When he spoke, his voice was higher in timbre and richer in cruelty. "You have no part in this anymore," he informed the elf and reached out to take the reliquary with one hand while he flicked the fingers of the other. The elf was gone. The elk that stood in his place looked bewildered—or as bewildered as a prey animal can look—then turned and ran away, hooves churning at the night-soaked ground.
"There's not much difference between an elf of this land and an elk," said the black-haired man who was not a prince at all, turning his attention back to Rhys. "I always found that amusing. But you—I don't find you amusing in either form. She trusted you. She cared for you. There was no treachery left in her, and you killed her. You betrayed her."
***
