by Lily Archer
“Can I convince you to let us go?” I try not to sniffle.
She turns her head sharply like an owl. No one’s head should be able to turn that far. “What can you give me?”
“I … What do you want?”
“Making a deal in the realms isn’t a good idea, young one. Promises here mean more, cost more, last longer. Forever.” She turns back to her cauldron.
Her words raise something in my memory, something I can’t quite see or recall.
“I asked you what you want.”
“Compelled, young one.” She pulls at her white hair. “Compelled. No bargaining. Nothing can stop the king beyond the mountain. I will kill the king of the winter realm. And then, young one, I may kill you, too. You were foretold, but I have no use for prophecy.” She waves a black hand. “Not in my cave, in the dark, with all my lovely, lovely bones. Yours would look lovely in there, too.”
A shudder wracks my body as I struggle to find something, anything to bargain with. “What do you mean I was foretold?”
“Doesn’t matter. Kill the king, kill the king,” she says in a sing-song. “Kill the—” Her head turns almost completely around as she stares at some spot in the woods behind me, and a vicious smile spreads across her face. “And here he is at my doorstep.” Her sharp teeth snap.
“Taylor!” Leander yells for me, concern vibrating through the notes.
“Leander, run!” I scream until that cold hand slaps over my mouth once more.
The witch disappears in a plume of black, and seconds later I hear Leander’s agonizing yell. It rakes down the sides of my soul, drawing blood from a place inside me I didn’t know existed. I have to get to him, to help him somehow.
But I’m trapped by the witch, my body unable to heed my commands to move, to run.
Another roar rips through the silent woods, and I know—somehow I know—that he is badly injured. Tears roll down my cheeks as I try to free myself, but all I can feel is the witch’s cold hands holding me still as she cackles in the dark.
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About the Author
Lily Archer believes in fairies, mermaids, and fierce fae warriors. Armed with nothing more than her imagination and a well-worn MacBook, she intends to slay the darkest beasts of the fantasy worlds and create true love where none seemed possible.
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