Avenant smirked, loving the fact that she was sticking up him.
“You zip it.” She ordered, even though he hadn’t said anything.
His elegant palms went up in a gesture of innocence.
“Cousin, I’m begging you, stop this random commoner from assassinating me.” Lancelot implored.
Everyone ignored him.
Peter wasn’t willing to give up his campaign to win her over. “I’m telling you, it was his fault, Belle! It’s always him. Can’t you tell that he’s Bad.”
Avenant snorted. “You haven’t seen Bad. You’ve been trying to steal my True Love for twenty years, you little twerp. You’re lucky you still have full use of your limbs.”
“You don’t frighten me.” Peter hissed at him. “The only things you care about are Belle and the Icen Throne. I’ve always known that. And I’m about to take them both from you.”
“How?” Avenant arched a brow. “By shooting that imbecile Lancelot? Go ahead. I can’t stand him.”
“Hey!” Lancelot yelped.
Belle sighed. The knight might be annoying, but he didn’t deserve get slaughtered. “Avenant…” She let the word trail off meaningfully.
“Come on, Belle.” Avenant urged. “This is win/win. Let Peter kill the moron and then I’ll kill him and we’ll all be happy.”
“Lancelot’s your cousin.”
“But, he’s such a moron.”
Belle frowned in his direction.
“Fine.” Avenant muttered. “We’ll save the moron from this terrible hostage situation.” He rolled his eyes with world-weary confidence in his own abilities. “But, you have to admit that this is a really stupid plan, even for Pete. I’m going to just freeze him and go home.”
Belle sort of agreed. How did Peter think he was going to stop the Beast of the Northlands? They had to be missing something.
“You don’t even understand my plan, Beast.” Peter shoved Lancelot forwards, edging towards Excalibur. “But, you’re about to. You’re about to see which of us is truly worthy of the prize.”
Avenant crossed his arms over his chest. “Tell me when I’m allowed to kill him, my love.”
Belle ignored that. “Peter, I really wouldn’t touch that sword if I were you.” She warned. Adam hadn’t gone to all this trouble without having some extra tricks up his sleeve. “I don’t think you should…”
Peter touched the sword. He grabbed the hilt and tried to pull it free. Excalibur didn’t move. Instead, he jerked back with a scream of pain and the smell of smoldering flesh. Belle cringed, seeing that the raised snowflake design was now scorched into the skin of his palm.
“You have to have royal blood.” Lancelot said. “I told you that. The sword will burn anyone else.”
Avenant’s superior sneer dimmed a bit. His blue eyes flicked to Lancelot, looking vaguely concerned for the first time. Now, the only other person who could claim Excalibur was standing two feet from it. “You know about that royal blood thing?”
Belle flashed Avenant a sideways look. “I told you this was a risky idea. You never listen to me. If I wasn’t here to keep you out of trouble, you’d be dead fifty times over.”
“He’s not supposed to know about Excalibur, Bella. It’s supposed to be a family secret.”
“I am family.” Lancelot whined. “My dad used to tell me stories about the sword. He always said one day it would give us a chance to claim the Icen Throne. But I don’t even want the kingdom anymore. I’m going to get Excalibur and give it to this guy and then he promises not to make me look in that mirror, again.” He tried to crane his neck to look at Peter. “Right, Mr. Kidnapper?”
“Of course.” Peter’s voice oozed insincerity.
Lancelot gave a relieved smile.
Avenant made a face. “You suck at being a knight, you know that?”
Belle’s eyes narrowed at Peter. Something was off about this. Lancelot had always been a dim-bulb, but he’d never been this much of a simpering coward. Peter had done something to him. “What mirror is he talking about?”
“My mirror.” Peter pulled out a silver looking glass, still keeping the gun on Lancelot. Maybe he was too crazy to feel pain, because he kept monologuing despite the blistering wound on his hand. “I bought this from a witch. It cost me sixty magic beans, four bags of gold, and nine of the children I don’t have yet, but it was worth it.”
“Uh-huh.” Belle said warily. It looked like the kind of ordinary accessory a woman would keep on her vanity, except its shiny surface glowed with magic. Things that glowed with magic rarely belonged in the hands of maniacs. “What does it do?”
“It shows people their inner selves, of course.” Peter’s eyes sparkled. “Lancelot looked into it and saw that deep down he’s nothing but a spineless little follower.”
“I am.” Lancelot sobbed. “I’m so sorry, cousin.”
Avenant sighed in annoyance.
Peter laughed. “You see?” He cried. “Do you think I could’ve defeated Pumpkin-Eater or Cleo? He was a cannibal and she was a mercenary, for crying out loud. Even that gremlin was too much for me, on my own. I’m just an accountant. No.” He shook his head. “I simply showed them this mirror. When they saw their true reflections, it drove them mad. That’s what killed them.”
“You made them stab themselves?” Belle gasped.
“I didn’t make them to do anything.” Peter gestured to the mirror. “It’s this. Scarlett Wolf is right with all her preaching. No one’s a hundred percent Good. Certainly, not the people in this contest. When I showed them their Bad, they try to cut the darkness out, but it’s impossible. It was a part of them. Just like it is for the Beast.” He suddenly pushed Lancelot out of the way and held up the mirror to Avenant’s beautiful face. “And now you’ll see it, too!”
“No!” Belle screamed.
Inside the silver surface lurked a monster of frost and snow. Of pain and screaming and terror. Every cold nightmare imaginable lurked in its electric blue eyes. Whatever lived inside of Avenant snapped free of its chains and transformed his patrician features into a icy mask.
The Beast was coming out.
Avenant stumbled back from his reflection in horror. “Belle, get away from me.” He choked out, his whole body shaking. “I can’t stop it. I’m going to…” He trailed off with an agonized groan, his expression stark.
He was changing right in front of her. His skin became cracked and frozen, his voice growing too dark and his body growing too big. She could see the edges of him straining at the seams and she knew he was fighting the Beast.
Only he couldn’t.
Lancelot gave a high-pitched scream and collapsed. His helmet clanged against the ground, his big body splayed out in dead faint.
Peter chortled in triumph as Avenant’s splintering form hit the wall. “This is even better than I imagined. He’s physically changing! That thing is going to rip him apart from the inside!”
Belle knew he was right. Avenant hands were clawing at his head, like he was trying to peel through the hardening ice. He was going to tear himself to pieces trying to hold the Beast back. Avenant wouldn’t to survive this… Not unless he stopped fighting it.
She ran for him. “Avenant, stop!”
He didn’t hear her. Maybe he couldn’t. The Beast was desperate to escape, its gaze darting around wildly. It couldn’t focus on anything except its own panic and fury.
“Avenant!” She screamed.
“He’s gone.” Peter chortled. “Gone, gone, gone. Give it up, Belle. You’re finally free of him. We all are.”
She spared him a furious look. “I will kill you if anything happens to him!”
“You’ll forget about the Beast soon enough.” Peter promised. He dragged Lancelot closer to Excalibur, folding the knight’s limp hand around the sword’s hilt and trying to pull it free. “Once you and I are married, you’ll see that this was all for the best.”
He didn’t even matter enough to punch. Not when Avenant needed her.
/> Belle edged closer to her True Love, afraid he might bolt from the room. The Beast gave a roar of warning as she drew near, fangs flashing. Belle ignored it. This man wasn’t a threat to her, no matter what form he was in. “Avenant, look at me.” She ordered. “Look at me! You and the Beast are the same person. He isn’t Bad and neither are you. Accept him or this will break you both.”
He didn’t seem to hear her. His arctic exterior was fracturing right before her eyes. She could see the fissures and feel the blast of cold coming off of him. Avenant was going to kill himself if he didn’t stop. The Beast was already free and he’d die before he was caged again.
No.
Belle’s jaw firmed in determination. She would not lose this fight. “Avenant, I love you.” She said simply.
The Beast started to roar out in savage ferocity, but her words had him hesitating.
Electric blue eyes suddenly burned into hers.
Belle kept going. “I’ve been in love with you since the first day of kindergarten, too. You pilfered my brand new box of thirty-six crayons and you said ‘I’m the prince and I want these.’ Then, I pushed you off your chair and you started crying.”
The Beast tilted his head, studying her face with something like recognition. He remembered that day. Of course he did. He was Avenant.
“So, I told you we could share the crayons to get you to stop bawling.” Belle continued. “And you ignored me all day. But, right before we went home, you drew a picture of a yellow rose and you shoved it at me as you ran out the door. And I knew right then you were the going to be the most important person in my life.” She gave him a small smile. “I looked at you and I just… knew.”
He stared at her, hypnotized.
“I still have the drawing. I’ll show it to you when we get home, if you just stay with me.” She coaxed. “Stop fighting yourself and fight for me. Fight for our future.” She waved a hand at Peter. “Are you really going to let that fucking idiot beat us?”
“I’ve already won.” Peter insisted. “I have Excalibur, so I own the Northlands and you have to do what I say. I’m your prince and you’re my princess and…” He tugged at the sword, but it didn’t budge. “Goddamn it.” He repositioned Lancelot’s fingers and tried again. “What’s wrong with this thing? This guy has royal blood, so it should be coming out.”
“You didn’t read the directions, you prick.” Belle snapped, not even looking his way.
Peter’s gaze cut over to her. “You did something, didn’t you?” He accused wrathfully. “You did something so it wouldn’t come free.”
“Lancelot doesn’t have what it takes to claim that sword and neither do you.” She said smugly. “You will never steal our kingdom.”
The Beast gave a low growl of pleasure at her words. Avenant always loved it when she was a bitch.
Peter didn’t share that sentiment. “What have you done?” He futilely yanked on the hilt. “Tell me why this isn’t working. It’s supposed to work!”
Belle ignored him, all her focus trained on her True Love. Avenant was trying to regain control, but he was still battling with his two halves. It wasn’t going to work unless he let go. “Don’t try to chain the Beast, again.” She ordered. “You can’t shove him away, this time. Let him be free and find a balance between the two of… shit!” Her words ended with a cry of alarm as Peter grabbed her from behind.
“How do I get the sword out?!” He spun Belle around and shook her hard enough to rattle her teeth. “Tell me!”
That was probably the stupidest thing he could’ve done.
Avenant and the Beast stopped struggling against each other and turned their attention to Peter. Belle barely saw him move, but suddenly she was free of Peter and her True Love had launched himself at the smaller man. The two combatants hit the opposite side of the cavern in an explosion of violence and screaming and fangs.
She cringed at the frenzy and headed forward. “Avenant, wait! Don’t…”
The gunshots cut her off mid-word. Peter still had the revolver. He tried to shoot Avenant and missed, the bullets ricocheting off the rock walls as he desperately fired. The Beast wasn’t impressed with his efforts. Bones cracked as he crushed Peter’s wounded hand. Peter screeched in pain. The mirror fell, landing glass side up at their feet. He forced Peter’s head down so he was looking right into it.
Peter’s own reflection shined back at him.
He let out a bellow pure terror at what he saw. No one who’d killed so many people wanted to peer inside themselves. The darkness began to consume him and Peter flailed backward in an uncoordinated scrambled. “No! No! NOOOO!”
The Beast let him go, satisfied that he’d won.
Peter was out of his mind with fear and panic. He blindly ran for the cavern’s entrance, fumbling with the gun. “Don’t make me see it! Don’t let me see it! I don’t want to see…!”
They all knew what was going to happen.
Belle flinched at the final gunshot. The mirror had killed him, just as it had the others. But, it wouldn’t take her husband.
“Avenant.” She hurried to his side. He was still struggling, clawing at his skull, again. Both sides of him needed to calm down or he wasn’t going to make it. There was only one way she could think of to break through to him fast. Belle unzipped her jacket and yanked open her shirt. “Focus on something else.” She unclasped the front of her bra. “Focus on me.”
The Beast started to jerk away from her… then his glowing blue eyes flickered to her breasts.
He blinked.
“I thought that would get your attention.” Belle seized his wrist and brought it up to cover one of the soft globes. The frigid temperature of his skin had her nipple beading into an erotic point. She jolted, but kept talking. “You know me, don’t you? Who am I?”
The Beast couldn’t look away from her. His free hand came up to cover her other breast, his grip tightening. “Mine.” It was an animalistic rasp.
He squeezed her flesh and she swallowed down a whimper of pleasure. Obviously, he wasn’t as disappointed in her cup size as she’d feared. “I’m yours.” She agreed, pushing her small curves deeper into his palms. “I belong to both of you. To all of you. And you belong to me.”
“Yours.” He rumbled. She sensed the tension draining from him as he caressed her skin.
“Who am I, Avenant?” She asked again.
Awareness began to return. “Bella.” He murmured in something like reverence.
She smiled, trying not to cry. “That’s right.” The Beast and Avenant were both looking at her, now. Just as she’d thought, they could be one in the same. They were one in the same. They just had to find a balance. “Please stop fighting yourself. I’m scared and I need you.”
“Don’t want to hurt you.”
“The Beast is just another part of you, Avenant.” She wrapped her arms around him. “You would never hurt me. But, if you destroy him, you destroy yourself. And if you destroy yourself, that’s what will hurt me. You need to find a balance. For me. Please.”
He swallowed, his forehead coming to rest on her shoulder. She could feel him shaking. “I’m sorry I’m Bad.” He whispered.
She held him tight. “You aren’t. At least, no more than anyone else is. If you were Bad all the way through, you wouldn’t be able to hang on like this. You’d be like Peter or Cleo or Mr. Pumpkin-Eater and shatter into nothing. But, your Good side is stronger than the darkness.”
“My Good side is you.” His voice was beginning to sound normal again. “Everything I am is you.” His grip on her got stronger. “I love you so much there aren’t words.”
“You’ll just have to spend the rest of ever-after showing me, then.”
Time passed and his skin grew warmer.
“Have I mentioned I hate mirrors?” Avenant finally muttered.
Belle pulled back to look at his face and smiled when she saw his normal features cautiously staring back her. “Good news. You’re handsome, again.”
“I
’m a monster.” Avenant sounded broken. “It’s still inside of me, only now it’s not caged. It’s part of me.”
“Luckily, I love all the parts of you.”
He shook his head, looking morose. “Nobody would ever want a Beast.”
“I do, dummy.”
Avenant hadn’t been expecting that easy response. “You… do?”
“Yep.” She leaned forward to kiss him, feeling overwhelming happiness. “I think the Beast is probably the easiest facet of your personality to deal with, actually. I had him wrapped around my little finger in no time. Handsome-you took a lot longer to tame.”
Avenant frowned. “You’re insane.” He told her, but his mouth was beginning to curve upward at one corner.
“Don’t be jealous. I love you both.”
He still didn’t look convinced. “Why?”
“Because,” she reached up to touch his face, “all the bits of me that are missing, you have. We fit together. Without you, I’m incomplete. You have to feel that way, too, right?”
“I do, but…”
“You’re my best friend.”
“And you’re mine, except…
“And we’re True Loves, aren’t we?
“Yes! Only…”
She cut him off. “What’s with all the qualifiers? You already said you’d marry me, Avenant. Are you trying to back out of that or something? Because, I should warn you, I know where to get a sword.”
“No, of course I’m not backing out. I just want you to be sure.”
“Good, because I want a big wedding as soon as possible. With a dress, and rings, and a cake…”
Avenant surrendered. “Chocolate cake.” He said softly, his eyes tracing over her face.
“Chocolate cake.” Belle agreed and gave him a quick kiss.
He swallowed. “I have longed for you my whole life. There is nothing in this world or any other that I want more than to be with you, Belle. But, are you sure you want to tie yourself to a Beast?”
She arched a brow. “Are you trying to be selfless? That’s such a knight-in-shining-armor-y thing to do.”
“Don’t be too impressed. If you actually took me up on my offer and tried to forget about me, I’d just do something crazy to get your attention, again.”
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