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“What did you do?” he demanded to the witch.

He stormed toward where she had retreated to her throne. He raised his sword high above his head, but before he could arc his swing downward, the witch flicked her wrist and ice shot out of the ground beneath his feet. Water sprung like a geyser to surround Caraway’s body. It only took seconds, and his sword was knocked from his hands. It clattered loudly to the ground.

“No!” Anise shouted. “Leave him alone.”

But the witch just laughed as the water slithered up Caraway’s body and turned to ice. His doe-eyed gaze flicked to Anise, and then to his fallen sword with a forlorn finality before he became completely encased—frozen.

Anise hissed at the witch. “No! I don’t agree to give him. Let him go.”

The witch clicked her tongue and then pouted. “Yes, you did agree.”

“He’s not mine to give,” Anise insisted.

“His heart is yours, therefore it is yours to give.”

Anise snarled and ran toward the throne, aiming for her dagger. The witch flicked her hand, and Anise went flying backward. She landed hard and skidded across the icy floor, groaning in pain. But if she couldn’t get close to the witch, how could she defeat her?

Gaining the ability to shift wasn’t worth Caraway’s life. It wasn’t worth his soul. She couldn’t do this to him. Groaning, Anise clutched her side where the ice had bruised. She rolled and faced the ground then tried to crawl away from the witch, but only managed to get to the base of Caraway’s icy tomb. She used the column to drag herself into a sitting position, then scowled at the witch.

“You tricked me,” she accused. “You never said it had to be another’s soul.”

“I saidasoul, dearie, notyoursoul. You clearly weren’t listening hard enough. How do you think you’ll gain the ability to shift? It has to come from somewhere.”

“Still, why his? Why not someone else’s?”

“Because he’s the only one who belongs to you. He’s the only one you have a right to give.” The witch's brows rose. “Don’t you see? My ability was stolen from me, but I took it back, plus more! You can finally be powerful. You can have them all whimpering at your feet. You can take what you want, just like they do.”

Anise squeezed her eyes and shook her head. When she opened them, her gaze landed on Caraway’s sword. Her mind blanked.

His sword.

Caraway had glanced at it before he’d frozen. Thinking back, it had been a purposeful glance.A message?

Take the weapon and use it.

But the sword was metal. Metal was forbidden because it halted the flow of mana through the earth, air, water, and through bodies of any fae. The sword would cut through any magic the witch threw Anise’s way. It would cut through the witch. But just as the thoughts formed in her head, Anise felt disappointment crush her breath. Guardians were the only fae alive who could use metal weapons, and not disrupt their own flow of mana. Anyone else would experience extreme pain when using it.

But… she wasn’t just anyone else.

She already had no mana. She couldn’t shift. There was nothing in her body for the sword’s metal to disrupt.

Caraway had known that. The look he’d given the swordwasa message.

Hope flared. Anise licked her lips and glanced at the witch. There was no way Anise could reach for the sword without the witch noticing. She would blast her with magic before Anise’s fingers closed around the hilt. She had to trick her. She had to take a hit and fall within the range. The sword wasn’t far, only a few feet to her right.

She steeled her resolve, hardened her gut, and growled before climbing to her feet, charging ahead but veering right. The witch threw out another hand of hard power. It knocked Anise senseless, and true to expectations, her body went flying backward again. The solid floor connected with Anise’s shoulder. She cried out in pain, but went sliding backward, right within reach of the sword.

“When will you learn, little she-wolf?” the witch snarled.

Anise clutched her middle and feigned crawling away. Her body almost shielded her from view. As she reached for the giant sword, she had a moment of clarity. Caraway had been right. She didn’t need the ability to shift. She was perfect the way she was. The very thing she’d cursed as lacking in her body was now the thing saving her life. It was all about perspective. No mana meant that when her fingers curled around the hilt of the magic-killing sword, she felt nothing but the overwhelming urge to protect what was hers.

She came to her feet, snarling and baring her teeth. Moving the sword to hold in two hands, she charged the dais using the sword as a shield. The witch tried to throw magic at Anise, but the sword cut it in half. The witch tried to send ice through the ground, like she had Caraway, but he’d been taken by surprise. Anise didn’t make the same mistake. She sliced and cut her way until she made it to the dais and launched up, taking the steps in two giant leaps. She aimed the tip of the sword straight forward and kept running as though carrying a lance. It pierced the witch through the heart, pinning her to her ice throne. Blood welled from the witch’s mouth and she tried to scream. Only a gurgle came out.

“I’ll learn when you’re dead,” Anise said and twisted the blade deep.

The witch’s last gaze was at the fae she’d first encased in the ice, and it was a look of longing and regret. The pain froze in her expression as the light left her eyes, and Anise knew she’d made the right decision. If she’d accepted the bargain, Anise would have lived a life as lonely as the witch’s. What were two hundred years if it was spent alone?

Sniffing, she wiped her nose on her sleeve, then yanked the sword out of the witch. The witch’s body slumped down the throne and tumbled to the ground. Then Anise set to chipping away Caraway’s tomb, praying to the Well that he would survive. It took long, drawn-out minutes, but she chipped enough for Caraway to break through. His big, powerful body exploded through the ice and he staggered to his knees with big, ragged breaths.