Chapter 9 · The Price Tag

"Pick it up."

Silas slid the card across the black glass and it stopped right under my shaking hand.

I didn't touch it. Couldn't. My palm was sweating so bad it left a print on the table.

"It's free," he said. "No extra debt. No fine print. Just pick it up, Kane."

"Nothing you have is free," I said. My voice sounded like shit. Hoarse. "What's the catch?"

He smiled. That cold, pretty, dead smile. "Smart boy."

The card was pulsing. Black edges, red core, like a heart beating under glass. It wasn't like the other void cards. This one was warm. I could feel the heat coming off it from an inch away.

"This is a Heart card," Silas said, leaning back in his chair. "You know what that means?"

"No," I said.

"Yes you do. You felt it the second you saw it. Power without payment. Strength that doesn't cost soul. Every Dealer dreams about one. Every Collector hates to give one away."

My hand twitched. I hated that it twitched.

"So why give it to me?" I asked.

"Because I like you," he said. "And because I want something small in return."

There it is.