Page 78
Story: Fate Calls the Elf Queen
Hel grabbed a passing maiden and snapped her neck so fast Layala barely heard the pop before he shoved her limp body into Layala’s arms.
Layala gasped and gripped her under her arms and around the middle like they were hugging. “What is wrong with you?”
“Better get the body out of here before someone thinksyoukilled her. Right now, she simply looks a little drunk. ThePalenor Scrollwould love that story,” he said and stuffed his hands into his pockets then left her standing there with a dead girl in her arms.
Chapter24
LAYALA
Layala didn’t even have to move before Thane was at her side, taking the dead girl out of her grasp. “It’s alright. I have her.”
Tears burned her eyes and she backed away. He killed an innocent girl because of what she said, because she pissed him off. “I need some air.”
“Go. I’ve got this,” Thane reassured her. Fennan, Piper, and Leif rushed over, surrounding him while she hurried out of the ballroom. She dashed through the torchlit corridors and made a turn out a side door into the fresh night air. Crickets chirped and torches lit the path ahead to a small white gazebo surrounded by red and white roses. It sat empty, thank the Maker. A quiet refuge for her at this moment.
The benches inside were comfortable and made of cherry-colored softwood. She leaned back and observed the little fairy lights twinkling in the rafters of the gazebo. A warm breeze wisped her hair around her face, and she closed her eyes.
“It’s intriguing to find you alone out here. Almost as if it was supposed to happen.”
Layala’s skin prickled as Hel’s voice trickled down her spine. She gritted her teeth and shot to her feet, ready to give him a piece of her mind, but as she turned left and right, he was nowhere to be found.
“Over here,” he said from behind.
She twirled on her heel and his shadowy hooded figure waited near the tall bushes about ten yards out. Out of reach of the torchlight. The hair on her neck and arms lifted. Why would he hide? “Hel, what are you doing?”
“Come have a walk with me.”
Something wasn’t right. She scanned the area, looking for guards or party guests and found them utterly alone. “Why don’t we go back inside?” One foot moved back, then the other. She didn’t want to run but staying felt foolish.
“Come, sweet Layala.” He didn’t move from the shadows.
Alarm bells went off in her head. Hel would never call her sweet Layala. This was a ruse of some kind. The council’s assassins… she turned lifting her dress and dashed out of the gazebo, running down the pathway. Until someone grabbed a fistful of her hair and jerked her to a halt. She plucked a throwing star from the folds of her dress, whirled around, and nearly fumbled it in shock. The creature holding her must be over eight feet tall with huge horns curling out of long white hair, blue-gray skin covered lean muscle, creepy bright red eyes, different from Hel’s, there was no white at all.
For one moment, recognition flashed across her mind, she’d seen this beast before.
“Hello, goddess.” His voice was gravelly and had a deep bass. “Remember me?”
Layala tried to jerk out of his hold, but he gripped her throat with his other hand and lifted her off the ground. She wanted to scream for help but couldn’t get air. She kicked wildly, and jammed her throwing star into his arm but he didn’t flinch.
“And they said it would be difficult to get you alone and kill you.” He let out a rough cackle and squeezed harder.
Hel, I need you! He’s choking me!
Magic rushed to the surface of her skin and vines ripped out of the ground, coiling around the monster’s legs and up his body. Another shot up from the grass jamming straight through his arm like a spear. With a roar, he dropped her. She hit the ground and gasped for air but coughed from the brutality of his hold. She struggled to her feet in the gown, and it ripped under her foot, but she managed to move forward to the castle.
A sharp blade embedded in the back of her calf, and she went down with a scream.
She rolled onto her side, jerked the blade free and jammed it into the thigh of the beast already hovering over her.
“You’re not invincible anymore,” he said with a raucous laugh. “Just a sad, pathetic, mortal ripe for the slaughtering.”
Layala scrambled back as he moved forward like the dagger sticking out of his thigh didn’t bother him. More vines shot out of the ground, and they slammed into him but couldn’t penetrate, so she twisted them around his legs to at least hold him back long enough to let her get to her feet and run.
Get to the door, get to the door. The injury to her leg caused her to limp but didn’t slow her down much. She slammed into the castle’s side door, stumbled through, and crashed into Hel’s chest. “Hel,” she breathed. “You came.”
He caught her around the waist and steadied her. The flare in his eyes was pure panic. “Who was choking you? Who hurt you?”
Layala stared at him for a moment, then turned back to point but there was no one there. “He was… there, right there.” The mess of her broken vines was scattered all along the path, but the creature wasn’t trapped in them. There was no sign of him at all.
Table of Contents
- Page 1
- Page 2
- Page 3
- Page 4
- Page 5
- Page 6
- Page 7
- Page 8
- Page 9
- Page 10
- Page 11
- Page 12
- Page 13
- Page 14
- Page 15
- Page 16
- Page 17
- Page 18
- Page 19
- Page 20
- Page 21
- Page 22
- Page 23
- Page 24
- Page 25
- Page 26
- Page 27
- Page 28
- Page 29
- Page 30
- Page 31
- Page 32
- Page 33
- Page 34
- Page 35
- Page 36
- Page 37
- Page 38
- Page 39
- Page 40
- Page 41
- Page 42
- Page 43
- Page 44
- Page 45
- Page 46
- Page 47
- Page 48
- Page 49
- Page 50
- Page 51
- Page 52
- Page 53
- Page 54
- Page 55
- Page 56
- Page 57
- Page 58
- Page 59
- Page 60
- Page 61
- Page 62
- Page 63
- Page 64
- Page 65
- Page 66
- Page 67
- Page 68
- Page 69
- Page 70
- Page 71
- Page 72
- Page 73
- Page 74
- Page 75
- Page 76
- Page 77
- Page 78 (Reading here)
- Page 79
- Page 80
- Page 81
- Page 82
- Page 83
- Page 84
- Page 85
- Page 86
- Page 87
- Page 88
- Page 89
- Page 90
- Page 91
- Page 92
- Page 93
- Page 94
- Page 95
- Page 96
- Page 97
- Page 98
- Page 99
- Page 100
- Page 101
- Page 102
- Page 103
- Page 104
- Page 105
- Page 106
- Page 107
- Page 108
- Page 109
- Page 110
- Page 111
- Page 112
- Page 113
- Page 114
- Page 115
- Page 116
- Page 117
- Page 118
- Page 119
- Page 120
- Page 121
- Page 122
- Page 123
- Page 124
- Page 125
- Page 126
- Page 127
- Page 128
- Page 129
- Page 130
- Page 131
- Page 132
- Page 133
- Page 134
- Page 135
- Page 136
- Page 137
- Page 138
- Page 139
- Page 140
- Page 141
- Page 142
- Page 143
- Page 144
- Page 145
- Page 146
- Page 147
- Page 148
- Page 149
- Page 150
- Page 151
- Page 152
- Page 153
- Page 154
- Page 155
- Page 156
- Page 157
- Page 158
- Page 159
- Page 160
- Page 161
- Page 162
- Page 163
- Page 164
- Page 165
- Page 166
- Page 167
- Page 168
- Page 169
- Page 170