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Chapter 24: Rage Magic
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Prince from the Other Side Chapter 25: Careful Betrayals
He was tender with me that night, between the absurdly luxurious sheets of the absurdly luxurious hotel his people had booked for us. His hands, rough with their guitar calluses, stroked my breasts, my belly, my back, pulling me into him as he made love to me. His breath tasted sweet with magic and whiskey, his lips tender on my neck, in my hair, on my nipples, as if he were savoring me in every detail, every taste. As if I were so precious in his arms that he was suddenly terrified of shattering me to nothing. When we lay in bed afterward, in the early hours of the morning, our bodies sweetly spent and our magics humming beautifully in each soft, slow, aftermath kiss. I touched his face with my fingertips. I traced the shape of his lips, his cheeks, buried my fingertips in his dark, sweat-damp curls. "You said you would be safe from them," he whispered. "From the Court…""I am," I insisted, but my voice felt like a pretense of itself. "Hester," he said, so very gently, "Let's n
Prince from the Other Side Chapter 26: The High LIfe
But as it turned out, we had plenty of trouble waiting for us in the world we were in already.The morning started out slow and lazy, as we pulled ourselves reluctantly together and decided to go out in search of food. I texted Cass and Toby, suggesting lunch, but they clearly weren't up yet. Cass hadn't posted on any of her social media for hours, which was a near-guarantee she was fast asleep. Cass lived on her socials. How late did Cynthia's afterparty end up going? We had our second and final show at Madison Square Garden tonight, before we continued to Boston, DC, and Philadelphia, and then west. Maybe everyone was taking advantage of a rare non-travel day to sleep in and kick back, before the true sprint of the tour began.So, I had the surreal experience of watching Sy pick out which black t-shirt to wear as I hummed an abstract tune around my toothbrush."Let me take you shopping," said Sy out of the blue as I spat out my toothpaste. "You, shopping?" I chuckled, almost cho
Prince from the Other Side Chapter 27: Looking Out
The spotlights roved onto me and Sy as we took our final bows that night to the roar of applause beyond the wall of stage lights. I heard stamping feet and blank, ecstatic screams. The very air burned with magic, hotter than the stage lights, rich in my blood and burning under my skin. And they audience was still giving, giving, giving—dedicating all of themselves, all of their admiration, all of their loose, chaotic love to us, now, here. Some of them balanced on their friends' shoulders so that Sy and I might see them, so that they might have that one moment of connection. The grand scale of this magic was unthinkable. Even as I felt it burning through me, I couldn't sense the end. Sy squeezed my hand encouragingly, and I lifted the mic to my lips one last time. "Thank you, New York!" I cried. "We love you! Thank you!"And suddenly, Sy kissed me, full in the glory of this magic. The sweet depth of the kiss and the sear of the magic sent my brain into blank ecstasy for a long,
Prince from the Other Side Chapter 28: Bourbon and Brawls
True to form, Sy already had an Irish pub in mind, barely a block and a half away. The automatic explosion of noise that greeted us when Sy and I walked through the door gave me a good idea where a lot of the crowd had come from. If that wasn't enough, the sea of dark laurel-branded t-shirts told me the rest. In addition, there was a layer of magical aftermath clinging to almost everyone in the bar like golden dust. Sy and my distinct magic: like nothing else.Sy's bad mood seemed to have evaporated. Dave and his security detail seemed like their blood pressure was rising by the second, as Sy waded cheerfully into the crowd. "Next round's on me!" he bellowed, rising another generous burst of shouting from all around. Phones were out and snapping pictures. The volume on the music was cranked higher, and pockets of enthusiastic patrons started wriggling drunkenly in something approximating a dance. I took the shot Sy handed to me and raised it in a salute opposite him, grinning foolis
Prince from the Other Side Chapter 29: One More Wish
The sky was turning gray by the time the police were done talking to me. But for all that time, all I could see, over and over, was the moment when they'd handcuffed Sy and ducked him into a police cruiser. There was an ambulance for the drunk, who had finally registered the pain in his jaw even through the alcohol haze. In their absence, there was a circus: statements taken, more cruisers, sirens and lights…And then the photographers arrived. The cops didn't seem too concerned with letting me shield myself from the paparazzi. I tried not to think too deeply about how they pivoted and positioned themselves, as if trying to get their own faces in the photos too. They were professionally blunt, cold, impersonal, but I couldn't stop shaking. Over and over again, I related the quick sequence of events. There were other bar patrons showing video to the cops too, and I desperately wanted to ask to see the video too—to know if what I saw and remembered lined up with what would be all over t
Prince from the Other Side Chapter 30: Mutual Appreciation
I froze in the hot water, knowing any movement would slosh the water and give me away. The bathroom door wasn't even closed, never mind locked. Why would I lock it? I was alone. It was probably only room service, I told myself. But I was so on edge. No one had sent me any updates. I felt like a lobster in a slowly boiling pot, waiting for the numb defeat to really set in.Then a shadow blotted the doorway: long and lean and strong, with a coil of dark hair. "Sy!" I half-screamed, joy stealing my breath. I hadn't dared to hope.His face was still stained with bright blood, dry and pale under his nose and darkening his split lip. I stood up in the bath, the cold striking in after the sharp heat of the bathwater. I was frozen, staring at him in joyous disbelief. "They let you go." I felt the grin, big and silly, spread across my face. In a second he'd crossed the space between us."Gods, I need you." His arms sprang around me, gripping my soaking body against his clothed one.
Prince from the Other Side Chapter 31: Blame Game
I finally slept—heavy, relieved sleep, dreamless and perfect—and woke with Sy curled against me, his breath rustling my hair. I lay peacefully in the quiet, feeling the heat of the early afternoon sun sliding against my skin. All at once there was a thunderous knocking at the door. My first thought, irrationally, was of my uncle. My mind refused to believe that this silence from him was anything other than menacing, waiting for the first moment for me to screw up and do something—in his mind—truly incriminating. But my uncle would never knock. And never betray so much anger externally. Sy lurched awake beside me, bolting upright. He looked at me questioning. "I don't know," I whispered—then wondered why I'd whispered. Sy didn't say a word, just slid out of bed and pulled on a pair of black jeans and headed to the door. Belatedly, it occurred to me that I should at least reach for a robe, but there was no time, so I pulled the covers up to my chin. Sy opened the door just an i
Prince from the Other Side Chapter 32: Showstopper
Only a few hours later, Sy and I were literally still catching our breath as the house lights went down and the stage lights began to burn. On the other side of the lights, was a stadium full of people who, I couldn't help but think, were busy hating me. It was a persistent, ugly feeling, something like anxiety but with the teeth of facts to back it up. I'd seen my socials today: it wasn't good. My Instagram was flooded with Sy's fans telling me what a garbage waste of space and breath I was. Cass had been busily deleting and reporting all day, but the deluge was endless. They called me a thief, a pretender, a phony, and a lot of other less flattering things. And I was helpless. I—or rather Cass—didn't post anything new, not even a story. And yet the comments kept coming. In this moment, right now, I focused on breathing deeply. I wanted to feel the thrill of the show, the gathering energy waiting to boil into powerful magic. But all I felt was dread. As if I were going in front my Qu
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