. “I’m not looking. Is it over?”

Alexander merely smiled, raising his glass in a toast to Trystan before taking careful sips.

“When Rennedawn was created, there were several anchors made. Keys.” Lionel explained it like he was speaking to school-aged children. “Those shiny things that clang together.”

Malcolm chuckled, stopping when Trystan glared.

Lionel continued. “The key in question was given to Rennedawn’s royal family for safekeeping, until the king a few generations back gambled it away.”

“Who did he gamble the key to?” Sage pressed.

Lionel grinned. “A giant. You’ll want to head toward our border with the eastern kingdom. If you can convince them to hand it over, you’ll be stopping any damage Benedict does before he can even start.”

“If you know this information,” Malcolm started, “then wouldn’t Benedict also know?”

Damn it. “We have to leave. Now,” Trystan gritted out.

“We?” Malcolm frowned.

“Yes. I’m lacking in people who annoy me for the journey, so you’ll do,” he said dryly. “Gideon, I’ll need you to begin hunting down the second book. Elsewise, you will be going into the Gleaming Palace.”