Cupid’s Match

As Cupid drives us back to his house, I look out of the rear window at the headlights of Crystal’s pink Bentley. Dread mixed with guilt bubbles in the pit of my stomach as I think of the prisoner in the car. What’s going to happen to Charlie? Will she have to get a job at the Matchmaking Service like the other cupids? Will she always hate me?

Thinking of her pointing an arrow at my chest makes my heart hurt. Charlie has been my best friend ever since I can remember. Even though she kissed James, I know we would have worked through it. But now it’s like she’s not even the same person.

“What’s the Styx?” I ask, turning back around.

“Long story, but it’s a mythological river,” says Cupid. “You include a clause about it in any legal contract and the contract can’t be broken. Pretty shady stuff. I didn’t check the small print of an agreement I had going with this bull-headed guy back in the seventeenth century—ended up trimming his hedges for the next five months.”

“So you really are going to leave?” I ask.

“Yeah.” He catches my eye in the rearview mirror and sighs. “Yeah. Once I have the arrow.”

Around ten minutes later we pile into Cupid’s kitchen. Selena and Crystal take Charlie into the living room while Cal makes a round of coffees. It’s completely dark outside now, yet Cupid lingers at the front of the house, cautiously scanning the grounds through the glass.

I perch on a stool at the breakfast bar, nervously clutching the mug Cal hands me. It’s not until I take a sip of the dark, caffeinated liquid that I realize how tired I am. I look over at Cal as he leans against the counter somewhat awkwardly.

“What’s going to happen to Charlie?” I ask. “They’re not going to hurt her, are they?”

Cupid turns and the brothers exchange a glance.

“It won’t come to that,” says Cal stiffly, though his eyes don’t look convinced.

Cupid slides onto the stool beside me, the sultry lighting of his kitchen casting shadows on his lightly tanned skin. He smells like leather and aftershave.

“Of course it won’t; we just need to know what she knows and make sure she doesn’t cause any trouble. That’s why we’ve brought Selena.” He looks at me. “She’s very powerful. She can get the truth out of people quickly, and she can calm them down.”

“Can I see Charlie?” I ask.

Cupid nods. “Just give Selena five minutes.”

I put my coffee down and head into the hallway. I give my dad a quick call to let him know I’m okay. He answers from the Love Shack—apparently Eric has given him a trial shift tonight. I force a smile into my voice.

“That’s great, Dad!”

“Thanks, sweetheart,” he says. “I guess I better brush up on my dad-dancing skills. I’ll see you tomorrow, okay?”

I tell him it’s fine then stuff my phone into my pocket. After a deep breath, I enter the living room.

The floor is hardwood, and a maroon rug lays in front of the fireplace. Its roaring blaze is the only light in the room, seeing as the heavy velvet curtains are drawn. On either side of the mantelpiece, the walls hold built-in bookcases filled with an eclectic mix of volumes.

My focus is drawn to the center of the room. Beside the dark mahogany coffee table, Charlie is tied to a wooden chair. Selena kneels beside her. Crystal watches while perching on the edge of a leather armchair that matches the two long couches around the hearth.

“What is she doing here?” Charlie spits when she sees me. She twists her head viciously to glare at Crystal. “Aren’t you going to do something about this? You’re a cupid. You should know better.”

“I’ve been a cupid a lot longer than you, and we don’t attack innocent humans,” Crystal says as Charlie fidgets against her restraints.

“Cupids cannot be matched,” Charlie says, her lips thinning into a hard line.

Crystal crosses the room to stand in front of me. “They won’t be.” Then she gives a false smile. “I’m going to freshen up.”

As her footsteps click up the spiral staircase, Charlie shrieks after her. “DON’T LEAVE ME HERE! DON’T LEAVE ME HERE WITH HER!”

How can Charlie hate me so much?

Selena leans over her and I hear a soft tune start up. Then, as instantly as she started screaming, Charlie begins to snore. I feel my own eyelids drooping and I fall back into the couch behind me.

“What’s going on?” I yawn. “Why is she asleep?”

Selena smiles kindly. “Don’t worry,” she says. “Your friend is going to be all right. I sent her to sleep because she was getting agitated. It’s not safe for her to be awake around you at the moment.”

“Is she always going to hate me now?” I ask sadly.

Selena gives me a sympathetic look. “Attempting to pierce you with a Cupid’s Arrow, believe it or not, was an act of mercy. But now . . . I do believe she will try to kill you.”

“Is there a way to stop her from feeling like this?”

“The power from the arrow that transformed her is still surging through her veins. It’s like a venom, taking control. As her body starts to get used to it, she’ll become more open to reason. But she still won’t want you to be matched with Cupid.”

I shake my head. “But why?”

Selena walks over to the couch and sits down beside me. “She has been informed of the company policy.”

“Right. That it’s against the Cupids Matchmaking Service rules for cupids to get matched. But seriously, what’s the big deal? So what if me and Cupid do get together? He doesn’t even work there anymore.”

Selena frowns. “They haven’t told you?”

“Told me what?”

She sighs heavily.

“Do you know who the founder of the Cupids Matchmaking Service is?”

“I never really thought about it,” I say. “I guess I thought it was Cupid—before he got banished.”

“No, honey, it’s not Cupid.”

“Okay, so who is it?” I ask. “And why does it matter who owns the company?”

Selena looks as though she is trying to figure out how to explain something. The flames cast dancing light over her flawless skin.

“The company founder left many years ago, but the terms of the policy state that if the rules are broken, the founder will reseize control of the Matchmaking Service.”

“Well, that doesn’t sound too bad.”

Selena smiles faintly. “You don’t know the founder, honey.” She leans forward until her face is just inches from mine. “Listen.”

She hums a gentle tune and I feel myself leaning in even closer to her. I stare into her eyes—they are beautiful, dark and wild.

“There’s something I need you to do,” she says.

I nod, a wooziness coming over me. Anything she wants, I will do.

“Downstairs, in Cupid’s combat room, there are some arrows. Do you know which ones I mean?”

I nod, thinking of the arrows mounted on the wall.

“I need you to go down there, get a black arrow, turn it on yourself, and—”

Suddenly a hand seizes Selena’s neck and she is flung from the sofa onto the floor. She rolls over and leaps to her feet, her eyes glinting dangerously. I blink and it’s like a film has been lifted from my vision.

I jump up from the couch. “Hey! You tried to hypnotize me!”

But she’s no longer looking at me. Cupid stands by the door, his jaw tense, the muscles under his T-shirt bulging as he clenches his fists.

“You betrayed me,” he says through gritted teeth. “Explain yourself.” He takes a step forward but Selena stands her ground. She raises her palms in front of her, in a placating gesture.

“No need to get overexcited. I don’t want a fight. It’s just, I thought about what you told me in Elysium, and I think it’s better if Lila—”

Cupid’s eyes narrow. “Get. Out.”

She nods. “Like I said, I’m not looking for a fight. But you’re playing with fire.” As she walks past Cupid, she catches my eye. “I’m sorry, honey. It really was an act of mercy. You’ll find out soon enough.”

“Wait!” I call when she reaches the doorway.

She turns and looks over her shoulder, arching a perfectly formed eyebrow.

“What about Charlie? You spoke to her—what did she say?”

Selena sighs, her eyes flitting to Cupid, who’s still wearing a face like thunder. “She doesn’t know much,” she says. “They told her about the company policy, obviously. They are looking for the Finis, which they think is close by. And there are more Arrows on the way.”

She turns to look at Cal, who’s arrived in the doorway, looking confused.

“Keep an eye on your brother,” she says.

And then she’s gone.