Page 79 of Glutton for Punishment

“I can help you, you know,” Igor continues. “Ensure your family gets taken care of. No deadline hanging over your head.”

My breath stutters, and I look up at his face.

“You wouldn’t need to fight in dank caves,” he adds. “Or worry about whether you’ve made enough this month.”

That sounds like a dream, but it makes me uneasy.

“What do you want?” I ask before I can stop myself.

He smiles.

“Very little,” he says, sitting back in his chair. “You’ll be returning to the academy soon enough. When you do, I simply want you to keep me informed.”

“Informed? What does that mean?” I ask.

“On Arwen Davies specifically,” he clarifies. “Her power. Her opinions. Her… relationships. Allies.”

He wants me to spy.

“That’s it,” Igor says. “Simple.”

“I don’t—” I start, then stop. The vision hits me: my sisters, small and fearful, huddled together in a room that’s too cold. Betraying Arwen? I don’t think I could do it. The thought alone makes me sick.

But what am I supposed to say?

You don’t tell someone like Igor Drow, no.

“I’d be ensuring your family’s safety,” Igor says softly. “In exchange for information that will come naturally to you.”

Naturally. Like this isn’t betrayal.

There are no right answers. Just different ways to lose.

I swallow hard, staring at the floor.

And don’t speak.

Chapter 23

Arwen

“Did you finally fuck Maddox last night?”

I almost choke on my water.

“Tabby, don’t be so crude.” Cleo says from where she’s seated cross-legged on the end of my bed, not even looking up from the small device she’s dismantling in her lap. “You just walked in the door.”

“What?” Tabby asks, unrepentant. “I’m asking the important questions.”

“The invasive questions,” Cleo corrects.

“The fun questions,” Tabby counters.

I groan, setting my cup down before I spill it. “You two are unbelievable. Why did I miss you?”

Tabby leans forward, her long sheet of black hair falling over her shoulders, eyes glittering with too much interest. “Well?”

Shaking my head at her, I tiptoe toward the door and crack it open just enough to peer into the hall.