Assistant to the Villain, #2
Apprentice to the Villain
by Hannah Nicole Maehrer
Contents
Chapter 18
Overview
Evie and Trystan survive the fall into the trap by landing in an impossible sky-and-cloud realm above a dandelion field tied to Evie’s old trauma. Their argument over Evie’s recklessness exposes Trystan’s protectiveness and turns into a near-kiss, deepening their romantic tension. The moment is interrupted when the landscape reveals a gigantic hidden monster, confirming they have reached the dangerous final piece of the rhyme.
Summary
Evie believes she must be dead after falling through the trap, but instead of striking the ground, she lands on a soft, dewy cloud amid pale-blue light. Trystan lands beside her, and Evie is relieved that they are together and amused by his unusually disheveled appearance.
When Evie looks over the cloud’s edge, Evie sees a field of dandelions below, which brings back painful memories of Gideon’s screams, her mother’s disappearance, and the moment her childhood ended. Despite those memories, Evie reflects that she still believes in goodness, people, and magic, then ignores Trystan’s warning and jumps down from the cloud.
Evie lands safely on unusually soft grass, but Trystan follows and angrily confronts Evie for risking her life. Trystan calls Evie naive, and Evie lashes back, accusing Trystan of hiding behind cynicism, revenge, and misery. The argument escalates until Trystan reveals that his anger comes from fear for Evie’s safety rather than contempt.
The confrontation shifts into charged intimacy as Evie recognizes Trystan’s protectiveness. Trystan admits Evie frustrates and incenses him, and Evie remembers his gentle command for Evie to wake after the sleeping-death fruit. Trystan draws closer, and the two nearly kiss.
Before Evie and Trystan can act on the moment, the blue sky-like barrier around them shakes and reveals itself as camouflage for an enormous creature. Trystan identifies it as the end of the rhyme: the monster’s next meal. Evie, facing the beast’s razor-sharp teeth, tries to deflect the danger with humor.
Who Appears
- EvieLands in the strange sky realm, confronts trauma, challenges Trystan, and faces the revealed monster.
- TrystanFollows Evie into the trap, reveals protective fear, nearly kisses her, and identifies the monster.
- The monsterA gigantic camouflaged creature hidden in the sky-like barrier, revealed as the rhyme’s next threat.