He stole my magic. So I tracked him to hell. Yasar burned my research facility to ash. Destroyed years of work. And when I finally corner him in the Fae Court, that bastard just smiles and tells me we're partners now—forced into a twelve-curse tournament where failure means death for us both. He still has my magic. I can see the curse threads but can't break them without him. And he knows it. So now I'm trapped. Working beside the man I want to kill. Solving impossible curses while he watches me with those calculating eyes, making deals with Queen Morwenna behind my back, playing games I don't understand. The mate bond keeps trying to snap into place. I fight it. He fights it. We both pretend we don't feel it pulling us together like gravity. He's cruel. Possessive. Constantly reminding me I'm powerless without him. Every curse we break, every impossible trial we survive together, I hate him more. But I'm starting to suspect he's not just using me for power. There's something darker driving him. Something he won't—or can't—explain. And I'm bound to him until this nightmare ends. Or until one of us breaks.