Forward:
Warning: this chapter has some darker themes in it. Dubious consent and such. Please proceed with caution.
Chapter Twenty
Sarah
Faerie. Day 2.
Precious.
Sarah groaned and threw an arm up over her eyes, burrowing deeper into the thick cushions beneath her head.
Sarah, precious, are you there?
The words sent tingles down her spine. It felt as though they had been whispered directly into her ear, and for a moment she tried to imagine that he was really here. That the bed would dip beneath his weight any moment, and she would feel the heated press of his hands—
She sat up, the vestiges of sleep falling away as she realized what she was hearing. Who she was hearing. Straining her ears to ensure that she was alone, she tentatively reached for the tattoo on her shoulder. Jareth?
The relief in his voice was palpable. There you are. I have been worried about you. It is near impossible for me to see through my brother's wards.
Guilt flashed through her as she recalled the day before. How Aldric had kissed her, not once, but three times. Later in the evening he had been a perfect gentleman, if a little handsy, using the excuse of her blindness to tuck her hand into his arm and lead her around the room, introducing her to all the fae nobility who had come to his estate. There were more than a half dozen of them now, and all had questions for her. Questions that Aldric had deflected with an ease and grace like a dancer.
Sarah?
She gripped her shoulder. I miss you. I hate being here.
It's just a few more days, precious, and then you'll be back in my arms.
She settled back onto the bed, the pillows practically swallowing her up. What have you been doing while I've been gone?
There was a strange sense in her mind, as though she could see his smile. Cooking. Entertaining the Palermo family from the fire escape. Reading. Watching you when I can. There was a pause. Your father has been calling. He left several messages.
Sarah groaned. Did you speak with him?
No.
Don't. If he knows what's going on he's going to panic, I just know it.
He is trying to get in touch to share some news. Your brother is being released from Russia.
Sarah rubbed at her forehead. How's that going to work with the quarantine?
He has not gone into details on the voice messages I have heard. Are you sure you don't wish me to speak to him? I could say you are indisposed.
She almost wanted him to just to see what her father would do, but she doubted it would be anything good. Biting her lip to keep from laughing, she said back, Best not to, I think.
There was a moment of silence. I miss you every moment, my love.
Sarah shivered, remembering the last time someone had called her that. Then there was a knock on her door. I've got to go, she thought quickly. Someone is coming.
Speak to me when you can, precious.
She released her hold on the tattoo and slid out of bed, adjusting the long nightdress which had bunched up around her thighs. "Just a minute!" she called, but already she could hear the door opening.
"My lady!" The tone was scolding and so sharp that Sarah jumped and wobbled a bit, unsure of her orientation. "Have you only now gotten out of bed? It's well past midday!" A warm hand closed over her arm, firm but respectful. "Come, let's get you freshened up. Lord Aldric will be here any moment. Oh," there was a cluck of tongue. "Gretchen should have been here."
"Maisy?" Sarah asked as they escorted her to the restroom. "What's going on?"
"Your wrappings are coming off, of course! 'Tis time, and Master Aldric insists on being the one to do the honors. His personal physician will attend as well, just in case there are any complications but, oh," she made the soft noise of distress again. "You were supposed to be dressed already."
Face heating, Sarah drew the line at Maisy helping her in the small room that contained the toilet. The brownie insisted on a sponge bath, Sarah shivering on the tiled floor as her attendant scrubbed her down. "I washed last night."
Maisy sniffed. "Apologies my lady, it's just that there is a lingering scent of—of the Goblin King about you."
"And Aldric doesn't like that," Sarah murmured.
"No," she agreed. "But a little cinnamon oil should do the trick, I think."
They were just finishing with the application of the oil to Sarah's wrists and breast and even a bead that dripped down her inner thigh when there was a knock on the door. "Ladies? Are you ready?"
Maisy gave an honest-to-gods squeak. "Master Aldric! Not yet, my lord, please, I beg a moment."
There was a low chuckle on the other end of the thick wood, and Sarah swallowed on a throat gone dry. Maisy threw a heavy dressing robe over her, ensuring the closures were tied tight.
Maisy took her hand, but the moment the bathroom door open Aldric's replaced it. "At last, pet," he murmured, lips brushing her knuckles. "You smell delightful."
Sarah hated he touched her like this, with such casual disregard for her own comfort. But she had to smile, and so she did, though it hurt to do so. "Thank you. Good morning."
A low laugh, and he pulled her against him while he gave her a one-armed embrace. "Good afternoon," he corrected. "Come. Let's see if these eyes of yours have healed."
She hated this, too. That Aldric was the one who led her to a chair in her parlor and sat her down, verbally introducing her to his physician Petyr before his hands were on the bandages, unwinding them with gentle tugs, careful of her hair. Though his touch was gentle, she wished it was Jareth. Wished for it so much that her eyes burned with tears.
Aldric's hands were on her face, tilting it up. "Open your eyes, Sarah."
It was hard. They were so gummed up that it felt like tearing skin to open her eyelids. And the moment she did, she jerked out of his grip, shielding her face. "Gods, the light," she cried, pain shooting through her skull where it ricocheted. "Please."
"Close the curtains at once," Aldric barked, hands still on her face. "What do you need?" he asked, his voice a dizzying mixture of warmth and stern worry.
"A wet cloth," Sarah said, keeping her eyes squeezed shut. The darkness was infinitely preferable to the agony of the sunlight.
A moment later and a warm, damp washcloth pressed into her hands. She raised it to her face and Petyr the physician spoke, "Don't rub. Just press and gently wipe."
Sarah did as the doctor bid her, until she was blinking rapidly, trying to dispel the faint fog that seemed to shroud everything. It reminded her of having been so tired she could barely see. Long nights of cram sessions at college.
The first thing she saw was the cloth, clutched tight in her hands, and the next she was looking up the form of Aldric, taking in his black and silver courtly apparel, hair tied back at the base of his neck, and the dark, shining duo-colored eyes.
He seemed to shimmer a little like in a heat mirage, and she kept blinking, tears falling in a steady stream. She squinted against the glare even though the drawn curtains plunged the parlor into a twilight gloom.
Aldric gazed at her, saying nothing as his physician—a young mortal-looking man—knelt before her. "May I, my lady?"
Sarah gave a slight nod, her throat thick with emotion and the desire to sob. I don't want to be here. But she had to be.
Petyr examined her eyes through several lenses on a long chain looped to his waist, silent as he did so. Then he rose. "The venom is gone, though the damage done to her eyes will take several more days to fully heal." He addressed Aldric, not her. "In the meantime, she should not be exposed to any direct sunlight or other harsh light. Keep the rooms dim."
"Thank you," Aldric said. "You may go. You too, Maisy."
Sarah heard a sharp intake of breath behind her. "My lord—"
"Go." His voice was gentle, but allowed for no further argument.
Blinking past the tears still clouding her vision, Sarah heard the door to her apartments open and then shut. Silence descended, and she could hear her lungs wheezing.
"Breathe, Sarah, I will not ravish you, as delightful a prospect as that may seem." Aldric took up the physician's old position, kneeling in front of her, his hands slipping into her own to give a soft squeeze. "Why do you cry, my love?"
She did not know how to give voice to the turmoil within her. She wept from shattered fragments—shards of desire for Aldric, aching need for Jareth, the exaltation of being able to see again! At last. She stared at him, captivated by those eyes so like his brothers.
But not at all like him.
He released her hands, cradling her face and leaning forward. Heat like a furnace, and he was wrapping her in an embrace, not seeming to care when she remained limp and unresponsive. His cheek pressed to hers as he whispered, "I have Ludo."
Sarah jerked back, heart a sudden tangle in her throat. "What—"
"Consent to sleep with me, and I will release him this moment." His eyes burned. "This is a limited offer. You have five minutes. Don't you dare touch that brand on your shoulder."
Aldric rose and Sarah pushed to her feet a moment later, though he did not move back, so she ended up pressed against him, having to brace herself on him in order not to fall.
His hands cupped her elbows. "Gods above, Sarah," he said on a growling breath. "Consent to be mine and I will do whatever you ask. Do you wish me to turn my sights away from Jareth? I will do so. I will never think of him again after this moment if that is what you bid of me. Be my bride, my wife, my partner now and always." He, at last, closed his eyes, and it seemed to pain him to do so. "You have bewitched be. I cannot stop thinking of you."
Her head was spinning, and she wanted to run. To be alone. But then she heard herself asking as she stared into his eyes, "What else will you give me?"
They seemed the words of a stranger, yet the smile Aldric graced her with made tendrils of desire thread deep within her. "Half. Not only of my material possessions, but of my power. I will ensure that you become my equal in all things. No one who would deny me will deny you. You may even surpass me, one day. You certainly have the aptitude for it." One of his hands feathered down her arm until his fingers were wrapped around hers. "You have two more minutes to decide."
Sarah's mouth fell open. She had forgotten about the time limit. "I—"
"I want fidelity in exchange," Aldric said. "No sneaking around behind my back. I will not be a cuckold."
She glared at him. "Ditto."
"Agreed."
Ozone built in the air, and Sarah knew she was at the precipice of something. What Aldric offered was more than enticing it was—enough.
Almost.
If this were Jareth, I would not hesitate.
"One minute, pet. Make your choice. A life with me, or… what has Jareth offered you, again? The queenship? As, what, a puppet? Arm décor? Does he respect you as I do? Does he see you the way I do, your wit and your strength? I—"
"Yes," Sarah said, her stomach plunging. The scent of storm weather grew even thicker. "I consent. I will be yours, and all that you described, in exchange that you turn your sights from Jareth and the Labyrinth immediately."
There was a long beat of stunned silence, and the pressure in the room grew to an uncomfortable level. "So be it," he said, his tone awed.
The pressure snapped, and the tightness in her chest eased. She let out a sigh in tandem with him, both of them staring mesmerized at the other. Her fingers splayed over his chest began minute explorations, just as his hands went to the five ties holding her dressing gown together.
The first and second one were at her chest, the third and fourth at her stomach and hip, and then one more as he parted the rich fabric, cool air kissing the exposed skin of one dark nipple. This tie sat just below her breast, at her ribs, and Aldric took his time pulling the ribbon free from its knot. She watched him as he gazed at her, mesmerized, his throat bobbing as he swallowed hard.
She had never been looked at like this. Not by anyone.
Then the tie was loose and falling open, exposing her to him at last.
When the air hit the dark curls between her legs, she knew she was soaked. His nostrils flared, and he reached for her just as she dug her fingernails into the brocade of his vest.
His fingers were within her a moment later and she cried out at being so filled, hands making quick work of the buttons on his jacket before shoving it from his shoulders, all the while he was fucking her with his hand. She panted, bearing down on him and making small sounds that he responded to with growls and murmured words in a liquid language she recognized as that of the fae.
Beloved.
Most revered.
Center of my stars.
She grew dizzy with the implications, closing her eyes despite wanting to see, too overcome to do otherwise. She called his name, and he groaned, and she was being brought to the ground, gently eased on top of him as he pushed her dressing gown the rest of the way off.
He was naked now, as though this were a dream.
Is it a dream?
But he felt searing between her thighs, continuing to whisper words to her as he urged her to slide up his body, aligning her core with his straining erection. "Aldric—" she whispered.
"Let me kiss you," he said, cupping her breast while his cock continued to stroke and slip along her outer folds. "Say yes, Sarah."
"Yes," she moaned a moment before he brought her face down. Though she was on top of him, it was Aldric who was taking control, holding her in place as his tongue slipped into her mouth in the same instant as his cock slipped into her passage.
Sarah clutched him and nearly screamed, so overwhelmed with the sensation of him filling her, stretching her in ways she had never been before.
If she had been expecting a gentle lovemaking, this was not it.
Aldric claimed her.
With a thrusting tongue and cock, he pinned her in place, and she trembled with it. Every inch of her was aflame as he fucked her, and when she finally broke the kiss, it was to scream his name as she came.
Sarah jerked back, blinking rapidly as the vision dissipated.
Aldric was laughing.
Tugging on a glove and laughing.
She narrowed her eyes. "That—" she spluttered. "That was—"
"What you want—"
"I don't want that!" she said, her voice a screech.
"Now, now," Aldric's tone was scolding and gentle. He started toward her and she backed away, gathering the long skirts of her dressing gown around her hips so that she could run if need be. "Don't act so frightened, Sarah, pet. We both know now that frightened is not your primary emotion when you're dealing with me."
"Shut up," she hissed as he continued toward her. "Stop it. Leave me alone."
"Sh," he admonished, still advancing. "You don't want the servants to hear, do you? What of our bargain that you pretend to be my consort? Would you have one of them overhear you so that we are discovered?" His eyes glinted. "If the truth of our relationship is made known because of you, you'll have broken your vow."
Sarah felt shivers crawl down her spine and she hesitated in her flight.
Aldric caught her around her waist and the back of her neck. His nostrils flared. "I can smell you. You're soaked, aren't you?" The hand at her waist drifted down to the rise of her bottom, squeezing and pulling her flush against him. Even through the court clothes and the dressing gown, she could feel he was stiff. In the dim light, his eyes were like black wells with firelight within the waters. "Let me kiss you."
"No."
Laughter once more. "Did you forget your promise so quickly? I told you I had Ludo, and you said…" he raised an eyebrow.
Sarah blinked rapidly. The vision he had inflicted her with seared into her brain, making it hard to distinguish fantasy from reality. "What do you want for him?"
"That's right," he murmured as though he were teaching a lesson to a child. Gentle. Reassuring. "And what did I say?"
"Three wishes," she whispered. "You wanted me to grant you three wishes."
"A nice twist on the traditional role of a fae and a human, don't you think?"
She frowned, trying to remember how the vision had started. What had brought her to that place? Her body still throbbed, heated from the sense of him so heavy within her. "You… you wanted to touch me with your bare hands."
"I did."
Sarah looked at him in the dimness, so close. "I don't understand. What was that, then? That vision?"
"A future sight or a far sight. All fae are gifted with unique abilities, though we're all proficient in the basics. What we can do when we touch another being, flesh to flesh, is individual. I can bring about far and future sights, visions of what is coming between the parties touching one another. And I can see, feel, exactly what you do." He smirked. "Though I assure you, it will be better in reality."
Sarah shuddered. "No, thank you."
"I wish to kiss you, Sarah. Not in a vision, but here, now. That is my second wish." Ozone infused the air. "Unless you renege on your bargain?"
He would gain the ultimate control over you.
Sarah gave a violent shake of her head. "You may kiss me."
"You need to ask for it, pet."
He sounded smug, and she wanted to hit him in that moment. Wanted to find some way to hurt him so that he understood once and for all how much she despised him. "I hate you," she whispered. "Jareth would never have done this to me."
Aldric's smile slipped, and his hand tightened around the back of her neck, making her gasp. "You do not know what Jareth is capable of. You put your trust in a monster. Now," he gripped her even tighter, and her eyes watered at the pressure. "Ask me to kiss you."
Tears fell, one then the other, but he was immune to her weeping. Immune to all save his own lust.
Sarah bit the inside of her cheek and used the breathiness of the pain to make her voice sound desirous. "Kiss me, Aldric, please—"
He did, even as she continued to cry. He kissed her as though he would claim every inch of her mouth, tongue warring and caressing her own. She was pressed against the wall and he was ripping at her laces, pulling open her dressing gown before she had the wherewithal to fight him off.
"Wait," she breathed, pulling away and closing the open ends of the robe. "Aldric, I can't—" he stopped her with another kiss, his tongue like a brand.
He smoothed his hands over hers, clutching the clothes tight together. "For my third wish," he rasped. "I wish to see you. All of you."
Sarah shuddered, and after a long several heartbeats of silence, released her death grip. He removed her hands before going back to the neck of her gown, parting the fabric and pushing it down her shoulders. It slithered off her, puddling to the floor with a rustle that was loud in the still room.
She heard his intake of breath.
Without conscious thought, she raised her arms to cover her breasts, but he let out a strangled sound. "No. Don't hide from me."
Sarah lifted her head, finding Aldric gazing at her with an intensity that made her knees shake.
"Get dressed," he said, his voice raw-sounding. "We have guests to meet. I'll see that they keep the corridors and rooms dim for you."
Sarah just stared at him, and he at her, for several long moments more.
"I love you," he whispered. "Be mine, and I will do everything you asked of me in that vision and more, if you want it. I promise you that."
"You don't know what love is," Sarah said, and her voice sounded small. She swallowed and cleared her throat. "You say you love me while you stand there looking at me, naked, because you threatened the life of a friend of mine. That's not love, Aldric."
"You desire me—"
"Lust is not love," Sarah cried, hoarse. More tears fell, and she was tiring of them. She swiped at them with the heel of her hand. "If you loved me, you never would have done this to me." She burned with shame and rage, and wanted nothing more than to grab the large ornamental vase at the table next to her and bash it over his head. "Get out."
Aldric's face changed. Became almost like his brothers. Concern flashed there, and he took a step forward, but Sarah jerked back, bending down and yanking the long fabric of the dressing gown up and clutching it to her chest. "Sarah…" he started.
"No," she choked. "Go. Get out."
He looked as though he might say something, but then he closed his mouth, backing up a bit before he turned on his heel and left, the door shutting with a gentle click behind him.
Sarah wept and clawed for the tattoo on her shoulder. Jareth?
I'm here.
Get me out of this place, she moaned through the connection. Please.
Author Note:
*ducks*
I am so, so sorry for the lengthy time between uploads. You'll see why if you visit my newest piece of work, The Furthest Star (TFS). Working on TFS took over my life for a little while, but it is fully finished, edited, and in final Beta stages. I'm uploading two chapters a week.
31/32 here is still fully mapped out, but it too has to take a back burner again because I have to work on the last book of my trilogy soon.
I'm happy to announce that it looks like we received a bit of a reprieve with trying to find a new place to live. The landlady is happy to work with us because, I don't know if you've noticed, but the housing and rental market is absolutely bonkers right now. But, at the very least, we have a place until the end of 2021, but we'll have to see how it all shakes out.
Still, that really helps calm me down, you know?
I hope you've all been doing well. I missed you.
Xoxo,
CrimsonSympathy
Warning: The next chapter deals with a r*pe scene. Please skip the next chapter if this is going to be problematic. I will summarize the non-triggering events in the foreward of Chapter 22.