THE GREAT PRETENDER ¬ ACOTAR

chapter xvi.

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CHAPTER XVI

PLAY DIRTY

FEYRE ARCHERON was foolish yet brave. The girl went Under the Mountain to save High Lord Tamlin, hoping to free him from his curse. Being inexperienced, she easily got caught sneaking in. If they got out of this alive, Cal would happily teach her how to keep her steps light.

Callaghan watched from the shadows as the girl was dragged into the throne room. The girl claimed to love High Lord Tamlin, but even Cal knew that wasn't enough to free Spring.

The spy continued to listen even after the High Lord of Spring protected the mortal, even blaming Rhysand for possibly glamouring her. Amarantha was not stupid, she saw right through his lie.

The queen gave the girl a bargain. Anyone who knew Amarantha would certainly not agree to anything she claims. The Deceiver earned her title for going around loopholes that some were too foolish to notice.

Cold shivers went through Callaghan as she heard the girl accept the bargain, much to Spring's dismay. She looked away when the Attor began beating the girl right in front of High Lord Tamlin. If she were in Tamlin's shoes, she wouldn't stay still, that's for sure.

The spy only hoped that this mortal would be the one to save them all as she walked out.

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CALLAGHAN DECIDED to keep an eye on the girl. So there she was, staying in the dark as she watched the girl wake up from her passed out state. A few minutes passed by and Lucien came to her aid, providing her the comfort of familiarity and healed her a bit. Though he scolded the girl, he showed her compassion. The Vanserra before her was very different from his brothers in Autumn, she could see that. He cared deeply for the girl. If Callaghan were the girl, she might have even fallen for the Emissary instead of the High Lord.

When Amarantha told the girl her riddle, Callaghan wasn't there, but Rhysand was. "If you saw the look on Eris' face, you'd just want to punch the hell out of it," Rhys said. Cal didn't know much about the Vanserra's, only that they detest their younger brother and threw out Mor like she was trash. That was enough for her not to like them. But they were incredibly good looking, she can't deny that.

Cal leaned on his dresser, "I would stay quiet, I wouldn't do anything."

"You'll think about it though."

"True." She sighs, "You know me well."

"Will she be able to pass her tests?" she asked after a moment of silence.

Rhysand didn't turn to her as he spoke, "Probably not. But I will help her."

"How?"

"By doing what I do best," he said, "Playing dirty."

Callaghan frowned, "I sure hope you know what you're doing."

"I don't," he said quickly, "But it's worth a try."

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* 　　 · . 　  　　✺    　　  ✧　.  　✵  * 　　* 　　 · . 　    　　✵  * 　　　　  ✫  * 　 . 　　·          ⊹ 　  ✺    .  　  ✧　　　  ✦    ✫ 　 .   ✫  * . 　　　　　 　 　　    ·  　 ⊹ 　  ✺ .   　　　  ✧　.　  ✦    ✫ 　 .  .