by Jasmine Walt
Shit. I was totally screwed. I could call Darun, of course, and he’d come and keep me company. But aside from ordering him to rip Darcia’s throat out, there was nothing he could do. And I couldn’t afford to stain my hands with more blood, not when the police were already sniffing around for me. Hell, I was surprised they hadn’t come back with a warrant. Maybe they were having a hard time getting one issued.
Which was a very good thing. Because I was pretty sure Darcia would sooner slaughter the cops than let them take me away on the eve of such an important event. I’d spent hours downstairs with her and the others, grinding up freshly picked herbs from the garden while various arrangements were made. Apparently, this ritual had a lot of moving parts. I hoped that meant it was ridiculously complicated. Maybe I could thwart it. I’d have to try, even if it meant inciting the coven’s wrath. Stopping them was more important than my life.
Might not want to get yourself killed, a voice in my head said. If you die, Maddock will lose all his magic. My father would never believe Maddock had protected me to the ‘best of his ability’ as he had sworn he would, if I died while he was off running errands and had left me unattended.
I ground my teeth together. Why should I care? That Scottish fae bastard was always throwing wrenches into my already-messed up life. Why the hell wasn’t he here? If I died while trying to stop the witches, it would serve him right to lose his fucking magic. This was his show, wasn’t it? Hadn’t he been the one to call me back here? Why was I shouldering this burden by myself?
Stop acting like a damsel in distress, the voice said. You don’t need Maddock.
Maybe, I agreed reluctantly. I’d always prided myself on my ability to handle most everything thrown my way. But I’d been so out of my depth since coming to Salem and diving head-first into the supernatural community, that I’d become used to depending on Maddock as a result.
You don’t need his power, I reminded myself. You’ve learned a lot from your time in Faerie.
That was true. I was a lot stronger, and I knew the fae language now. I could probably cast a lot of spells simply by speaking the words and focusing my intent. It was what I’d been doing back in my father’s kingdom. But those were relatively simple spells—I doubted a few spoken words would be enough to destroy the channel. That was going to take real skill, which I didn’t have. If I knew how to destroy the channel, I would have done it the first time around, and my subconscious probably would have already offered the spell to me.
Feeling claustrophobic, I opened my window and climbed down the same trellis that Thomas had likely used to get into my room the other night. If I went back downstairs, Darcia would probably rope me into doing more work, and that was the last thing I wanted. I needed some space and solitude if I was going to think my way out of this. Icy wind played with a few tendrils of my hair that escaped, bringing the salty scent of the sea with it. Tempted by the thought of an ocean view, I walked around to the back of the house.
And ran straight into Thomas.
“What the hell are you doing here!” I hissed, recoiling. “Did you come to help Darcia?”
“Yes, but I was going to speak to you first,” he growled back, eyes burning with anger. “I thought you were going to misdirect Darcia, not lead her straight to the channel. Have you been lying to me this whole time?”
“No!” Guilt stabbed me, but I straightened my shoulders, refusing to let him see it. “That was completely unintentional.” Lowering my voice to a bare whisper, I explained to him what happened. “Believe me, this is the last thing I wanted,” I hissed. “I’ve been wracking my brain trying to come up with a solution for how to stop the ritual, but I’ve got nothing.”
“I’ve got a plan,” Thomas said, a gleam entering his eyes. “It’s a crazy one, but since you don’t really care about being in the coven, it could work. Plus, you might actually be able to win.”
“Win? Win what?”
“A duel with Darcia,” he said. “You’ll challenge her for her position as coven mistress.”
I stared at him, mouth open. “Did you hit your head when you were climbing down from the window last night? Because that sounds completely insane.”
He scowled. “It’s not insane. If you win, you’ll be able to call off the ceremony. If you do it tomorrow night, before the ritual, then there won’t be enough time for them to figure out how to depose you. That’ll buy us at least a month.”
That last sentence gave me pause. A month would almost definitely be enough time for Maddock to come back and help me destroy it. The plan still sounded insane, but maybe it was worth it.
“That’s a big decision,” I finally said, even though my heart had leapt at the idea of actually being able to stop this thing in its tracks. “I’m going to need to think about it.”
“Fine,” he said tersely. He pulled his phone out of his pocket. “You have until the end of tonight to text me your answer. If I don’t get one, I may have to resort to more drastic measures. And trust me, nobody’s going to like it if that happens.”
We exchanged numbers, then Thomas went inside the house to help the others while I went around the back. Instead of heading to the edge of the cliff, as I’d been intending, I took the path that wound around its underside, leading down to the beach below.
The beach was a narrow strip of wet sand, but now that the full moon was so close, the tide had engulfed it completely, the waves slapping against the rocky foot of the cliffs. The dark water shimmered in the moonlight as it gently, but relentlessly, rolled against the earth, slowly but surely eroding it.
The ocean played a long game, I thought as the icy wind tugged at my hair. It was patient, chipping away at the land, for the most part with a slow and steady pace, and beguiling the earth’s occupants with its hypnotic lullaby and gorgeous view. But it could also strike hard and fast, without warning, and decimate an entire city overnight.
About halfway down the winding path, tucked out of view of the farmhouse, I perched on a small boulder and summoned Darun. We sat and watched the waves while I told him about the day’s disaster, and the absolutely crazy plan I was considering to try to fix it. Darun didn’t say anything as I spoke—he just let me stroke his fur as I vented my frustrations and fears.
“What if I don’t win?” I asked, my stomach churning now. “If I lose, Thelia will never retract her testimony, and Darcia will kick me out of the coven. I’ll be totally screwed, and with Maddock gone, there’s no way to stop the ceremony.”
“It is a risky proposition,” Darun agreed, “but you are strong enough to take on a witch. I don’t care how much experience or power Darcia has—you are an Unseelie princess, not some neophyte. You won’t be easily bested.”
“That’s a pretty high vote of confidence.” Smiling, I scratched him beneath the chin, my fingers easily finding his favorite spot. My smile widened when he made a sound in the back of his throat and angled his chin to give me better access.
“I met you on one or two occasions in your past life,” he said. “I have every reason to believe that you are powerful enough to live up to your title.”
I stilled. “I wish I could remember those days,” I said, both sad and frustrated at the lack of memories. “The memories come back in bits and pieces, but I’ve never been able to get a clear picture of my past.”
“Try not to fret about it.” Darun licked my cheek. “You are a babe by fae standards—it will take many years for you to recover your past, and even then, we never quite get all of our memories. I’ve been reincarnated twice, so I know your pain. You will manage just fine regardless. And I am confident you will prevail over the coven mistress, one way or another.”
I sure hoped that was true, I thought as we trekked back up to the house together. Because if not, I was going to be dead by tomorrow night.
Chapter 24
The next day, I expected Darcia to run me ragged with preparations, but though she and the other witches were in a state of constant motion, she largely l
eft me alone. It turned out Darcia didn’t actually have the patience to deal with a newbie like me being underfoot, so aside from having me do a few small, easy tasks, she told me to stay out of the way and focus on my meditation skills. According to her, I needed to be fresh for tonight, so I could un-shade the channel and help power the ritual.
I did as she said, holing up in my room and meditating, just in case anyone came to check on me. But though the breathing exercises helped me stay calm throughout the day, I wasn’t really meant for sitting around and doing nothing. By the time sunset arrived, I was practically bouncing with nervous energy. I was tired of waiting around. I wanted to get this thing over with.
DO ALL THE COVEN MEMBERS REALLY NEED TO BE HERE? I texted Thomas as I chewed on my bottom lip. I’d told him I was in last night, and he’d given me instructions to wait until we were about to leave.
YES. YOU WANT AS MANY WITNESSES AS POSSIBLE, he replied, almost instantly. WAIT UNTIL DARCIA CALLS YOU DOWN.
I waited. And waited. And waited. And just when I thought I was going to go out of my mind, someone knocked on the door.
“Brooke.” Thelia popped her head in. “It’s time.”
“Coming.” I slid off the bed, put my boots and coat on, and followed Thelia outside. We went out the back, then circled around the house. As soon as we came to the front yard, I saw why. All the witches were assembled, Darcia standing on the porch steps, giving a speech.
“Tonight,” she said, her eyes gleaming, “we shall take back the power that our ancestors meant for us to have. No longer will we be subject to the whims of the Council, forced to obey their arbitrary laws. We shall become the new law!”
The small crowd erupted into applause, their shouts and cheers sounding more like war cries. Even the ones who didn’t like Darcia were excited, their eyes gleaming with the promise of power.
Darcia herself was a formidable-looking figure, dressed in a silver fur cloak and dress that made her look as if she was made of moonlight. Her entire body glowed with power, and I realized that, despite the flurry of activity today, she too had taken time to meditate and focus. The whole damn group was humming with magic. They were all ready.
“After tonight,” she went on, “we shall no longer be a small coven on the coast of Massachusetts. We will be the most powerful on the Eastern Seaboard—no, of the world! Nothing will be off limits, and we will no longer have to hide ourselves for fear of persecution.”
“Now,” Thomas muttered in my ear, and I jumped. I hadn’t heard him sidle up behind me—there were so many people here. “Before she tells us to load up.”
Nodding, I pushed my way through the cheering crowd. My stomach started to churn again, and I pushed firmly against the feeling, throwing my shoulders back and lifting my chin to meet Darcia’s gaze. I was an Unseelie princess, dammit, even if these witches didn’t know that. I wasn’t going to cower with fear. Taking a deep breath, I drew my power around me, allowing myself to glow even brighter than Darcia.
The rest of the witches fell silent as I stepped forward. Darcia paused, mid-rant. Her dark eyes narrowed as she looked down at me.
“Is there something you’d like to say, Brooke?” she asked in a silky voice.
“Yes.” I swept my hands wide, allowing icy power to flare at my fingertips. “I challenge you for the title of coven mistress. Right here, right now.”
Gasps and cries of shock came from the group behind me, and Darcia’s eyes nearly bugged out.
“You?” she sneered, looking down her nose like I was a piece of dung on her boot. “Challenge me? After everything I’ve done for you?”
“Oh, you mean blackmailing me into joining your coven and teaching me stuff I already know?” My upper lip curled as I took another step forward. “Yeah, you’re a real gem, Darcia. Doesn’t change the fact I’m challenging you.”
“This is ridiculous,” she snapped. “You are no match for me. Besides, your timing is atrocious. If you want to duel, we can do so after the ritual.”
A chorus of agreement came up from the other witches, but there were a few protests, too. “You can’t postpone the duel,” Thomas said, stepping forward. “That would be a violation of the Accords. You are honor bound to accept, or you forfeit your title immediately.”
“Surely you aren’t suggesting you want to take the power from the channel to give you an edge in the duel, are you?” Aria called, sounding a little smug. “You should have no fear of being able to take down a new witch, Mistress Darcia.”
Darcia’s eyes flashed. “How dare you make such an insulting accusation,” she growled at Aria, but the witch’s smug smile only widened. She turned back to me, her burning gaze frosting over as she gave me a cool smile. “Of course I have nothing to fear from you, Brooke Chandler. You may have some unique powers, but as far as skill is concerned, you cannot hope to match me.”
I yawned. “Is this how you plan on beating me? Boring me to death?” I stretched. “I’ll be honest—it might actually work.”
Darcia hissed as she descended the porch steps. “You will pay for that flippant tongue,” she snarled, her eyes glowing with frosty rage. The magic around her flared even brighter as she pulled more power to the surface. “Thomas, since you are so eager to jump in, you can serve as the duel referee. Thelia, you shall assist.”
Thomas and Thelia immediately pushed the crowd back, then drew a magical circle with a ten-foot diameter in the center of the yard. Excitement and fear buzzed from the coven as the referees sprinkled the circle with herbs, chanting a spell that caused it to glow faintly—a kind of barrier, I realized, to keep any bystanders from being hurt. I even saw money change a few hands, and from the way Darcia’s eyes narrowed on a few of her fellow coven members, I knew she’d seen the same and was none too pleased about it. She didn’t like the idea that some of her own witches were betting, though she had to know there were dissenters amongst her group.
And what does that say about her, that she hasn’t squashed them already? asked a voice in my head.
It says she’s not as strong as she appears.
Either she wasn’t confident enough in her ability to crush the dissenters, or she needed them for some reason and wasn’t willing to kick them out yet. And that made her vulnerable.
The realization filled me with a rush of confidence. At Thomas’s signal, I stepped forward into the circle. I could do this. I was ready.
“This is a magical duel to determine who is strong enough to take the title of coven mistress,” Thomas declared once the crowd had quieted. “The rules are simple. No outside interference, and no illegal spells. Do you both understand?”
“Yes,” Darcia said. She was calm, her graceful figure completely still as she held my gaze, but the power glowing in her eyes and from her body told a different story. She was ready to take me down, and just because she couldn’t kill me didn’t mean she wouldn’t try to hurt me as badly as she could.
“Yes,” I said, letting go of my anger. If Darcia could keep her calm, then so could I. After all, I was the daughter of the Winter King, a child of ice and snow. If she could be cool, then I would be downright frosty.
“Very well.” Thomas stepped back, out of the circle. “Begin!”
Before I could blink, Darcia flung a bolt of black energy at me. The feel of her magic raised the hair on my arms as I conjured a magical shield just in time to block the attack. Sparks exploded from the impact as the lightning bolt slammed into the field and sizzled like oil in a hot pan before dissipating completely.
Darcia struck again, but instead of blocking, I ducked to the side and lashed out with my own magic, sending a flurry of deadly icicles in her direction. The witch brought up her own shield, causing the icicles to melt into steam in the space of an eye blink. But that didn’t stop me from trying to hammer through her defenses with a barrage of sleet and snow.
As Darcia staggered backward, one hand outstretched as she poured magic into her shield, darkness began to crackle around her othe
r hand. She launched the blast at me, and I smiled, ready. Instead of dodging, I let my shield take the blow, then I launched more ice at her.
I wasn’t sure how long she could keep this up, but I knew one thing—all I needed to do to win was get close. If I did, I could drain her.
“Is that all you can do?” Darcia sneered as my attack deflected harmlessly off her shield and peppered the ground with frozen chunks. “Throw ice at me? Because if it is, you may as well lay down and beg for my forgiveness like the dog you are.” She lashed out with her hands, slashing the air, and my throat constricted as if a hand had clamped around my windpipe. Choking, I clawed at the invisible hand, to no avail.
“It’s just as I thought,” she continued. “You’re far too untrained to beat me in a duel. How long can you last without air?” Her lips curved into a cruel smile.
Spots dance in my vision, and my legs wobbled, but I pushed it down and readied the spell that popped into my head. As my vision went hazy and darkness encroached from all sides, I let the spell fly. My magic shoved, hard, and Darcia stumbled back until she smacked into the magical field surrounding us. She cried out as it propelled her back toward me with some kind of electrical shock. When the coven mistress fell to her knees, I sucked in a breath that felt like razor blades and barbed wire, then launched myself at her.
“Gotcha, bitch,” I snarled, grabbing her by the throat. “Nice try with the force choke, though.” She opened her mouth, no doubt to try to hit me with a spell, but it was too late. I locked onto her magic, and with a mighty pull, I sucked it out of her.
Darcia screamed as her body flared with glowing energy. As I siphoned it off, her eyes bulged as I took and took, my shadow instincts grabbing greedily for every last drop of power inside her. Lines appeared on Darcia’s face—her skin began to sag, her color leeched away, and the anger in her beautiful eyes turned to horror as she realized what was happening.