Wicked Deal (Shadow Guild: The Rebel 2)

You don’t know him.

The thought flashed, and it was so true. We’d shared an almost-kiss that had nearly made me lose my mind and a bite that had definitely made me lose my mind, but I didn’t know what it had meant to him.

And there was that little matter of the Cursed Mates thing.

He wasn’t on my side.

I couldn’t forget it.

I shoved him from my mind and looked at the two shifters. “Okay, I’m coming.”

Garreth pulled something from his pocket, and I spotted two golden bangles. They looked like bracelets, but from the way Mac gasped and Eve scowled, I knew they couldn’t be.

“Really?” Mac said. “Magicuffs?”

“You know the rules, Mac. She isn’t in a guild, which makes her dangerous. Illegal.”

“No person is illegal.”

“This one is,” Garret said.

“She’s new in town,” Eve said.

“She’s been here a week,” Penelope said. “More than enough time to approach the Council about joining a guild.”

“They require this.” Garreth held up the cuffs. “Not us. Let us do our jobs.”

Mac growled, but I held up a hand. “It’s fine.”

This guild member stuff was serious. And I’d known I was supposed to join one—Mac had explained how things worked here. But I’d been nervous. I didn’t have control of my magic or my magical signature, so I’d hesitated, reluctant to approach the Council on uneven footing.

Apparently, they weren’t willing to wait.

Or the Devil had sped up our meeting.

Either way, I was going there now, and I was doing it in handcuffs.

2

The Devil

Disappointment flickered through me as I walked away from Eve’s shop. Idly, I rubbed my chest, totally unfamiliar with the feeling. It had been centuries since I’d felt like this.

One, because I rarely wanted anything.

And two, because if I did want something, I got it.

And I wanted Carrow.

Not just her help, but the woman herself.

And damned if it wasn’t strange.

Faint morning sunlight flickered though a large tree that grew up through one of the Fae shops. The trees were a rarity in London, but there were quite a few here in Guild City, especially around the Fae enclaves.

Sunlight sparkled through the green leaves, and I marveled that I could now see the brilliant colors. That I could now smell the freshness of the leaves and taste the dawn on the air. Feel of the cool morning breeze on my skin.

Because of Carrow.