“Are you really arrogant enough to think that the Prince doesn’t know what goes on here?” Ambrose asked, turning his attention to his brother.

  Keaton scoffed, shoving his hands in his pockets. “He’s too focused on getting his rocks off and indulging in angst of his own creation than to get his head out of his ass and realize what goes on here,” he said.

  “Vincent has wanted a Breather for himself for centuries,” Ambrose said. “Unlike you, he hasn’t had any sort of way to meet them. However, you decided to bring one down here without marrying her first. You think he wouldn’t find out? He might not care about most of what occurs within the Void, but the second whispers start about a Breather…” He shook his head. “It’s going to satisfy him even more when he discovers the Breather belongs to you.”

  “Excuse me?” I said, furrowing my brow. “I don’t belong to anyone.”

  “Shut up,” Keaton snapped, not even bothering to look at me. His attention was on his brother and his brother alone. Without warning, a cigarette dangled from his lips and he snapped his fingers, conjuring up a light. After taking a long drag, he glared at Ambrose, sliding one hand in his pocket while the other removed the cigarette from his mouth. “You think he doesn’t know she’s mine? He came to my fucking house.”

  “And whose fault is that?” Ambrose nonchalantly crossed his arms over his chest and gave Keaton a long look. “You wanted to show her off. You took her to that bar, knowing full-well everyone would recognize what she was. You’re lucky nothing happened to her!”

  “You think I’m going to let anything happen to her?” Keaton growled, teeth clamping down on the cigarette as he leaned in towards his brother. “She’s my ticket out.”

  I flinched, something he happened to see. He whirled around and moved towards me. “What, the truth too harsh for you, babes? What do you want me to say? I took one look at her and I knew I fell in love?” He snorted. “Fucking please. This is a business deal. We both know it, so spare me your offense at my honesty, okay?”

  I hated him. I wanted to throttle him. I should have expected cruelty. Everything that had happened tonight between us didn’t mean Keaton was suddenly some simpering heathen in touch with his emotions. He was using me - and I was using him. He was right, I shouldn’t be offended by what he said because it was the truth. Which made me hate him even more. I didn’t want him to be right about anything.

  “Well, you better rectify that quickly,” Ambrose said. He began to pace the length of the living room, though there wasn’t an urgency behind it I would have otherwise expected. Instead, the stride was purposeful, calculating. “If she isn’t married, Vincent could swoop in and claim her for himself.”

  My brows sprang up. Would the prince know about my brother? He was the Prince, after all. Certainly, if anyone knew about what was going on here, it would be him. Hell, he might know more than Keaton ever could. Maybe I should be looking at better prospects. And the way he spoke to me, the Prince didn’t seem as brash or as volatile as Keaton. Maybe he was the better choice.

  “Don’t you fucking think about it,” Keaton said in a low voice.

  I snapped my gaze into his. The cigarette was nearly all ash, but there was something in his gaze - it was both territorial and possessive, but a warning as well. I couldn’t put it into words. I swallowed and looked away. I wasn’t exactly intimidated by Keaton, but I was well-aware I didn’t need to press my luck right now either.

  Ambrose stopped pacing and turned to look at me. “Unfortunately, my brother is right,” he said. “You wouldn’t think so by looking at him, but Prince Vincent is dangerous. Even more dangerous than my brother. He would not make a good husband to you.”

  “And your brother would?” I burst out, throwing my hands to my sides.

  “I’m not claiming to be a gentleman or nothing,” Keaton said. “But I’ll fucking do what I tell you I’ll do. My word is my bond, know what I mean? And I’ll keep my hands to myself, even if occasionally, one skips up every now and then.”

  I opened my mouth, ready to tear him a new one, when Ambrose stepped between us, preventing me from lashing out in Keaton’s face.

  “Unfortunately, as loath as I am to admit my brother’s right about anything, he is right about this,” he said. “The prince may come from money, and marrying him might get you a title. But he is cruel and wicked. There is a reason the King of Hell appointed him as prince to the Void, and it’s not because Vincent knows how to run a territory. He’s vicious and swift and deranged. Keaton is more…dependable.”

  I gave Ambrose a long look. “You were just here,” I said flatly. “Arguing with him. And you want me to believe he’s dependable. He hasn’t even given me what I want yet. I don’t even know if he can!”

  “You want the information on your brother,” Ambrose said, giving me a long look. I nodded. “And, in exchange, you’ll marry Keaton and get him out of the Void, getting yourself out of here in the process?”

  “I mean, I’m sure we have to work out a few kinks, but I already told him I’d marry him,” I said. “And I’m here, aren’t I? I’m not trying to leave or anything.”

  “So…if we were to have a wedding right now, you would fully participate? You would go through with it?” Ambrose arched a brow, as though he didn’t quite believe me. I couldn’t quite blame him, and I glanced away. “If you hesitate even now, I’ll have my brother return you to your school and call it a day. We can’t waste any more time, and I’m sure my brother is tired of indulging promises others can’t seem to keep. If you truly intend to do this, say so, because we must act quickly.”

  My heart hammered in my chest. It wasn’t that I was afraid of marriage to Keaton. Well, maybe a part of me was. But really, this was the point where I had to make my choice. No more thinking; I had to act.

  Everything always came back to Richard. There were moments I was on the precipice of talking myself out of this because of my fear of Keaton, my lack of faith and trust in him, the revulsion he inspired in me, and the fact that I would not only be bound to him forever but if anything happened because of him, I would be responsible. It was a lot.

  But my brother was the most important thing to me, and even though he made a foolish decision, I had to try and find him. If there was even one chance that I would be able to be with him again in any capacity, I had to do everything I could to make that happen.

  Even marry a monster.

  “I’ll do it,” I said. “I’ll marry him.”

  Ambrose let out a breath and shifted his eyes over to Keaton. I couldn’t make out the look on Keaton’s face even if I tried. There was an intensity there, but it was more than that. It was almost like he didn’t expect me to go through with it, and even now, he didn’t seem terribly convinced.

  “There’s something we have to discuss that I’m not sure either of you know,” Ambrose said, reaching up to rub the back of his neck. “And it deals with the…uh…consummation of the marriage.”

  I blanched. “Wait -“

  “What the fuck are you talking about?” Keaton demanded. “Nowhere in the bi-laws does it say anything about consummating the marriage.”

  “That’s because Alyssa was destined to die,” Ambrose said. He reached up and rubbed his forehead with his fingers as though he could cause the wrinkles in his forehead to vanish simply by touching them. “Kara is a Breather. She had no such destiny. It’s different.”

  “What?” I said, throwing an accusing look at Keaton. “You never said -“

  “I didn’t know!” he snapped back. “There’s no way this broad is going to willingly fuck me to make our marriage official. There has to be something else.”

  Ambrose snapped his fingers and a folder jumped into his hands. He reached into his coat pocket and pulled out some glasses. After he perched them on his nose, he flipped open the folder and flipped to the second page.

  “There’s nothing else,” he said, snapping the folder shut. “And you would know this if you actually read the manual -“

  “I did read it,” Keaton insisted, pinching the bridge of his nose.

  “No, you took what you thought you knew and applied it to everything,” Ambrose said. “You made an assumption! Jesus, Keaton, I didn’t think you’d make such a rash decision without knowing what you’re getting yourself and your Breather into!”

  “So, what are you saying?” I tried to keep up with their argument but it was impossible, and my head was starting to hurt.

  “I’m saying, Miss Kara, in order to marry my brother and make it legally binding,” Ambrose said, “you must consummate the marriage by copulating.”

  10

  “Jesus Christ,” Keaton muttered. “Could you have put it more clinically?” He looked at me, and without hesitating, said, “We gotta fuck.”

  I flinched at his harsh tone.

  No.

  There had to be another way.

  “Why is this different?” I asked, focusing my attention on Ambrose. He seemed to know what the hell was going on - unlike Keaton. “You said that Keaton’s engagement to some other girl didn’t mean he had to, um, consummate the marriage. Why would ours be different?”

  “My idiot brother sought out someone on the verge of death,” Ambrose said, shooting a glare at Keaton before returning his gaze on me. “Because she was going to die either way, consummation wasn’t required since her time in your realm was minimal, which greatly reduced his time as well. You aren’t dying, at least, as far as I know. You aren’t consumed with a fatal illness. Which means your time is relatively unlimited unless something tragic were to strike you.”

  “Which means…” I wasn’t an idiot, but I needed them to say it. I wouldn’t believe it until they said it.

  “Which means in order to be married, you must have intercourse within a week of marrying,” Ambrose said, “and continue to have intercourse once a week in order to keep the marriage up.”

  “What?” I shrieked. “So, now my sex habits are going to be carefully monitored by some unknown entity within the Void?”

  “More like magic,” Ambrose said. “Once the ceremony is completed, the rings you wear signifying your magic will be embedded with magic that expects copulation once a week. It can register whether or not such an act has taken place.”

  “Do they…do they expect me to have a child?” I asked slowly.

  Keaton visibly flinched at the thought. My stomach turned and twisted. I wasn’t sure if I was offended that he couldn’t even consider having a child or if my reaction was in solidarity with his own. I hadn’t ever thought about having children, especially not after what happened to me. Growing up without a family…I couldn’t do that to any child I brought into this world. And considering I was now entangled with a heathen, it concerned me to think that bringing a child here would only ask for danger to come knocking on our door.

  I wouldn’t risk a child. I barely felt comfortable risking myself.

  “We can get into details later,” Ambrose said. He dropped his eyes, taking me in slowly. There was nothing slimy about his gaze. If anything, he was curious, analytical. “Just know that mandatory copulation is used to ensure the marriage is not fake.”

  “Details?” I asked. “You mean there’s more?”

  “It means, unless you’re comfortable having relations with him once a week, you should not marry him,” Ambrose said, shifting with discomfort.

  I swallowed. “What would happen if we didn’t…?” I didn’t want to finish the sentence, and luckily, it didn’t seem as though I would have to.

  “You don’t want to know,” Ambrose said. “It would be bad, and not just for him, but for both of you. Don’t forget: it’s not just his freedom at traveling to your realm, it’s your freedom traveling here. Which means you must answer to our laws just as he must answer to yours.”

  I plopped down on my couch, my knees giving away before I could catch myself. I learned forward, trying to read Keaton’s face. There was something garbled - a scowl and resignation on his face - and I began to chew my bottom lip, trying not to think about the thought of us…we had almost done just that before he stopped it. He was surprisingly quiet, and I didn’t think that was a good sign.

  Maybe…maybe he didn’t want me. Regardless of his little quips, maybe he wasn’t interested.

  “What do you think?” I asked before I could consider if I really wanted to know.

  It took a moment for Keaton to realize I was talking to him. His brows raised in surprise before his green eyes darted away from me.

  “It’s not really a decision I feel like I can make, babes,” he said. “If you’re asking if I can fuck you once a week, my answer is an unequivical fuck, yes. In fact, I expect if this goes through, we’ll do much more than that, even when you have you’re bleeding. But the decision is ultimately yours. Like I said, I won’t force you.”

  There was so much to unpack from that, but I chose to focus on the most important thing: Keaton was giving me a choice. I was sure consent was a requirement for this sort of marriage. I doubted that this magic that would make sure I had sex once a week would somehow ensure I wasn’t being coerced into this. Maybe Keaton wasn’t being altruistic because of that, but then again, he could have had me hours ago and I would have let him.

  I would have.

  “If I…if I agreed, how soon would it have to happen?” I asked.

  “You wouldn’t want to drag this out,” Ambrose said gently. “There’s already a target on your head because of your presence here. Others might try to win your affection the same reason Keaton has it: they want access to your realm. Not only that, the Prince learned of you, and while that has nothing to do with you, he will be back. A marriage to Keaton would offer you protection.”

  “And information.”

  My eyes snapped to Keaton. His face was stony but firm. He wanted to remind me of our deal, the reason I sought him out in the first place.

  “Is that true?” I looked at Ambrose, rubbing my hands on my thighs. “Can he find things out about…about the living, the dead, the in-between?”

  Ambrose looked at Keaton. There were questions in his eyes, as though he was trying to understand what the two of us weren’t saying. Quite frankly, it wasn’t any of his business and neither Keaton nor I seemed willing to say anything else which was just as well.

  Ambrose sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. “I’m not sure what he promised you, but if it’s money or fame or -“

  “It’s not,” I said. I couldn’t keep the defensiveness out of my tone if I tried. Did he really think I was that shallow?

  “No need to get like that,” he said. “You’d be surprised what people sell their soul for, and most of the time it’s one of three things - money, fame, or love.”

  “Wait.” I held up a hand. “Go back. What do you mean, sell my soul? Do you mean literally?”

  “That’s what marriage is,” Ambrose said. “You’re giving your soul up to someone just as they are doing with you.”

  “Does Keaton even have a soul to give?” I demanded.

  “Fuck you,” he snapped.

  “Oh, don’t worry,” I said. “Apparently, you will!”

  “I told you -“

  “You told me a lot of things,” I burst out. “No forced sex. You’d get me information. And that hasn’t happened.”

  “Neither has our marriage!” he spat back. “And I do recall saving your life a couple of days ago, you little brat! You already forget that if it weren’t for me, you and your little friends would be dead!”

  “And then where would you be?” I snapped back, standing up so I could get closer to him. “Right back where you started! Back in that crypt with no chance of marrying anyone. You saved me for yourself.”

  “Why else would I save you? You don’t actually think I love you, do you? Don’t even pretend, babes. We both know you can’t lie for shit. No use trying to lie now.”

  I clenched my teeth together, trying to ignore the way my cheeks pinched with a blush I was sure he would insult. It wasn’t like I believed Keaton loved me. I didn’t think he actually was capable of the emotion. However, hearing it so brutally spoken made me feel…a lot. I didn’t know and I didn’t want to think about it, especially not after that kiss.

  I hated him.

  I loathed, despised, and hated him with everything I had.

  “And we both know you don’t feel anything affectionate for me,” he continued, clearly not seeing just how close I was to losing any semblance of control I had over my temper. “You want what you want. I want what I want. A marriage of inconvenience, remember?”

  “Of course I remember!” I howled, my fingernails sinking into my palms. I didn’t even feel the pain. Not when I was overwhelmed with this anger, this emotion. “How could I forget?” By the time I finished, I was breathless.

  Ambrose looked between the two of us, eyebrows hiking to his hairline, wrinkles overtaking his forehead. “Look,” he said. “Clearly, there are issues that need resolving before you do something like marriage. There’s no such thing as separation, even in death. So, Kara, what you have to decide is whether marriage to my brother is worth whatever it is you asked him for. And, to answer your question, Keaton is the most powerful being within the Void. Even more powerful than the Prince. But he’s not all-powerful. He’s not God. If anyone can get whatever information you seek, it’s him. But that doesn’t mean he can.”

  “Well?” Keaton asked, shoving his hands in his pockets. “We gotta do this fast if we’re doing it at all. Now that the Prince knows about you, he’ll be trying to keep you away from me.”

  “Why would he do that?” I asked. My tone hadn’t exactly softened but it wasn’t as biting as it had been seconds ago.

  “Bad blood,” Keaton quipped. “And that’s all I’ll fucking say. I’m sick and tired of waiting around. We either do this or we don’t.” His eyes blazed as they looked at me, waiting, baring his teeth.

  I wanted to retort. I wanted to snap. But he wasn’t wrong. I kept dancing around the issues. I kept avoiding this, hoping another way would come along and present itself to me.

 

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