Betrothed

by Lola White

  Eliasz caught Ileana against him, quickly pushing her behind his back. She clutched at him, her fingers ripping at his shirt, twisting it as she fought to get past him.

  Vasile caught his father before he could reach the Davenold female. Their chests thudded with the force of their meeting and Eliasz realized how similar their builds were, in spite of the twenty-year difference between them. Alexandru was still strong, and stronger still in his rage.

  With the full power of the Lovasz Coven at his command.

  Silver light blasted into Vasile, lighting him up, illuminating him from within. Vasile shuddered—Eliasz swore he heard the man’s bones rattle. Alexandru sank another wave of power into his son and Vasile flew backward.

  He landed on the grass with a breathless groan, rolling over the small lawn. A low stone bench stopped his progress with a sickening sound. Vasile’s eyes slid closed.

  Georgie ran up to Alexandru and punched him in the face. He struck her back. Her head snapped to the left, her cheek already glowing with a red handprint. Eliasz pulled from Ileana’s grip and hurtled forward.

  He grabbed Alexandru from behind, pulling the old man away from the Davenold heir. The look in Georgie’s eyes was as frightening as the old man’s temper. Eliasz didn’t know who to protect from whom until Alexandru sent a stinging bolt of magic his way. Eliasz decided he was ready to let Georgie hack the Lovasz Father into little pieces.

  Eliasz was holding the old man tightly, shuddering under his magic, helpless to intervene when Ileana, finally free from the protection of the men, threw herself into the fight. She moved to stand at Georgie’s side like a fearless Amazon, chest heaving, long hair shining with blue and silver highlights, whipping in the magic’s breeze.

  “Stop, Grandfather! You can’t do this at the Levy house.”

  “Move, girl, I’ll kill her! Like I expected her Family to do years ago.”

  “Fuck you!” Georgie screamed, provoking Alexandru into greater rage.

  “No!” Ileana lifted her hands, eyes wide as she stepped in front of Georgie. “You can’t do this. Please stop.”

  “She’s not fit to marry a Lovasz!”

  “This isn’t the place, Grandfather. Please, please calm down.”

  Eliasz still held him, one arm around the old man’s shoulders, his chest pressed against Alexandru’s back. Eliasz was rigid, pride in his betrothed and fear for Silviu’s adding to his determination. But it was no use. He heard Alexandru give a disbelieving snort, then silver light rolled across the ground.

  Ileana was swept off her feet.

  Roaring his rage, Eliasz shoved Alexandru away from him, not caring in the least when he stumbled. He vaulted the old man as Alexandru bent, trying to regain his balance, arms wheeling. Eliasz was reaching for Ileana when her eyes slid past him and bulged. Her scream filled his ears as silver filled his vision.

  Lightning struck deep in his spine and tore him apart.

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Ileana

  Eliasz’s spine bent back, his head nearly touching the overgrown grass. Terror seizing her in an icy grip, Ileana reacted without thinking, sending a bolt of magic spinning toward her grandfather. Her own enraged screams echoed in her ears, her muscles felt stiff enough to tear at the slightest movement.

  She put everything she had behind her attack.

  Her magic speared into Alexandru’s in a shining, silver display, lighting the night as if it were daytime. She heard the whistle of its motion through the air, the rushing sound of power. Felt the magic leave her body in a great pulse of cold energy.

  It wasn’t enough.

  It rebounded as Alexandru’s magic consumed it and spat it out. Frigid waves of power flowed over her, crashed on her head, pierced her skin and swirled around her bones. Pain flared, locking deep in her muscles, stretching the already-taut tendons of her body tighter.

  She was lifted, shaken, slapped by silver ropes. For a breathless moment, she was suspended from the shining threads like a marionette. Then the magic was cut off and she fell back to the ground, shuddering, tears streaming over her cheeks.

  She struggled to her feet and Eliasz was there, anger radiating from his body in heated waves. He stumbled, but steadied her instantly, his palm cupping her elbow as they dragged themselves up to face her grandfather.

  She’d never seen Alexandru like this. So cold, so angry. This was the potential within him that they’d all feared, without ever knowing how bad it could be. This was the reason that they’d spent their lives walking on eggshells.

  Alexandru looked maniacal in the silver light. His gray hair shone blue, his eyes were wide and nearly colorless. His mouth was set over his granite jaw, shoulders rigid and legs braced as he surveyed the small field of battle. She could feel his rage as if it were her own, tearing her apart with magic.

  From the corner of her eye, she saw Georgie hauling Adam to his feet, pushing him toward the house. Her mouth moved, but Ileana couldn’t hear the words past the drumming of her own panicked heart. The Davenold woman’s hair was rioting in the wind of Alexandru’s magic. Georgie pushed at it impatiently as her cousin stumbled into the bushes.

  Costel stepped from the shrubbery, passing Adam without a glance. His chest heaved, his shirt was wilted. He looked like he’d been running, but Costel never ran anywhere.

  Alexandru sent another lash of power in Ileana’s direction, lobbing it easily. Eliasz pushed her to the side, but she’d already thrown up as much protection as she could. She let her energy spread out, erupting from her tingling skin. Eliasz pitched in, combining his magic with hers in a curving, wobbling shield.

  It cracked and shattered under the pressure. The entire weight of the Lovasz Family power cascaded over them, bringing them to their knees. Pain raced over her nerves and Eliasz’s face went white as he wrapped his arm around her, bracing her against the flow. She gritted her teeth and forced her magic to reform the shield as sweat coated her brow.

  Ileana faltered as Alexandru poured yet more power over her. Her lip bled where she bit it, her shoulders ached, the muscles of her forearms knotted beneath her skin. She would have broken if not for Eliasz, his lips moving with a rushed muttering of spells.

  Seeing her struggle, Alexandru sneered and blazed with light. Deep in the center of her chest, Ileana felt her magic bow and bend, threatening true damage.

  “Grandfather!”

  Costel’s voice was loud enough to puncture the whistling of magic. Alexandru started, flinching at the unexpectedness of his heir’s arrival. He pulled back, giving Ileana a moment of rest as he turned to his grandson.

  “Grab them, Costel. They think to fight me, and I have a greater task.”

  Costel shook his head. “You must stop, Grandfather.”

  “You too?” Deep betrayal crossed the old man’s face. “You dare defy me?”

  “I do not defy you,” Costel argued. “I am asking you to stop. You’re in a Levy household, attacking the son of the tertiary leader.”

  “What can they do, boy? The Levys are the weakest of covens. Their magic is nothing, compared to mine!”

  “Weak only magically, you stupid fool!” Georgie yelled. “They will destroy your Family in ways the Lovaszes will never recover from!”

  Her voice triggered a new wave of outrage in Alexandru. His face contorted, his eyes locked on her. “You will die!”

  Ileana was shocked by the hatred in his voice. Rough and cutting, emotion churning within it, emphasizing the look in the old man’s eye. She couldn’t understand it, didn’t know where the inflexible animosity had come from.

  Costel surprised Ileana by sliding in front of Georgie. “You can’t kill the Davenold heir.”

  “She won’t be the heir! No sane witch, not even females,” he spat the word, “would make a Bane their Mother!”

  “Grandfather, please calm down.”

  “Move!” Violently shaking his head, Alexandru twitched his fingers. Silver spears flew from his palms to sail across th
e lawn on a direct path toward Costel, who sheltered Georgie behind his back.

  The Lovasz heir waved his hand and the spears fell to the ground. Ileana’s mouth dropped. Next to her, Eliasz panted and struggled to his knees. She glanced at him—his bloodshot eyes were as surprised as hers.

  “Shit,” he gasped. “How fucking powerful is your Family?”

  “Very, but I didn’t know Costel could…” Her words died as Alexandru threw another spell at his grandson.

  This time more power was behind the assault. The old man was clearly holding back, not willing to hurt his heir, but Ileana knew that he would if Costel refused to bend to his will. Silver rained down on her brother’s head until he flinched. Ileana could guess how much it had hurt him.

  “Stop it!” Costel stepped forward, anger overriding his ingrained fear of their grandfather. “That is enough, now. You’ve lost control of yourself.”

  “No, I am taking control. I’ve waited years for this opportunity, for the chance to force the Davenold bitch to send me her Bane granddaughter.” Alexandru shoved a finger in Georgie’s direction, a twirling rope of silver extending from the tip to whip at her. It smashed against her imperviousness. Georgie crossed her arms and smirked, further enraging Alexandru.

  He glanced at his grandson. “He shouldn’t be marrying her! She shouldn’t be a Lovasz. She has no right, no magic!”

  “There’s nothing you can do about it, Grandfather. The betrothal was sealed in blood ten years ago.”

  “There is something I can do. I can kill the bitch and free my Family of her taint.”

  Costel threw his hand out. “Listen to yourself. You can’t do that, it would be ridiculous.”

  Alexandru’s eyes blazed. “Why do you think I ordered her here? I have every intention of taking care of this problem.”

  Silver flared and Costel caught his breath, throwing one arm up as the other clutched at his chest. He bent at the waist, his body trembling under the blow. He sucked in air with racking sobs.

  Ileana peeled off a tiny piece of her magic, all she could afford, and sent it to find Silviu. Only her youngest brother had the strength to win against Alexandru. As strong as Costel might—surprisingly—be, he didn’t have the will to defeat Alexandru at any cost.

  And if the old man wasn’t defeated, it would cost them all dearly.

  Her magic flittered away on butterfly wings, wending around the gale of Lovasz magic to disappear into the dark bushes. Ileana turned her attention back to the scene before her, grabbing Eliasz as he began to struggle to his feet again.

  She tugged at his arm. “Stay still. He won’t kill Costel, and he can’t kill Georgie with magic.”

  “This is my damn house. How dare he… I have to—”

  “You have to stay alive,” she whispered fiercely. Her blood ran hot and cold, fear and anger warring within her. She couldn’t let Eliasz step back into battle. “You will stay here with me.”

  Costel breathed through the pain until the attack came to a sudden halt. He cleared his throat, his Adam’s apple bobbing as he forced sound from his vocal cords. “Enough, Grandfather. It’s too much.”

  “Then don’t defy me.”

  “No.” Costel straightened and took a step forward, closing the distance to Alexandru in incremental shifts of his feet. “I mean you need to give me the power.”

  “You’ve gone mad.”

  “No, you’ve gone mad! Look at you!” Georgie couldn’t seem to keep herself quiet for longer than a minute at a time. Ileana winced and felt Eliasz tense.

  “Hush, Georgeanne,” Costel barked. He raised a hand as if to catch her words and keep them from his grandfather. He turned back to Alexandru. “You will stop this at once and hand over the power. You are unfit to continue on in your position as Lovasz Father.”

  Alexandru went ballistic. Ileana was blinded by silver light. It poured from the old man, rolling along the ground before it shot into the sky. It burned the bushes, ignited the roses and filled the small space completely, until everyone was squinting, arms raised to protect their faces from the cold fire.

  Jagged bolts fell from the sky. Orbs of power careened around the clearing. Costel dodged and shielded, his own magic rising to meet the threat, yet carefully controlled to prevent harm to the old man.

  It was a weakness in her brother that would get them all killed.

  Ileana threw her own power into the fight as Eliasz concentrated on containing the magical fire blazing around them. As Costel shielded, Ileana whipped. Alexandru sidestepped and sent a bolt her way. Extinguishing the roses freed Eliasz to help deflect the worst of it.

  The old man split his focus for untold minutes, easily taking on both his grandchildren. Silver sprayed in sweeping arcs, coming from all sides. Light shimmered and faded. Costel danced around the lawn. Ileana hunkered where she was, doing what she could and praying for Silviu’s quick entry into the fight.

  Costel held his own for a long time, proving that he was strong enough to be the heir, to possess the magic of the Lovasz Coven. He’d been trained well, not in politics but in power. He gave almost as good as he got as anger took hold and dimmed his intentions to prevent harm to Alexandru.

  Each man progressively became more irritated with the other. The magic flared to brutal heights, each seeking to gain advantage and inflict some damage. Alexandru staggered under a particularly powerful bolt, Costel was taken to his knees by another.

  While Costel was down, Alexandru pumped him full of magic so strong it was white. His full force. Like Eliasz, her brother folded in the wrong direction, blazing like the sun, his skin iridescent. Alexandru ran forward, hands outstretched, flooding the small clearing with indescribable power.

  Costel was lifted, sent flying. He landed in the bushes, his head jerking hard. He slid from the arms of the foliage and lay on the ground, unmoving.

  Alexandru turned to Georgie. She lifted her chin, staring at him disdainfully, as if he wasn’t worth her time. She looked eerily calm, yet possessed by unspeakable rage.

  Ileana saw the moment when her grandfather understood that all his magic wouldn’t bring Georgie down. His face twisted as he raked her with a furious glare. She, alone, was unhurt. There were no burns on her clothes or skin, pain didn’t pull at her lips. Her eyes flashed with challenge.

  “Now what, old man?” she sneered.

  “Now you die.”

  Alexandru raced across the grass, totally focused on the Davenold woman. He didn’t bother calling his magic, though it sparked around his shoulders, and he didn’t lob attacks at her head. He’d already done that, and failed.

  Eliasz cursed and jumped to his feet. He ran full out, desperately trying to reach Georgie before the Lovasz Father. He didn’t make it.

  Alexandru punched Georgie like he would a man. Her head snapped to the right, but she followed the motion, twisting her body. Her leg swung up and around, connecting with Alexandru’s chest with a sickening, hollow noise. Ileana’s stomach rolled. She heaved herself up before her belly could do the same.

  Staying low, she ran to Costel. She knelt next to him, one eye on the fight, cataloguing every spinning kick Georgie made, every quick jab her grandfather threw. Somewhere between them, Eliasz spun, dodging blows, looking for any opening to stop the two witches from killing each other with their bare hands.

  “Costel?”

  Her brother groaned and Ileana’s spine liquefied in relief. She draped herself over his chest for a quick moment, just listening to the sound of his heart. She pulled back when he stirred.

  “I’m all right.” His throat seemed to clench around the words.

  “You’ve got to get up. Grandfather is fighting Georgie with his bare hands.”

  Costel’s eyes flew open. He struggled to prop himself up on his elbow. “No, I’ve got to save her. If she dies, Silviu will kill me. He’ll take everything.”

  “I know.” Ileana grabbed his arm and tugged. “Get up.”

  An inhuman screech had her jer
king toward the sound. Georgie threw a punch. Alexandru blocked. Eliasz swooped in to grab the Davenold woman in a tight hold, lifting her straight off the ground.

  Silver speared into his back as he pitched forward, dropping his burden. Georgie hit the ground hard and rolled, the force of the impact ripping a harsh sound from her throat. Eliasz fell face first into the grass, shuddering. His body seemed paralyzed otherwise, unable to even groan as Georgie had done.

  Ileana jumped to her feet. She moved to go to Eliasz, but her grandfather had reached Georgie. He bent over her where she lay prone, the wind knocked out of her, his hands reaching for her.

  If Ileana didn’t save Georgeanne, she had no idea what Silviu would do. And he was strong enough to kill them all with a single burst of magic.

  She flew for Georgie, distressed at leaving Eliasz behind. She ran as fast as she could, her thighs burning with effort. Tears blew from her cheeks. The clearing was roughly twenty feet wide, not big at all, but Alexandru was next to Georgie, on the opposite side.

  Ileana was too late.

  The old man hauled Georgie up by his grip around her throat. Her eyes bulged, her hands clawed at his, her toes slid along the ground. He held her with one hand and drove his knuckles into her temple. She sagged, her legs weakening in a rush, dragging her toward the ground with only Alexandru’s hold on her neck to prevent her fall.

  Ileana threw herself on her grandfather, beating at his back, raking his neck with her fingernails. The screams ripping from her throat cracked through the night, scraping her vocal cords raw.

  Alexandru dropped Georgie to meet his granddaughter’s threat. He peeled Ileana from his body and hit her. Her head snapped back, the world losing focus. Her screams were cut off. When he dropped her to the ground, she didn’t have the strength to get back up.

  A silver explosion took the rest of her sight for an unending minute. The power was unbelievable, rolling on and on, contained within the clearing, swelling and rising and crashing back in on itself with flickers of gold. It brought pain and anger and fear. It brought a chilled certainty that death was preferable to meeting that force. A terrifying knowledge that death would be the only consequence of that force.