Page 43

Chapter 42

Scarlett

S he’d spent the entire day waiting to hear from Cyrus. They’d left immediately after she’d told them to go get Talwyn. Then she’d had to spend every moment since pretending like she hadn’t let them go on a mission to collect the Fae Queen. Granted, they’d slept for much of that time after the ball since it had lasted until nearly sunrise. Sleep hadn’t come easily though, her thoughts ?lled with the vengeance she was ?nally going to claim.

She was certain Razik had told Cethin where they were going, but her brother hadn’t said anything about it to her. Cethin had trained her as usual, Kailia and Sorin watching on. He’d gone easier on her in training and had told her to be sure and re?ll her reserves fully when they were done.

She hadn’t told Sorin. He had assumed Cyrus, Cass, and Razik had all slept in and then went to train in the Nightmist Mountain arena. She hadn’t bothered to tell him otherwise. She was done talking about this. If roles were reversed, Sorin would have already hunted down the person who had attempted to take her life. For as much grief as she gave him about being an overprotective pain in her ass, she was the same. It didn’t matter if it was the bond, being Avonleyan, or simply her demeanor.

Talwyn had come after what was hers, had killed her twin ?ame. The only acceptable penance for that was death.

Scarlett dreamed of it being slow and drawn out over days, but she knew that would not be how this played out. Talwyn would not see another day because the moment Sorin learned she was here, he would try to interfere. But Talwyn was the reason they were in this mess. She had handed the Courts over to Alaric. She had sent Sorin beyond the Veil, was the reason he was soon to be without his fire magic. She may not be the source of all their problems, but a good number of them could be traced back to her.

Cyrus had ?nally sent her a ?re message a few minutes ago when they’d crossed the Wards back into Avonleya. Razik had taken them to some barren place south of Aimonway until she was ready for her. And now she was standing in the center of the training arena waiting for them. It seemed right, that Talwyn would die on Avonleyan soil. The kingdom she sought revenge against would be the last place she ever saw.

The last thing she would ever see, however, would be Scarlett’s face as she watched the life leave her eyes.

Scarlett’s lips turned up in a wicked smile at the thought. Her shadows jumped under her skin, and she let them out. She had been trying to save every drop of magic for Talwyn, but her power was as anxious for this as she was. Its counterpart was being taken from it. Not just its source of power, but the answer to its songs. Sorin’s ?ames fed her star?re and shadows as much as he fed her soul.

The shadows twisted into two panthers that prowled impatiently around her, soft growls and snarls echoing to her in the arena. Rayner appeared a moment later. Cyrus must have sent him a message too. His swirling eyes met hers, and he nodded once before moving to the stone wall and leaning against it.

Razik arrived next, Eliza with him. He must have gone to collect the Fire General. The Fire Court assembling to watch justice be delivered on the one who had come for their Prince. Scarlett had brie?y considered offering to let them in on this revenge, but had dismissed the notion just as quickly. Talwyn’s death had been hers from the moment her power had slammed into Sorin’s chest. From the moment she had watched his eyes slowly go to her.

Had watched him try to ?ght his way to her.

Had watched him stagger before dropping to his knees.

I would still choose to stay in the darkness.

She closed her eyes, breathing deep to shove down the memories, but then stopped. There would be no more shoving them down. She let them wash over her, play on repeat in her mind. Feed her wrath.

Sorin trying to ?ght his way to her. A bolt of energy hitting his chest.

Him staggering before dropping to his knees. His golden eyes ?nding hers, slowly dimming.

Him lying on the beach while she curled over him. Sobbing into his ripped and bloodstained tunic.

His unmoving chest.

No heartbeat sounding beneath her ear.

Her twin ?ame Mark slowly fading from her hand.

I would still choose to stay in the darkness.

When she opened her eyes, she saw red.

Cyrus and Cassius were before her, and between them was Talwyn. It took every shred of self-control Scarlett possessed not to launch herself at the female.

Cyrus shoved Talwyn forward, and she fell to her knees at Scarlett’s feet, exactly as he’d promised.

Scarlett stared down at her. Her braid was barely holding together, large sections of hair having come free. They hung limp and tangled around her face. She wore her usual brown pants, and her white tunic was stained with dirt and grime. She smelled terrible, as if she hadn’t bathed in days, and the dark circles under her dull jade green eyes made Scarlett wonder when she’d slept last.

Scarlett hoped that when she did sleep, it was her that haunted her nightmares.

The two stared at each other, the silence thickening in the air with every passing second. Scarlett was trying to get her breathing under control, her chest tight and each breath labored as she soaked in this moment.

“Give her a sword,” Scarlett said, her voice eerily calm.

Talwyn said nothing, her mouth set in a thin line as she held Scarlett’s gaze from her knees.

Cassius brought a blade forward, handing it to Talwyn. The Fae Queen took it, holding it at her side, waiting for Scarlett.

“You took him from me,” Scarlett said, each word carefully controlled. “You sent him to ?nd me in the mortal lands, set this all into motion, and then you took him from me. When I kill you this night, I want you to know it is because I am better than you. In every godsdamn way. While you are toiling away in the Pits of Torment, I do not want you to think you could have won if only you’d had a weapon.”

Talwyn stared up at her, face as unreadable as always.

“You have nothing to say to me?” Scarlett demanded, her control beginning to slip. “After you attempted to take everything from me?”

“Nothing I have to say will change this outcome. You do not wish to hear excuses, and there is no justi?cation for what happened that night. I only wish to speak to Prince Briar before we do this,” Talwyn said, her chin lifting slightly.

“You do not get to ask anything of me,” Scarlett hissed. “You do not deserve a last request.”

“You are correct,” Talwyn conceded. “I do not deserve that, but it is not for me.”

Scarlett glanced at Cassius and Cyrus, who still stood a few feet behind Talwyn. They were not going to move until Scarlett was ready to end her.

“When we found her, she said she would come with us if she could speak to Briar before we delivered her to you. When we refused, that is when she fought. Or rather, ran. The High Witch gave us a potion to nullify her magic,” Cyrus explained.

“And do you have your magic back now?” Scarlett sneered, attention going back to Talwyn. “I do not want that to be your next excuse.”

“I do,” Talwyn answered, and Scarlett saw her ?ngers ?ex around the hilt of the sword she’d been given. “But if you let me speak to Briar ?rst, I will not ?ght you on this, Scar— Your Majesty.”

“Oh, Talwyn,” Scarlett crooned mockingly, letting her shadow panthers stalk closer, tendrils of darkness reaching out and sliding along Talwyn’s arms. She ?inched back when Scarlett let them bite. “I want you to ?ght. I want to revel in each drop of blood I draw from you. I want to feel it on my skin, bathe in it as I slowly draw your life from you. I want you to beg me to end it, and then I want you to thank me right before I send you to the Pits of Torment because it will be a reprieve from my wrath and a kindness you will never deserve.” She jerked her chin at the sword Talwyn held as she stepped back a few paces. “Get up.”

Her eyes ?icked to Cassius and Cyrus, who understood the silent command to give them space, but Talwyn remained on her knees. “I need to speak to Briar,” she said again.

“I am denying your request,” Scarlett snarled. “Get up.”

“Please, Sc—”

Her panthers snapped and snarled again, and Talwyn lurched up on instinct.

“Better,” Scarlett said, beginning to circle her.

“I will ?ght you. We can have this duel you desire and deserve,” she said, moving with Scarlett. “Just let me talk to Briar ?rst.”

“Briar will not save you,” Scarlett retorted sharply. “One would think you would want to speak to Azrael as your dying wish. Or did you simply use him like you used the rest of us?”

“Shut up,” Talwyn snapped, eyes ?ashing with the ?rst hint of emotion Scarlett had seen.

And she smiled savagely.

“Tell you what, your Majesty , if you manage to draw a single drop of blood from me, I will summon Briar here. You can speak with him before I end your miserable existence,” Scarlett said, twirling her sword once in her hand before taking an offensive stance.

A slight sneer curled on Talwyn’s lip. “You think I will not be able to land a single strike? You will win this, Scarlett , but if I ?ght, it will not simply be handed to you.”

“Good,” Scarlett purred.

Then she lunged, star?re ?aring down her sword. She felt the wind Talwyn threw at her, but Scarlett had been training with an Avonleyan King and a godsdamn dragon. Her shields hardly shuttered at the impact. Talwyn staggered back one step when their blades met, and Scarlett heard the breath she sucked in at the impact. Determination ?ared, and a wooden spear appeared in her other hand.

“That’s more like it,” Scarlett said, circling her once more.

“I need to speak with Briar,” Talwyn repeated, her tone hardening. “Was your education lacking? Do you not understand the meaning of the word no?” Scarlett asked sweetly, her shadow panthers reforming into snakes at her feet.

“It is not for me,” Talwyn spat, her eyes going to the writhing shadows on the ground. “It is for Ashtine.”

“Then tell me,” Scarlett replied. “I will relay the message.”

Talwyn shook her head, blocking Scarlett’s next strike. Scarlett’s sword sliced clean through her wooden spear.

“Only Briar,” Talwyn gritted out, her air magic managing to shove Scarlett back several feet. “I trust no one else to get this information to him. If I can right only one thing before my death, then it shall be this.”

“Then you will fail. Unless you can manage to draw blood,” Scarlett sneered again, her shadows looping around Talwyn’s ankle and yanking hard.

The Fae Queen went sprawling to the ground. Her sword skittered a few feet away.

An arrow of ice left Scarlett’s palm, grazing a shallow cut along Talwyn’s thigh. She hissed between her teeth, and Scarlett smiled tauntingly at her. “Must not be that important, hmm? Or do you simply fuck over and fail everyone in your life these days?”

Talwyn opened her mouth, clearly about to spout something back, but she snapped it closed just as quickly. She reached for her sword, getting back to her feet.

Talwyn lunged ?rst this time, and then it was all swords clanging and magic blocking. Scarlett slowly and steadily shredded through her shields. Talwyn’s wind and earth magic never even dented hers. But Scarlett was waiting for it. She was waiting for that crackling energy to make an appearance. Was mentally preparing herself to see it, face it.

Knew that would be her tipping point.

The moment that magic appeared, everything Scarlett was holding back would be unleashed.

Scarlett whirled, blocking Talwyn’s sword with one hand, the long knife in her other slicing deeply into Talwyn’s forearm.

Talwyn cried out sharply at the pain, but managed to keep her grip on her sword as Scarlett yanked her knife free. She felt a few drops of blood land on her cheeks, and her smile only grew at the feeling of them, warm and sticky.

Something was sliding along her legs, and she looked down to ?nd vines snaking up, as if Talwyn thought she could bind her. Scarlett met her eyes, her head tilting slightly as her shadow armor appeared, shadows clinging to her being as thorns appeared on Talwyn’s vines.

Scarlett tsked under her breath. “One would think you’d have been trained better, Talwyn. This is how you draw blood with vines.”

Talwyn’s cries of pain were indeed music to Scarlett’s ears.

Her shadow snakes slithered up Talwyn’s legs, fangs of razor-sharp ice biting into her skin as they went. They wound around her calves, her knees, her thighs, moved up her torso, blood welling and smearing along their path as they went.

They dissipated somewhere around her ribs, and Talwyn was left panting, her sword lowered at her side.

“Any time you want to start begging, I’m listening,” Scarlett said.

“Please let me speak to Briar,” Talwyn said from between her teeth, straightening as she spoke.

“No.”

Scarlett lunged again, and Talwyn barely got her sword raised in time to block her swing, another burst of wind slamming into Scarlett’s shield. It didn’t even faze her. She spun, landing a kick square in the center of Talwyn’s chest, and the female choked on a cough.

“Scarlett, please.”

Ah, there it was. The beginning of her song.

She bared her teeth, tossing her sword aside. Star?re ?ared in her palms, and she sent it at Talwyn, who was forced to dive out of the way. Her wind wouldn’t suck the air from those ?ames.

She was still on the ground as Scarlett advanced, prowling forward like the panthers that took form beside her once again. Talwyn dragged her sword up to block her. A panther snatched it in its large maw, wrenching it from her grip.

Talwyn scrambled to her feet just in time for Scarlett to land another kick to her stomach, knocking the air from her lungs.

“Please,” she gasped out, and Scarlett smiled wider at hearing her gasp for breath.

At hearing that word come from her lips again.

“You haven’t drawn blood yet, Talwyn,” she sneered. She was circling again. She knew she was playing with her. Talwyn knew it. The others standing silently around the arena knew it too.

Talwyn seemed to gather herself, swiping an arm along her brow. It left a trail of blood from where the knife had been embedded. “I do not want to do this,” she gritted out. “I only wish to speak with Briar.”

Scarlett couldn’t hold in her bark of laughter. “Do you think I give a fuck what you want , Talwyn?”

And that storm that had been brewing, that had almost been unleashed upon this world when she had thought Sorin had died, came to the surface and broke free.

Star?re slowly began winding up her legs, around her torso, her arms, knitting itself among her shadow armor. Her crown took shape atop her head, settling among her sweat-slick strands. The panthers at her sides fell back, merging behind her until her shadow dragon stood at her back. It let loose a roar, ?re spewing from its mouth and casting a circle of ?ames around them.

“If this world loses its freedom, it is because of you ,” Scarlett snarled, taking slow, deliberate steps towards Talwyn. “It is a mercy I offer this world to take you out of it. You have handed your people over to Alaric without a second thought in order to get into Avonleya. Well, here you stand, Talwyn. Everything you worked your entire life for. All for this.”

“I did not know—” she started.

“You did not want to know,” Scarlett sneered.

“You’re right,” Talwyn agreed quickly, backing up.

“You tried to take him from me,” Scarlett all but screamed. A shadow snapped from her palm, wrapping around Talwyn’s throat. Talwyn grappled at it, nails scratching along her neck, drawing her own blood.

“Tried?” Talwyn gasped, dropping to her knees.

That dark smile tilted on Scarlett’s lips again. She was a foot in front of her now, her hand coming out to grip her throat, relieving her shadows of the task of cutting off her air supply. Her ?ngers ?exed, digging into Talwyn’s windpipe, and the queen’s hand came back up, wrapping around Scarlett’s wrist.

Until she yanked it back when Scarlett let ?re ?are beneath Talwyn’s hand, burning her palm and ?ngers.

Scarlett tightened her grip, and Talwyn tried to suck in any amount of air. She found none.

Winds tore at her. Vines snapped out. Wooden stakes struck her shadow armor, burning away amid the star?re. The ground shook beneath her, opening up to swallow her down. Her shadows converged beneath her feet so she stood on a cloud of darkness, and at her feet was a dethroned queen on her knees.

Scarlett bent down so she could speak into her ear. “You failed at even that, Talwyn. Be glad I called him back from the Veil, or this entire world would be ash. Your Courts. My Courts. The stars themselves. They were spared my wrath so that I could bestow it all upon you.”

Star?re crept down her hand, inching closer to Talwyn’s throat, and the female’s eyes went even wider, tears glimmering.

Scarlett! Stop!

She jolted at the sound of his voice in her head, slamming her shields up to keep him out. But then there was a hand on her arm, a curse sounding as star?re burned skin. She jerked her arm back, releasing Talwyn’s throat, to ?nd Sorin beside her.

“Love,” he said softly, placatingly. Scarlett tried to look away from him, but he moved to stay in her line of vision. “Here, Scarlett. Keep your eyes right here.”

The tempest under her skin howled for release, for the death that was her’s to claim, for the kill that was being denied her.

A sad smile formed on his lips. “I know, Scarlett. I feel it all.” He reached out, cupping her jaw. “You are better than this, my Love.”

“No, Sorin,” she replied, hurt coiling through her. “I’m really not.”

“Scarlett,” he tried as she stepped away from his touch. She was trying to hold back her emotions, conceal them from the bond, but she was feeling too much right now.

She looked down at Talwyn where she was sucking in lungfuls of air on her hands and knees. The former Fae Queen looked up at her, tears cutting trails down her face. “Understand that the mercy you are receiving right now is not mine but his. You do not deserve it, and your death is still mine. You will not return to the continent. You do not have a throne. You are not a queen. You are nothing, and when I kill you, it will be a stain on my soul that I will celebrate with every breath I take.”

Talwyn swallowed, wincing as she did so. Scarlett held her stare a moment longer before her jade irises darted to the side, relief ?lling them. Scarlett turned to see what she thought she’d found salvation in to ?nd Prince Azrael and Prince Briar, along with Cethin and Kailia, standing behind them. Briar had doused the circle of ?ames that her shadow dragon had built around them, the ?re hissing as it went out.

Azrael was staring at Talwyn, more emotion on his face than Scarlett had ever witnessed, but he did not go to her. He stood here. On this side with her.

Briar’s icy blue eyes went from distaste to pity when they moved from Talwyn to Scarlett. “I stand behind whatever you decide to do, Scarlett,” he said gently.

“Briar, wait,” Talwyn rasped.

Scarlett could see her trying to stand out of the corner of her eye, but she collapsed down again, crawling forward a few feet instead.

Scarlett turned away. She couldn’t stand to look at the female. Couldn’t stand to see her alive, breathing, moving. Sorin’s stare was boring into her, and she let him feel all of it. Let him feel what he was doing to her to deny her this.

“It’s Ashtine,” Talwyn gasped, and Briar went preternaturally still.

Scarlett watched the Water Prince, waiting for Talwyn to say whatever it was she so desperately needed to tell him.

“Alaric is going to take her. He wishes to enter the Water Prison. To free the Sorceress.”

“Ashtine cannot grant entry into the Water Prison,” Briar said coldly, still not moving.

“She is with child,” Talwyn said amid her labored breathing. “Twins. One has water magic. I have seen her use it. Abrax has been protecting her. I have been keeping her location a secret, but they know. They know where she is, Briar.”

Briar’s dark skin had paled, and Scarlett knew what was coming before the words left his mouth.

“Get me out of the Wards,” Briar said, turning to face her.

“She could be lying,” Scarlett said listlessly. “That is what she does.”

“Not about Ashtine,” Azrael said, his muddy brown eyes studying Talwyn carefully.

“I do not give a fuck if she is,” Briar said. “I need to see her. Need to know for sure.”

“We do not know where she is,” Scarlett replied in the same monotone as before.

“The Southern Islands,” Talwyn supplied, her breathing getting steadier. “She is hiding in some enchanted cliffs in the Southern Islands. She said when the time came for Briar to come to her to ask the Ash Riders how to ?nd her.”

Scarlett’s gaze lifted to Kailia, whose amber eyes were wide with horror, terror seeping from her so thick, Scarlett could feel it. She turned to ?nd Rayner with a look of dread on his face.

“Anything else?” Cethin asked sharply, an arm coming around Kailia and drawing her into his side. She moved as if she were a doll, her movements not her own.

“I... ”

Scarlett closed her eyes, the mere sound of her voice grating on her very bones.

“I am glad you still breathe, Sorin,” Talwyn ?nished.

And the sound of his name on her lips? That was all she could take. Scarlett stepped through the air, away from it all.

She felt him before she saw him. It was a bittersweet thing. She didn’t want to speak to him right now, but her days of feeling him this way, of being able to ?nd each other with their bond, were quickly coming to an end.

She was lying on her back on grass that was too soft. The sun had set, the stars looking back at her. This was the only place she could think of to come. The only place she had been that was open enough to breathe. She had momentarily contemplated trying to enter the country estate just to see what it would have been like, but she hadn’t wanted to deal with the guards. She needed some place to think and breathe and feel all of it away from the rest of the world, even if only for a few minutes before she went back to deal with everything Talwyn had dropped on them.

He sat down beside her, resting his elbows on his knees, not saying anything for a long time. He was waiting for her. She knew that. He always waited for her, let her gather herself, which is why she was surprised when he spoke ?rst.

“I know we need to talk about... all of that, but you either need to come talk to Briar or give me some blood so Razik can take him to the Water Court.”

She sighed deeply. She knew that. Briar was likely freezing and drowning anyone who looked at him the wrong way right now. She had never seen him lose his temper. Had never really seen him angry actually. But if what Talwyn had said was true, then the princess he loved was carrying his children, and they were all in danger.

“Do you believe her?” she asked.

“It does not matter. Briar will not rest until he lays eyes on Ashtine. You cannot stop him, and you need to do this, Scarlett. He has always stood beside you. You cannot deny him this,” Sorin replied.

“He cannot go back without a plan.”

“Apparently that is what we do now,” he said tightly. “Send our family and allies across the sea without proper planning.”

“If you came to reprimand me for letting Cyrus and Cass go get her , you can leave now,” she retorted. “How did you get here anyway?”

“Cethin Traveled me.”

She tsked. “Of course he did.”

“Scarlett, we will have this conversation, but it is time to be a queen. We can have it out later. You need to be there for your Court right now. You need to be there for Briar. Both as his queen and as his friend.”

He was right. She knew that. She’d just needed a minute to breathe, but she’d left Briar to suffocate. Sorin was right to call her out on this.

“Where is everyone?”

“At the castle.”

She didn’t reply. Just grabbed his hand and Traveled them back to her suite in the castle. She was already reaching for the door when an arm reached over the top of her, holding it shut. She turned to snap something at him, but he had her back against the door in the next moment, ?ngers gripping her chin and tilting her face up to his.

“All the way through the darkness, Scarlett. Even when you do not want to look at me.”

“Stop it. I hate it when you’re sweet when I’m cranky and angry,” she hissed, irritated by the soft look he was giving her.

He huffed a laugh, bending down to press a kiss to her cheek before he released her. She stepped away, and he opened the door for her. His hand settled on her lower back, and she ground her molars at the bond soothing her anger. She wanted to be mad at him right now, damn it.

He led her down to the same lounge she’d met Tybalt in, her Court along with Cethin, Kailia, and Razik scattered throughout. As soon as she came through the door, Briar was before her.

“Take me to the Water Court now, Scarlett,” he demanded, something crazed in his eyes that had Scarlett stepping into Sorin.

“We will take you, my friend,” Sorin said, clamping a hand onto his shoulder. “We need a plan ?rst. Not having one will only put her in more danger.”

Briar jerked back, stalking a few steps away before turning back to face them. “We know where she is. The Southern Islands.”

“That as far as we know have been uninhabited for centuries,” Sorin countered. “No one goes there, Briar. You know why.”

“Sorin!” Briar snapped, and that was frost left in his wake as he began to pace in front of them. That was ice creeping across the ?oor, the temperature of the room dropping so quickly, Scarlett’s breath was a puff in front of her. She used her own ice magic to counter his, the memory of him doing this when she ?rst arrived at the Fire Court ?itting through her mind.

“I get it, Briar. When we went to Baylorin to get Scarlett months ago, I knew where she was. I knew who had her. I had to sit on my ass and wait, not knowing what was being done to her. Fearing the worst. Nothing about it was easy, but if I had gone in without a plan, I can almost guarantee we would not be standing here today,” Sorin replied. He somehow sounded both like a king taking control and a friend concerned for a fellow prince, but he got through to Briar, the Water Prince nodding once before moving to a spot before the window.

Scarlett cleared her throat, still ?ghting to balance out Briar’s magic. “Where is she?”

She couldn’t bring herself to say her name.

“I had her escorted to our cells,” Cethin answered. “I have four guards watching her, and she is in nightstone manacles.”

“Nightstone? Not shirastone?” Scarlett asked.

Cethin shook his head. He was on one of the sofas, Kailia tucked in beside him. Her features were still as ashen as her power. Cethin was tense beside her, a protective arm around her, his ?ngers making soothing strokes up and down her arm. “We only have nightstone. It is stronger than shirastone. Dragon ?re and star?re can melt through shirastone.”

“Did she say anything else?”

“No,” Sorin answered, nudging her towards an armchair.

“I can go talk to her,” Azrael said. He was standing off to the side, arms crossed.

Scarlett arched a brow as she lowered into the chair.

“She will talk to me. Out of everyone here, she will talk to me. I can take another Blood Vow if you need me—”

Scarlett waved her hand, cutting him off. “I trust you, Azrael. It is her I do not trust.”

“I will get information for you and report back every word she says,” he promised, arms falling to his sides.

“And you will tell her nothing of our plans and knowledge.”

He nodded in understanding, and Scarlett jerked her chin, -dismissing him to do just that. Orson was summoned to take him to the cells.

Then her gaze fell on Rayner. He was leaning against the far wall, arms folded across his chest, swirling eyes already on her. She held his gaze because this was something she’d been avoiding, but now it needed to be addressed.

“I need to know, Rayner.”

His eyes fell closed, head tipping back against the wall. Scarlett glanced at Kailia, who had stiffened next to Cethin. He was murmuring low into her ear. When Scarlett looked back at Rayner, he was looking at her again.

“The islands were set up by Deimas centuries ago. He used them to essentially breed more powerful beings,” he said.

“That is where you are from?” Scarlett asked softly.

“That is where I was born.”

“What happened to them?”

A smile as wicked as any Wraith of Death ?lled his face, dark and terrifying. “I did.”