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

by Hannah Nicole Maehrer

“Didn’t anyone ever teach you that stars listen for wishes?”

“What did you wish for?” His words came out in a raspy whisper. She faced him fully as she slowly backed all the way to the door, reaching behind her and gripping the handle. There was a soft look on her face that made his bones feel like jelly. “I’ll let you know when it comes true.”

He frowned at it. “What a horrible waste of pastry. I’d rather they throw rocks.”

Trystan lifted a brow beneath his mask and finally looked at his father. “My concern is for the poor cream puffs, actually.”

Her choice would always be him.

The pride Evie felt at the words was disconcerting, but she let herself relish it anyway. When one spent their entire life feeling weak, it was quite thrilling to be viewed as a threat.

“You wicked bitch!” She took a bow. “At your service.”

She was afraid, but she knew now: fear usually meant you were standing on the edge of something new, something self-altering, something potentially good. Fear was not something she would shy away from ever again.

He would follow her off a cliff without question. And Evie knew she was in love with him. Right then, right there.

Blade gave the creatures a crooked smile. “Oh, come now, sir. There are some beings you simply cannot keep apart; they’ll always find their way back to each other.”

There was no emotion in his voice when he said, “Does your mind live in the gutter?” She shook her head, tapping a finger against her lips. “No, but it rents there on occasion.”

“Because we are always expected to plaster a grin on our faces even when we don’t wish to. I used to do it so often, I stopped being able to tell when I was smiling for me or for someone else. So now, I don’t smile unless I’m one hundred percent sure it’s something I want to do, not something someone else wants me to do.”

Yes, she’d grown older, but she still had faith in goodness, in people, in magic.

“Greed. Humans desire to take; they rarely seek to give. The magic of this world knows this and is beginning to hide to protect itself. The book was written to save it when that time comes.”

Irony was funny sometimes, and other times it was like someone had slapped you with an umbrella.

She blinked up at him. His dark eyes weren’t angry, and they weren’t full of censure; they were full of mirth. He was trying to make her laugh, to lighten her heart. The way she always tried to do for him, the way she tried to do for everyone. Nobody had ever done that, had ever tried to lighten things for her.

“But—” Lyssa sniffed, dampening Evie’s nightgown with her tears. “Who is going to take care of you?” Oh, Lyssa, myself. I’ve always taken care of myself with a false smile and brittle strength.

“Sometimes family isn’t a thing we are born into but a choice we make. Sometimes”—Evie smiled—“the people who love you most in your life are the ones who choose you.”

I can’t spiral through my anxieties without proper nourishment!

Mantras began in his mind, steadying him, grounding him. I am malicious. I am evil. I am feared!

You can’t be sad when you’re trying to be professional, Evie! But being professional is so sad, her mind argued.

She took each moment of her life with a natural good humor, no matter how painful, no matter how tragic. She trekked on with nothing but her will. No magic to protect her. Just faith and optimism and belief in her survival.

Little shops lined the cobblestone streets, bustling with children and content-looking adults. An upbeat song played by a group of performers gave her a merry tune to step to as she entered the fray. The entire village was surrounded by channels of glistening blue water, some taking the place of streets with small boats to travel between points. It was like nothing she’d ever seen.

Can i go here?

She laughed loudly, uninhibited. This in and of itself was not uncommon for her. She was often amused, trying to find delight in life where she could. It was her drive, what kept her up when she felt the urge to remain low. But that delight was frequently found while wearing her mask of humor and lightness. In this moment, it was lovely to be happy without effort. She kept laughing until a snort came out of her nose—a loud one. She hiccupped. “I’m a mess.”

She enjoyed the freedom of wearing trousers, but she didn’t think she would ever shake the giddy feeling of twirling in a pretty dress. She could have both now, the freedom of choice.

A tragic inheritance, seeing your mother’s flaws crop up within yourself and having the awareness to know it but no idea how to stop it.

The smell of fresh pie crust lightened her mood as she wandered into the cozy kitchen space, smiling at her favorite window. Blade lifted a mug of cauldron brew in greeting from where he stood stiffly next to Gideon, who was sipping the brew and wincing at the taste.

I want to jump into the page!!!

“You are as subtle as a battering ram,” The Villain responded dryly, his jaw tightening.

It had occurred to her many times over that “impossible” was merely a word people used to describe limitations they wished for you to adhere to, so you wouldn’t upset the balance.

She rolled her eyes, brows coming up to salute her hairline when they passed a crowd hovering over Rick, who was gripping his knee and crying. “My goodness! What happened to him?” “How should I know?” He responded far too quickly for comfort, but she let it go, because it was actually fairly pleasant to see that little weasel in pain.

LOL

There was nothing quite so hope-inducing as a budding romance.

Her love was too big, and it had been given too freely to people who didn’t deserve it.

She threw her hands in the air. “I did a little reading on safety! It’s a palate cleanser after my last bodice-ripper book.”

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

Lyssa’s hand shot for the end of her braid as she realized the strip of silk was missing. “Rats! The first rule of villainy: never leave evidence behind.”

Evie still saw fear as Becky squared her shoulders, angling the key up. She admired the woman for it, because it wasn’t thoughtless bravery that won the fiercest battles—it was welcoming the fear that lived inside your heart, in your mind, and harnessing it to carry your feet forward, knowing it couldn’t control you.

Her family wasn’t innocent, but their land was: the trees, the grass, the dancing mushrooms lining the front walk, making little murmured sounds when they saw her walking up the flower-lined path to the fortress entrance.

This sounds so magical!!!!

At this point, he was collecting weaknesses like deranged little knickknacks.

Love. He’d fight for it—for her—no matter the price.

Fake Her hissed and ducked backward, snarling in the corner. “Take note,” her boss said, moving swiftly in front of her. “That’s what you look like before you have your cauldron brew in the morning.”

“He’s like a teddy bear that got hold of a kitchen knife.”

They both broke into a grin at the same time—so big it felt like safety, like coming home. It felt in part like she’d just gotten a piece of her lost childhood back. The simple joy of making a friend.

“You kept my scarf.”

She's a swiftie

He was dumbstruck in love with her.

Gideon wasn’t certain what he’d expected when he abandoned his post with the heroes to join up with The Villain’s team, but it certainly wasn’t eating pastry with an ogre and discussing severed heads.

Edwin shook the tray. “This bread isn’t for eating—it’s stale. Harder than a rock.” His eyes twinkled. “Perfect for throwing.”

Her sister smoothed out her skirt, feet kicking again. “I think I am very sad. But I won’t be forever.” Words to live by.

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