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"No But he told s to you To all of you He laughed about it"

Jenny gripped both his hands "Don’t you worry about him, Tom He can’t hurt us anymore We’re free, Tom-we’ve won Noe just need to find the way out of here"

Tom looked at her, then nodded behind her Jenny turned

She’d missed it before, because Tom had so quickly captured her attention There was a door, just like the door in the More Games store that led out onto Montevideo Street But this door was partly open, showing darkness outside

Standing before it, coiant coiled snake and a large wolf

"The Creeper and the Lurker At last," Dee said

"Just a slight problem," Michael said nervously

They weren’t real animals exactly-they looked more as if they’d been painted with luminous paint on the darkness Like soht make for a photo But the wolf breathed and the snake’s fluorescent tongue flicked in and out Jenny felt sure that they could ered Too The rules were that if we got to the top of the house, we could go free"

"Not exactly," the liquid, elemental voice said from the back of the store

He was dressed the way he had been in the More Games store, in that weird combination of cyberpunk and Byronic poet The snake tattoo was back on his wrist

He looked as laconic as he had in the store, and as beautiful His hair was like low inside In this diht blue

He looked-charhtly el

Jenny was suddenly very frightened

AndJulian cleared the cobwebs out of your brain instantly She straightened her back, still kneeling

The others were gathering theht hair and the gold clasp of Audrey’s Brunetti calfskin belt Jenny could see by their faces that they knew Julian better now-not because they’d seen him in the Game but because they understood what he was

Julian se, sweet smile

"You all wanted to knoho I aive you a final riddle," he said "I’ I’m Loki I’m Puck I’htured that out," Jenny said, quietly, steadily "And we played your gao home"

"You didn’t letthe saoats and tigers?" He gestured, one of his easy, flowing ures, also bronze, sat on it somewhat like chess pieces

"Well, that’s what you’ve really been playing," Julian said, and at the sound of his voice Jenny felt the walls closing in He smiled at her particularly

"You are all the innocent little goatsand I’ Jenny’s nuht leg back, ready for action Zach looked bleak, and Audrey and Michael had ether

"You didn’t really think," Julian said to Jenny, "that I would let you go"

Jenny felt dizzy S the Gaot out, with barely the breath to say it "You promised me-"

"I’ fairly-I said if you got to the turret before dawn, you’d find the door ho open It is open-it’s just that I won’t let you get to it"

Jenny looked at the aniht them?

"By the way, Tohtot so like eternity ahead of us, you

know," Julian said His eyes were like liquid cobalt -and ravenous Hungrier than the wolf’s as he looked at Jenny and Toht Please, so at Julian, with such hatred and fury that it made Jenny afraid for him

"Then this whole ’Ga the words His hazel eyes were burning

Julian spread his hands and inclined his head slightly-almost a bow As if someone had complimented him on a job well done But it was Jenny he spoke to

"I told you I’d do whatever was necessary to get you At first I was sure you’d lose the Game-, I figured I could make you turn to , you know," he added, flicking a heavy-lidded glance at Toood for you"

"I know," Tom said, and Jenny looked at hiood for you"

"I want her for goodness’ sake," Julian said and sht to my darkness You’ll see-Tommy You’ll have years and years and years to see hoell she and I fit together" He turned back to Jenny "In any case, you’ve gotten this far, and I’m afraid I have to tell you the truth Which is that the whole Gaame The kind a cat plays with ait?" Dee said in a voice like a knife

Julian barely glanced back at her "I’ at the e appetites I wouldn’t go near them if I were you And of course there are all the other Shadow Men-allwraiths-they’d all like to get hold of you This house keeps theet far if you opened a "

Jenny felt the tre in To of the poerandfather’s room

Like the other fools/Who’ve slipped on these same stones and played and lost

Did everyone lose to the Shadow Men?

The dice are loaded, she thought You can’t win

All bets are off

"They’d love to sink a tooth in you," Julian was saying to Dee "Do you know you’re the iypt?" Even as he spoke, Dee snapped her right leg up in a high kick, pulling her toes back at the lastbloith the heel At least, that was how it should have happened Julian, with the reflexes of a rattlesnake, caught her foot as it ca Dee on her back

"Rule One in this Ga "Don’t mess with ot up, obviously in pain-there was no way to break a fall like that-and Julian turned back to Jenny

Jenny e forever

"Let the others go," she said clearly and softly, "and I’ll stay with you"

Julian stared at her Everyone stared at her

Then soh

Julian shtly, just one corner of his lip up Not an aas flames

"I see," he said

Jenny detached her hands from Tom’s She stood up

"I’oand I’ll stayof my own free will And you knohat thatof the darkroo as her cousin who’d held her in his arms The boy she’d kissed-of her own free will She was hoping Julian reht he did He looked intrigued A strange, sensuous sly?" he repeated, as if testing the word

"Willingly"

"No " To only at Julian

Julian looked charmed-but wary "You’d have to make a promise-seal the bond In a way that couldn’t be broken"

"Yes"

She could see she’d startled hiue Didn’t he understand that she’d changed? She raised her eyebrows at him, ironically "The sooner the better," she said

Julian blinked, then said slowly, "Beautiful Deirdre can leave, and Audrey So can Zach and Michael But Toood behavior"

Looking up at him, Jenny felt her lip twitch, not quite a smile "I don’t think you’ll need that "

"All the saht It doesn’tclose to him, she spoke quietly, for his ears alone "Julian, don’t you know that I’ve changed? Can’t you see that? I still care about Tom, but it’s not the sa would seehtly in fascination

Jenny took a deep breath "I probably would have coht out asked me Didn’t that ever occur to you? That you could just appear at ames, no threats, and just ask me?"

He looked disconcerted "Not exactly "

"You’re too cynical Do you know, I think the way you look at things has otten so hardened that you think you have to fight the universe to get what you want To-sort of wrestle it out of people"

"And-don’t I?"

"Not always," Jenny said Meeting his gaze directly, she said, "Sometis you can’t force, Julian, and you can’t buy theiven, for free That’s what I want to give you"

His fascination was complete

"Then proht-of-hand trick, he held soold circlet

Jenny reached for it autoer and thun she couldn’t quiteritten in fancy script She tilted the ring toward one of the small lamps

All I refuse & Thee I chuse, she read

"Put this on your finger and you’re sworn mine," Julian said "No way to break the proe the bond It’s a short cereh with it?"