At our first encounter, the Wandering Man had appeared melancholy, but kind. Friendly, even. Now, he seemed like a lunatic, as he bounced from calm to furious in a heartbeat.
“Oh!” I gasped as he grabbed the collar of my dress and yanked me toward him.
“You. Weren’t. Listening,” he hissed. The skin of his chin appeared to be flaking away, leaving blackness underneath.
A spirit couldn’t hurt me. Layni had told me as much, and I believed her. So why was I so scared right now?
Maybe the Wandering Man wasn’t a spirit.
“I don’t understand,” I stammered.
I screamed when long black claws ripped through the flesh of the Wandering Man’s fingers, cutting through the fabric of my collar and nearly slicing my chin. The little tingle I once felt at contact with him was now an urgent vibration. Every fiber of my being screamed to get away from him. I knew he was dangerous on a subconscious level.
For some reason, my panicked mind fixated on my last encounter with Layni’s spirit. She had stood on the water, just like the Wandering Man, except…
Except she had a reflection.
The Wandering Man didn’t, just like me.
His eyes flashed red behind the mask he wore. Fear twisted through me, stealing my breath.
“Nathaniel!” I gasped.
The Wandering Man dropped me. I stumbled and fell on my bottom in the pool of water. The Wandering Man’s mask and cloak faded away. His outfit changed from the flamboyant apparel to the princely outfit he had worn in life. There were still patches of his skin missing, but for now, he seemed subdued.
“Yes. Finally, you are right. How charming of you to mistake me for your brother. Your hero. You and I are a lot alike, Delta. Both young and foolish and far too willing to use our souls as currency.”
The rain was coming down harder now. Thunder rumbled around us, so close I could feel it tremble through me.
“I made a deal, just like you did,” Nathaniel said. “I thought I could unify Sydna and Horr, if I only had a little more power. So I sold my soul to the witch. All I had to do was kill Ariana, and I would have two kingdoms at my command. There would be no war. My people would know peace and prosperity. That was the witch’s promise.”
“But you failed.”
Nathaniel’s eyes glowed red. He rubbed his chin with the back of his hand, and I watched, transfixed, as more of his skin flaked away.
“I failed, Delta. I need you to understand that. I made a deal with the witch, and I didn’t uphold my end of the bargain. Now look at me.” He splayed his black-clawed hands in front of him. I tensed even though he wasn’t close enough to cut me. “I died without a soul. Do you know what that means, Delta?”
I shook my head.
Nathaniel laughed a pitying, crazed laugh. “Neither did I. You see how alike we are? I had no idea what I was giving away. Without a soul, I can’t move on from this plane. I’m decaying here. Turning into—” he flickered out of existence again, “this.”
Slowly, I climbed to my feet. Between my tumble into the water and the increasing ferocity of the rain, I was soaked. I hugged myself.
Nathaniel appeared right beside me. I screamed and stumbled away from him.
“I scare you, don’t I?”
Why were his eyes glowing like that? Layni’s eyes didn’t do that.
“Well, you better get used to it. As long as the witch owns your soul, this is your future.”
“What do you want from me?” Was there a way to escape this strange place? Or was I trapped here with this madman until he chose to release me?
Nathaniel flickered again. More of his skin flaked away, showing a sort of shadowy energy beneath. Even though he stood several paces away, I could still feel the vibration of my body reacting to his presence — a feeling deeper than fear, urging me to run and holding me petrified in place all at once.
“I want you to understand,” Nathaniel rasped. “I thought I was the hero of my story. I thought I would unite Sydna and Horr. I failed. Now I watch helplessly as my country goes to war, as people die in my name. I am a tortured spirit without a soul. Consider me your cautionary tale. If you fail to accomplish your end of the bargain, you will end up just like me: nothing but regret and encroaching madness. If you don’t kill Ariana, you will die without a soul, too. But if you do kill her … maybe you can save us both.”
Lightning struck the ground beside me, knocking me once again off my feet. Layni floated in the space where the lightning had struck, glaring furiously at Nathaniel.
“You miserable wretch,” she said. “You brought your fate upon yourself. Leave Delta out of it.”
“I could say the same for you, you meddling interloper.” Nathaniel’s words were harsh, but the expression on his face was not. He looked at Layni with such pain and grief that it almost broke my heart to watch. I remembered what he’d said about how, in different circumstances, he and Layni would have been betrothed.
He loved her.
The one and only time he had met Layni in life, she had killed him. Despite that, I could see it plainly on his face how much he cared for her. Perhaps he had spent all the time since his death watching and rewatching her life, wishing that he had known of her earlier — that he could have met her under better terms, maybe dreaming that they could have saved each other.
The tragic couple glared each other down as dark clouds swirled around us, dumping rain and rumbling with increasingly violent thunder.
“This decision is Delta’s to make. You never should have brought her here,” Nathaniel said.
“You already had your chance to kill Ariana. Now leave her alone!”
Layni contorted, glowing a bright gold. All around us, the world warped and twisted. I heard three distinct ticks of a clock. Layni clutched her stomach as if in pain. “We’re running out of time,” she said. “I can’t hold this much longer.”
Both spirits turned to face me.
Uh-oh.
“Delta, please,” Nathaniel begged. “Don’t forget the value of your soul. If you die without it, you are doomed, even as I am.”
“What good will it be to save your soul if you’ve tainted it with the blood of an innocent woman?” Layni argued. “This isn’t self-defense. This is murder.”
“Kill her, Delta! While you have the chance.”
“Spare her! Killing her won’t save you!”
“Then how do I choose?” I had to raise my voice over the howling wind. “I don’t want to die! I don’t want to lose my soul forever. But if I kill Ariana, it’s like killing you both all over again. How can I do that? How can I choose?”
Lightning struck right in the center of the three of us. For a brief moment, the image of the enormous clock I had seen earlier flashed across the surface of the water, then everything went dark.
Awareness flooded through me as if I had woken suddenly from a deep sleep. I was back in Ariana’s hidden bedroom, holding the witch’s dagger in my hand. My clothes were dry. The spirits were gone. I was alone with my victim and the ticking of the clock in my head, counting down the seconds.
Tick, tick, tick…
18
I blinked, disoriented, as my eyes adjusted to the semi-darkness. After the noise and chaos of the spirit plane, I found myself on edge in the sudden silence. How long had I been standing here, holding the dagger, staring down at Ariana as my mind took a hike through her memories? Were any of the things I had seen real? Nathaniel, Layni, the king of Horr — had that all actually happened?
I still had no reflection in the mirror beside Ariana’s bed. Now that I was no longer suspended in time with the spirits, the incessant ticking of the clock had returned, grating on my already raw nerves.
I was running out of time.
If I killed Ariana, as I had promised, my younger sisters would be safe from the witch’s awful curse. That had to be the smarter choice, right? But then I would spend the rest of my life knowing I had killed an innocent woman, the one my broth
er loved. If what Layni said was true, I would eventually have to answer for my sin, if not in this life, then in the world beyond.
But if I didn’t kill Ariana, I would die just like my older sisters had. I would vanish into mist and be lost forever. And the witch would still own my soul. Without a soul, I would decay just as Nathaniel had. Not even death was safe for me now.
So what could I do?
Tick, tick, tick...
Time continued to move despite my internal dilemma. If I didn’t choose soon, the decision would be made for me. I would die. Soulless.
Ariana mumbled and tossed in her sleep. I stepped back, into the shadows. Holding my breath, I watched as Ariana settled back into her deep sleep.
What was I doing here? I wasn’t a killer. I never should have made that deal with the witch. But what choice did I have? I honestly thought I was acting in my sisters’ best interests. And now look at the mess I had made.
“Beware, beware,” I recited silently to myself. My lips moved, but no sound came out. “Seven sisters, precious and fair each night by moonlight will vanish into air…”
Trembling, I took a step toward Ariana’s bed. She had no idea that I was so near. She had no clue what was coming.
Me or Ariana. One of us would die tonight.
I was afraid to die. Even if I had my soul, I was afraid to die. I had never given death much thought. Even when my parents died, I preferred to believe that they had just left on a very long journey and would someday return. Now that I was forced to face my own mortality, I realized how small and insignificant I was. I had never done anything great. I wasn’t a great leader like Alistair. I wasn’t willing to gamble security for love like Elias had. I had lived a quiet life. A safe life.
Perhaps, a pointless life.
Was it selfish of me to want to live, no matter the cost?
I don’t want to do this.
I stared at the dagger, trembling in my hands. A downward thrust was all it would take to free me from the witch’s curse. Just kill Ariana and be free.
But wasn’t this life of bargains and violence exactly what Ariana was trying so hard to escape? All she wanted to do was create and have love. Why did she deserve this bitter end?
I thought of Micah. He had welcomed me into his home as if he had been waiting for me all his life. Would our story end as Nathaniel and Layni’s had? Would I spend the afterlife as Nathaniel now was, consumed by guilt, longing for what he had never known he wanted … until it was too late?
It was just about to be too late for me.
I thought of my sisters, Hannah, Alacia, and Hallie, the ones who had gone before. Why had they not lingered to give me counsel? If I could see them now, what would they say? Hannah had always been the selfless one. She would tell me to spare Ariana and accept my fate. Hallie would probably agree. She would find my sacrifice beautiful and full of deep meaning. Alacia would tell me to look for another angle. She had always been good at finding the loopholes and bending the rules to get her way.
Kill or die. There didn’t seem to be much room for loopholes for me.
Finally, I thought of Elias. Elias was the one who got us all into this mess. He was the reason we were cursed. I had blamed him for all of my heartache until I thought he was dead. But the Wandering Man hadn’t been Elias. Was my brother still alive somewhere? Or had he died and, like my sisters, simply moved on? What would he think of the decision I had to make? Who would he choose? His love or his family?
This wasn’t fair. I kept telling myself that sacrificing Ariana to save my family was a fair trade, but I was lying to myself. Nothing about this deal was fair. Was this how Nathaniel had felt as he lifted the dagger to kill Ariana?
I raised the dagger higher. I felt its power buzz through my arm. I recognized that feeling now. It was the same sensation I had when Nathaniel’s spirit touched me, when he started to change from a spirit into a monster.
A monster. That’s what I was becoming. Nathaniel had asked me if I was the hero or the villain of my story, but it wasn’t that easy. My story was all wrapped up in everyone else’s. Regardless of the decision I made, I would doom some and save others.
Murdering Ariana would make me a villain. But wouldn’t allowing my sisters to die also make me a villain, having been presented with an opportunity to save them? No. It wasn’t the same. The witch was twisting my mind into believing that I was responsible for my sister’s lives. I wasn’t standing over their beds, holding a knife. I had tried to save them. I had sold my soul for a chance to save them. But now I was beginning to realize that the price was just too high.
And maybe, just maybe, I could still be a hero for trying and failing.
“I can’t do this,” I whispered.
The runes on the dagger’s blade pulsed brighter. As if it heard me. As if it were hungry. A week ago, I would have never touched a blade this evil. What had changed? Was I really so desperate that I had forgotten who I was? Was I so desperate to save my life that I was willing to sacrifice myself?
“I won’t do this,” I said, louder, with more conviction. My heart constricted with fear. The dagger burned so hot I almost dropped it. In fact, I tried to drop it. But the dagger seemed to have taken on a mind of its own. I watched in horror as the dagger raised up with my fingers still wrapped around the hilt, moving of its own accord. Was this the witch’s plan all along? Use me to get the dagger close enough to Ariana to work on its own?
Maybe I had never really had a choice at all.
19
“NO!” I yelled as the dagger flung itself toward Ariana.
My shout woke Ariana, who rolled over just in time to see the enchanted dagger hurtling toward her. I poured all of my horror and fear and frustration into my hands, willing them to stop, tugging at the dark power of the dagger. It stopped moments before stabbing into her heart. If the tip of the blade was any closer, it would cut Ariana’s nightgown.
She looked at the dagger with wide eyes, then up at me.
“I won’t do it,” I said. “I refuse.” The dagger glowed brightly and then extinguished. All at once, I was too exhausted to hold up my own weight. I collapsed to the floor beside Ariana’s bed. The dagger tumbled from my hand and landed on the carpet beside me.
Tick, tick, tick…
I had failed. Any moment now, I would vanish.
I’m sorry, Lucy. I’m sorry, Avery. I’m sorry, Bailey. I couldn’t save you. I’m so sorry.
“Delta?” Ariana’s voice cut through my jumbled thoughts. She peered over the edge of the bed at me, looking as frightened as I felt.
I tried to speak, but all that came out was a broken sob. Tears welled up in my eyes and ran down my cheeks as I hiccupped sad little breaths. So this was how I was going to die, crying like a child. Maybe I wasn’t the hero or the villain. Maybe I was just the victim who no one would bother to rescue.
Tick, tick, tick…
Maybe it wouldn’t be so bad to die. Maybe disappearing would be painless. Maybe it would be easy.
The clock on the wall chimed midnight. This was the point at which Alacia, tied down in a windowless room, had lost her senses. By the twelfth chime, she had broken free of her restraints and her locked room and thrown herself into the moonlight.
I braced myself for the madness to descend. For the end to come.
“Delta?” It was Ariana again. Confound you, woman. Leave a girl alone to die in peace, won’t you?
Maybe Ariana deserved an explanation. I had just lunged at her with a dagger, after all. The truth rushed out of me in a waterfall of jumbled, tear-soaked words. “The Horrid Witch cursed my family. My sisters are dying. I’m next, unless I kill you. But I can’t. So once the clock strikes twelve, I’ll be gone, too. But I just can’t hurt you. I’m going to die without a soul.”
Ariana slipped off of the bed and knelt beside me. She gathered me into her arms and hugged me tight. Stupid, wonderful Ariana. Why did she have to be so kind? Why was she holding me when I had come to kill her? W
hy couldn’t she be an awful monster? There was another chime. How much longer did I have? I felt at once panicked and painfully numb. Let the end come already. The countdown was more agony than I could muster.
“Oh, Delta. I’m so sorry. I didn’t know.” Now Ariana was crying, too. Over me? But we barely knew each other. “This is all my fault,” Ariana whimpered. “I’m so sorry.”
I clung to Ariana as the twelfth stroke rang out. It seemed impossibly loud. I braced myself to vanish. At least I would die in someone’s arms. The gong of the clock faded into silence. We held each other, sobbing, for what felt like an eternity. I could still feel the silk of her nightgown, the warmth of her body, the strength of her arms around me as we embraced.
I sat up and touched my tear-stained cheeks. “I — I’m still here,” I said. “I’m alive. I — I don’t understand. This was the third night. I should be gone now.”
Ariana leaned back against the side of the bed and took a deep, shaky breath. “Did the witch give you three nights or three days?” she asked.
What did that matter? “Three days,” I said.
Ariana actually smiled and something like hope lit her eyes. “Delta. This isn’t your deadline. This is the night of the second day. You still have twenty-four more hours.”
Oh, great. I had a whole day left to freak out about my inevitable demise. Why was Ariana smiling about this? “What good is that going to do?” I asked. “I can’t hold up my end of the bargain. I can’t kill you. I’m going to die anyway.”
“No, you’re not,” Ariana said. Her eyes hardened with determination. “I’ve spent enough time running and hiding from the Horrid Witch. No matter what, she will always find me. How many more lives is she going to ruin just to get to me? This has to end. I can’t hide anymore.”
“What are you going to do? This is the Horrid Witch. We can’t exactly fight her. She’s too strong.”
Ariana shook her head. “She isn’t strong, Delta. You’re strong.”
Ariana thought I was strong? I sure didn’t feel strong. I felt pathetic and tired. But I was willing to believe it if she did.
Magic and Shadows: A Collection of YA Fantasy and Paranormal Romances Page 34