Page 74 of When the Wicked Sing (The Leruna Sea #1)

Aurora’s body was taut, waiting for the next attack as they rounded the corner. Glancing down the long hallway, she gripped the knife in one hand and Luna’s hand in the other.

She had to get her niece out alive. Find Cybele and the others. Get to Mariana.

Simple , she assured herself. Then she scowled when doubt in the back of her mind whispered darkly, Liar .

Killing Jocasta had done something to her, made her feel things she hadn’t felt since before the Banishment.

Fear. Dread. Hatred.

As her anxiety continued to spike, she struggled to keep herself calm, gripping Luna’s hand so hard, she heard her gasp. Releasing the hand, Aurora gave her an apologetic glance before focusing on how to get into the throne room without being caught.

Strapped to her waist were several knives from the kitchen. If all went according to plan, she could get inside, disable the guards, and arm the rest of her sisters. Together, they could fight their way out .

If only she could get her hands to stop trembling.

Cora, their healer, explained that when she felt this way, it meant she was suffering from an anxiety disorder caused by traumatic events.

The very idea that she was inducing self-punishment after all she did as the Scarlet Serpent made her want to laugh.

She’d never felt regret for what she’d done.

She’d followed her queen’s orders, killed the target, then went on her way.

That wasn’t the cause for whatever was happening to her. It was ridiculous.

Calm down , she coaxed herself silently, as though that would help in some way. When that didn’t work, she chose the only available route: she ignored it.

“Luna, I want you to take this,” she said as she handed her a knife, doing her best to keep it from trembling.

Luna’s eyes went wide, and she pulled her hand away. “No, no way.”

“Luna,” Aurora warned, and she watched her niece shake her head vehemently.

Fine.

Strapping the knife back to her waist, she gripped Luna’s arm and stared her dead in the eyes. “You have to have my back, do you understand that? If someone comes up from behind, I need you to warn me.”

Luna gulped, looking like a frightened youngling despite them being nearly the same age.

They just lived very different lives. Astra had never believed in war, only peace, and refused to make her daughter a fighter.

Aurora doubted Luna had ever held a weapon with the intention to use it, especially against fellow sirens, cursed or not .

“Okay,” Luna whispered.

The deafening sound of Aurora’s heartbeat made it difficult to hear her reply, but she had to trust her only ally. Without another word, they both swam as silently as possible through the darkened corridor that would lead them to the throne room.

As the stained glass double doors came into view, she heard two familiar, slithering, snake-like voices.

Aurora and Luna paused as they spotted the two serpents guarding the doors. Their beady red eyes had excellent vision, and their whirling, black and silver-scaled bodies were coated in an oily substance that made them extremely difficult to fight.

Originally deemed pests for eating the bioluminescent flora in their gardens, the serpents had proved a challenge for the sirens, who had tried in vain to repel the invasive creatures.

However, a turning point arrived when the Siren Witch utilized her dark magic to communicate with the serpents.

She’d discovered their true preference for bloody flesh, akin to the cursed sirens afflicted by the Scourge, who supposedly ate the mortals they stole souls from during the culling.

This understanding formed an unlikely alliance between the beasts and the witch.

She used that alliance to save the gardens and gained formidable companions, whom she called her pets.

As Aurora pushed past Luna to peer out a window overlooking the gardens, her heart sank at the sight of engulfing darkness, confirming her suspicions. The witch was indifferent to preserving the luminescent flora; her only interest lay in manipulating the serpents to fulfill her demands.

Cursing softly, Aurora tried thinking of a way to lure the serpents away from the doors without the glowing flora .

Her stomach churned as an idea came to her.

She turned to Luna. “I have a plan.” She grimaced. “But you’re going to hate it.”

Luna winced. “Will it work?”

Aurora nodded reluctantly.

“Okay,” she sighed. “Let’s just get it over with.”

Moving quickly, Aurora went back to the kitchens and tried not to gag as she picked up Jocasta’s severed arm. She swam back toward Luna, who awaited her in the servant’s hall next to the throne room doors.

“Oh my Goddess,” Luna gasped, covering her mouth and turning away from the gore Aurora dropped beside them.

“Quiet,” Aurora whispered. “Go wait over there,” she ordered, pointing toward a hidden alcove.

Luna moved into position as Aurora dragged her knife across her arm.

Scarlet blood leaked into the water, swirling gently along the current flowing through the palace halls.

The cut sealed quickly, then she gripped the knife and turned her attention to the open door leading out to where the serpents lurked.

Unable to ignore the sultry taste of fresh blood in the water, she heard them hiss before the first one bolted in her direction.

Fast as lightning, she drove her knife into the serpent’s head just as it sank its teeth into Jocasta’s severed arm. The blade crunched through bone into its brain, killing it instantly.

She yanked the knife free just as the second serpent speared through the water at her, teeth bared and ready to strike.

Instincts brought her knife up in time to catch the serpent’s mouth, its teeth digging into her hand.

She used the knife trapped in its throat to slam it to the ground.

Trapping it with her body, she yanked the knife free, shredding her hand against the creature’s sharp teeth, and sliced open its stomach.

It jerked, and its red eyes went wide before it fell still.

Breathing hard, Aurora pulled the blade from the slimy flesh and grimaced as her hand began to heal.

Luna rushed over to her. “Are you okay?”

Aurora nodded. “I’m fine. We have to go before more come.”

Together, they made it to the throne room doors and peeked through the thick, colorful glass.

The Siren Witch, crowned in her signature headdress, stared ahead with a smile. The crowd gawked at whatever she was saying.

“We have to get in there,” Aurora murmured and slowly pushed the doors open.

“You all are so important to me, and now that our dear Mariana and Cybele are no longer with us—”

What did she just say?

“No.” Aurora shot forward, her chest caving in. “No!”

Before she could get close enough to slam her knife into the witch’s black heart, two grotesque creatures snatched her arms, making it impossible for her to move.

The witch—she had betrayed them. She was the one who had poisoned Astra and Cybele.

“Ahh! Aurora, what a pleasure for you to join us.” The witch swam closer, a devilish smile on her face.

Aurora’s eyes caught on the amulet hanging around her neck, its glow pulsing with energy.

“I was just informing our sisters that Mariana and Cybele have met a very unfortunate end. But never fear, we shall remember them and honor their memory by restoring Sirenia. Together.”

Aurora screamed in fury, thrashing violently as her soul cried out. “What did you do to them?!” she roared.

The witch gave her a sad smile. Aurora didn’t buy it, seeing the cruel intention hidden beneath.

“They’re gone, Aurora. Mariana couldn’t handle the guilt she felt at having killed Astra.

I offered her a warrior’s death as a way out.

She took it willingly, and Cybele died in the battle, trying to stop her. ”

Aurora snarled, “Liar!”

“My mother … My mother is dead?” Luna whimpered from her position near the doors. “Mariana killed her?”

The Siren Witch’s expression morphed into pure grief, confusing Aurora. Swimming slowly to her side, the witch settled her clawed hands on Luna’s shoulders.

“Yes, my dear. I’m so sorry. My heart breaks at the thought, but Mariana did the only thing she knew to be right. Which was to die after what she’d done.”

Luna began to sob. Deep, racking sobs that made Aurora’s throat tighten.

“She didn’t mean to.” Aurora’s voice was thick; she was barely able to get the words out. “Mariana loved Astra. She wanted to bring her home to you, but the witch—”

“Did what had to be done to avenge Astra’s death. It was the only way. Mariana knew it.”

“No,” Aurora stated firmly, glaring at the witch, who pulled Luna close to her, not sparing Aurora a glance. “You’re twisting the truth. Luna, don’t listen to her. ”

The witch gently hushed Luna’s cries, rocking her back and forth, all while smiling smugly at Aurora. “You’re alright, my dear. You’ll be alright. We’ll get through this together. In Sirenia.”

“Sirenia?” Luna whispered, pulling back to look up at the witch.

“Yes,” the witch crooned. “That’s where we’ll start a new life. One where no one can hurt us ever again.” She brushed back Luna’s unruly moonlight hair.

Aurora couldn’t take it anymore. “Stop, just stop.” She shook her head as the witch’s eyes narrowed on her. “Everyone here knows you’re full of shit.”

“That is a very unkind thing to say, Aurora.” The witch let go of Luna after caressing her cheek, then swam back to where Aurora was trapped between the revolting creatures that the witch must’ve summoned with the amulet.

“You know, it was heartbreaking to watch what Cybele did to you all those years as her slave assassin . To watch you slowly wither away into this , a sliver of your former self, dying with each kill until you were nothing but a husk of who you were. I remember who you were before. The sweet, golden child the queen so desperately wished had been born with the power of the sea. But alas, she couldn’t make you her heir, so she exploited your skills to do her bidding.

It was tragic, and I wished for it to be different. ”

The witch gripped Aurora’s jaw tight. She gasped in pain as the tips of the witch’s claws dug deep into her face. She could feel something leaking from them, slithering into her bloodstream .

Aurora struggled, trying desperately to break free as the sounds of her sisters screaming for her became muffle.

“I didn’t want it to be this way, but after everything you’ve done, you will die a weak, incapable failure. As it should be.”

The witch let her go, as did the creatures holding her. As she drifted to the floor, the world fading away, she couldn’t help but think that everything the witch said was true.

And it broke her heart.