Page 20 of Broken Hearted (Cursed Fae #3)

W e reached Elisana’s hometown by nightfall and Adrien sent his spies out into the village to learn what they could about my sister. Because this was a village of strictly women, they had to stay cloaked in shadows and only listen at the open windows of houses or taverns. Adrien and I began to stack ourselves with weapons as we awaited word from them. It was late and I was exhausted, but there was no way I was waiting even one more moment to learn the fate of my beloved sister.

“Adrien, I want you to know something,” I told him as I strapped a sword to my waist. He peered at me quizzically.

“I’m not sure of the laws of this land, but if Elisana has harmed a single hair on my sister’s head, I will kill her. Consequences be damned.”

He gave me a half-cocked grin that made my stomach flip. “Oh, Isolde, I’ll give you a full pardon to murder the blood witch, but you’ll have to get her before I do.”

I grinned. Okay, I guess that wasn’t going to be an issue. Now I just had to find the woman.

The sound of crunching rocks pulled our attention to the right and I formed an icicle in my palm but dropped it to the ground when I recognized one of Adrien’s men dressed in all black.

He bowed, pulling back the black hood that kept him hidden in the dark night. I recognized him as Eldon, one of Adrien’s most loyal. He was a master of his craft and seemed to take this mission very seriously, which I appreciated.

“My lord, lady.” He rose from his bow. “I’ve found your sister. She’s alive but is being kept from using her power.”

My heart flipped over at the way he said she was being kept from using her power.

“How is she being kept from using her power?”

Eldon sighed. “She’s got a dampener rune on, my lady.”

Damn those stupid runes. I hated them.

I began to pace as my mind ran wild with thoughts.

“How many guard my sister’s room?” I asked him, rolling out my neck and readying my magic. I’d freeze the witch solid within seconds.

He chewed on his bottom lip. “Just Elisana.”

I cocked my head to the side to make sure I’d heard him correctly. “Inside, but at the door? The back gate? The end of the street? How many total?”

He shook his head. “It’s just her and … the windows and doors are wide open. It’s like she wants you to find her.”

Adrien let a curse word fly and I frowned. “Why is that bad? It’s just her and she wants me to come, so good. Let’s go.” I started forward and Adrien’s hand snaked out and grasped my upper arm.

“Isolde, she knows how powerful both you and I are. If she’s alone it’s because she has something over your sister that is bad. This is a trap.”

It felt like he’d poured ice water down my veins. I wanted to argue, but Adrien was right. This probably was a trap. Elisana, despite all of her many faults, was not a stupid woman. She wasn’t going to just leave herself open to harm.

“Elisana is cunning. She took your sister for a reason. She has to know we’re coming for her and my guess is she’s going to use your sister against us.”

Dread crept into my heart. What could she have over my sister? She’d already rendered her powerless.

Adrien laid a hand on my shoulder and when I glanced up into his eyes, they were alight with compassion. “Let’s go and find out what she wants.”

I chewed my lip. “You just want to walk in there and ask her ?”

He nodded, slipping his hand into mine. “I fear that if we go in hot, Seraphina will die.”

Those three words, Seraphina will die , were the most terrifying words I’d ever heard in my life.

“Let me lead, okay?” he asked.

I’d been shocked into submission; so scared of losing my sister, I simply nodded.

How did this happen? How did we get here? At that moment my little sister was a hostage in Ethereum at the hands of a blood witch. I had enough on my plate, like stopping the curse that was ravaging both of our worlds. I didn’t want to deal with this as well.

But I would. I had to. For Seraphina.

“That’s not all,” Eldon said, and from the sound of his voice I knew it was more bad news. “There wasn’t a male in sight and from looking through the windows, most of the spies reported seeing cauldrons, herbs, wands, crystals and other dark magic items.”

“So it’s as I feared,” Adrien said with a frown. “We are in a coven of witches.”

“It looks to be that way,” the spy said with a grim look on his face.

Panic clawed at my chest. Adrien squeezed my hand, his gaze conveying to me that we were in this together. It didn’t take away my fear, but it did give me hope.

Eldon led us down the cobblestone road and through the quaint northern village. I wondered if the black waters would soon swallow this place too but tried to just focus on my sister.

“Adrien, I can freeze the woman solid in a moment. Just distract her for ten seconds. That’s all I need.”

Adrien shook his head. “I have a bad feeling that she’s expecting that. She’s very cunning.”

Anger roared to life inside of me. I just wanted to kill this woman. Adrien said by his own admission that he wanted her dead too, but now he was telling me to wait?

Reading the anger on my face, Adrien squeezed my hand again. “Trust me, please,” he quietly begged.

He was asking a lot, but the look on his face told me he knew that. I had to take several slow breaths to regain control over my emotions, but I finally gave him a small curt nod. I wouldn’t kill her right away. I would trust him.

The corners of his mouth turned up in a sad smile of acknowledgement and he swiped his thumb gently over the back of my hand.

When we reached the small brick house with the porch light on and the door cracked open, Eldon slithered into the shadows, seemingly to watch from elsewhere.

Adrien gave me one final glance and then walked up to the open door and knocked on the frame. “Elisana,” he called. His voice was calm, but I heard the hatred in her name.

“My darling,” came an excited reply as the door was yanked open.

Elisana looked better than ever. She was wearing a pastel pink dress with her hair curled in waves over one shoulder and a full face of make-up.

And I immediately wanted to murder her.

Forget Adrien’s weird feeling and stupid plan. Instead of freezing her solid, I decided I wanted to see her suffer. With a flick of my wrist I shot a serrated icicle into her left shoulder. She cried out in pain, falling back against the open door, but then another scream rose up deeper in the house. One I recognized.

Seraphina!

Elisana ripped the icicle out with a grunt, and it clattered to the floor just as I rushed past her and to the sound of my wailing sister. I passed through a sitting room and into a larger living area where my Seraphina was sitting on the couch, holding her shoulder, blood pouring from a wound.

No .

“Sera!” I ran to her, frantically trying to assess what had happened, but there was no weapon, just an open puckered hole in her left shoulder, right where I’d struck Elisana.

How?

Elisana clicked her tongue behind me, and I looked over my shoulder to see her enter the room with Adrien behind her. “Naughty, Isolde. You hurt your dear sissy.”

I felt absolutely feral as I glared at the blood witch. There were dried herbs and crystals and small bowls littering the coffee table and I knew at that moment that she’d done something, forced my sister to drink one of her vile potions.

“What did you do?” I growled.

Elisana grinned. “My best spell yet. Little Seraphina and I are soultied. Now any harm that comes to me will be transferred straight to her.” She peeled her torn sleeve down to show me that her shoulder was unharmed.

No. That wasn’t possible.

I looked back at my sister who was whimpering in pain, and at the bloody hole in her shoulder. Knowing I caused that made me sick.

Adrien was right. Elisana was cunning and she knew what she was doing. Had I frozen her solid as I’d planned to, my sister would be dead.

“What do you want?” Adrien asked, his voice held a false kindness, one you used on an animal you were scared of that you didn’t want to spook.

Elisana looked at him and I could see the envy in her gaze. “I want my fiancé back. I want you . Isolde kidnapped you from our wedding, and she’s not even behind bars.” She growled the last part, shooting me a scathing look that bounced right off me.

Seraphina leaned into me and I reached out and held her hand, squeezing it, knowing we couldn’t speak freely here.

Elisana walked over to the table where there was a small cup of brown tea and my stomach clenched. “Adrien, darling, you’ve been without your tea for too long.” She picked it up and I stood.

“No!” I shouted but Adrien caught my gaze, and I paused. There was something in that gaze that told me to trust him.

“Yes, I’ve been sleeping horribly,” he told her. “If I drink this tea you’ll let them both go? Seraphina and Isolde?”

Elisana glared at us. “Of course. I don’t want them to stay here a moment longer than they have to. Look what she’s driven me to do to protect myself,” she said as she handed him the cup, giving me her back.

“Adrien, no,” I whimpered.

We couldn’t do this again: not the tea. I wanted to knock that cursed cup to the floor and watch it shatter.

Adrien took the cup and looked past Elisana right at me. His gaze was filled with sorrow and longing.

“Now drink up and let’s get these unwanted houseguests out of here. Mother is on her way back to town and she’s so excited to meet you.”

I bit my lip, as silent tears fell from my eyes and down my cheeks. I shook my head, silently begging him not to do this, but also knowing he had no choice. If I hurt Elisana, I hurt my sister. If Elisana flew into a rage and tried to hurt Adrien, myself or Seraphina, then I couldn’t protect us because I wouldn’t be able to retaliate. I was stuck.

With slightly shaky hands, Adrien upended the cup and chugged the whole thing down in one go. I had to suppress the sob in my chest.

I tugged my sister’s arm, forcing her to stand with me. I had to get her out of here soon or she might bleed to death, but I couldn’t leave Adrien. How could I leave him with her?

A slightly glassy look came over Adrien, and he leaned forward and pulled Elisana into his arms. Seeing her in his embrace made my stomach roil and I almost rushed forward and ripped them apart, but then Adrien looked over Elisana’s shoulder and stared directly at me, clarity shining from his eyes.

“I love you,” he said, and my heart hammered in my chest. It felt like the world around us stopped as we stared at each other.

He was looking right at me when he said it.

The words hung in the air between us like the beautiful rose-gold shimmers that appeared when we kissed, but then Elisana’s grating laughter pierced the moment, shattering it.

“I love you, too,” she told him. “I’ve missed you.”

But he was holding my gaze. I knew then without a shadow of a doubt that he was talking to me, not her.

Did the tea not work this time? Was he fighting it?

“ Go ,” he mouthed.

I was torn, but then my sister sagged next to me and I glanced over to see her face was a deathly shade of white. I had to get her to safety and get help. The only person I could think of was Dawn.

Elisana pulled away from Adrien and turned to face me with venom in her gaze. “Get out. You’ve overstayed your welcome.” Reaching into the folds of her skirt she pulled out a small wand. A glowing rune danced at the tip, ready to be cast.

Throwing my sister’s arm over my neck, I yanked her forward, holding her shoulder as we ran out of that house so fast I almost tripped and fell on my face.