Apprentice to the Villain (Assistant to the Villain, #2)

by Hannah Nicole Maehrer

Sage, Evie, the woman who owned the entirety of his blackened, tattered heart, was well and truly gone.

She swallowed the lump in her throat, grabbing his hand as they inched closer and closer to the edge. There was only the merest hint of hesitation in his voice as he said, “Are we going over, then?” He would follow her off a cliff without question. And Evie knew she was in love with him. Right then, right there.

“Sir, I’d like you to meet my older brother, Gideon Sage.”

I KNEWWWWW IT

She loved destinations; it was the journey that always seemed to stifle her.

HARD RELATE

Her lids were drooped, her eyes on his mouth. He should move—she was likely still under the effects of the flower, and Trystan’s brand of villainy in no way extended to women who were too inebriated to know what they were doing. He’d sooner sever his hands from his wrists.

A MAN

“I could fire you for insubordination.” The words should’ve scared her, but it was so obviously an empty threat that she looked to either side of her in a show of confusion before shrugging and replying, “Do it.” He sputtered. “I-I’m not actually … going to fire you! I just cannot believe you’d ever be so defiant.”

Hilarious

“This is the problem! In one breath, you imply I’d be a hindrance. In the next, you tell me I’m extraordinary! Hoisting me over your shoulder, acting like I matter to you, when you rejected me outright and then taunted me with it!” “Rejected you?” He was going to blow a gasket. “I wasn’t going to kiss you when the request was made under duress!” She huffed cynically. “Duress? Please! Admit it—right when we get close to the crux of it, you always pull back! Are you trying to confuse me? Is this part of villainy, playing games? Pretending to care about me and then ripping out the rug with something cold?” He went as still as a statue. “You think I pretend to care about you?” Sage realized her error far too late. Her eyes widened as if she sensed the danger, and she took a step back. He charged after her. “You think I do not care? As if thoughts of you and your well-being don’t plague me daily. Nightly. Every second we are apart! I watched you die! I thought I’d never see you again! I have never known such darkness, and I never wish to again. If you think that makes me overbearing, so be it. But do not ever claim I do not care about you. You are wiser than that, Evie. Do not be a fucking fool.” His harshness was meant to cow her, but it didn’t work. She just stared, quiet and confused, like she was looking at a painting that remained out of focus. Placing a hand to her chest, she blinked at him and said, “Plague? Are you comparing me to an illness?” That final thread of contr...

“I do not lack equilibrium,” she argued. “The ground merely lacks the courtesy of letting me know when it is coming closer.”

“You little snoop! Did you go back into my chambers to riffle through my things? What next? Do you intend to peruse my undergarment drawer?” She furrowed her brow. “That would be silly.” She paused, then added, “Any sensible person knows to always look in someone’s sock drawer first.”

I honest to goodness love her

You were always supposed to meet Evie Sage, Trystan Maverine. Just as Evie Sage is meant to be your downfall, and you her undoing.

I cannot handle this