by Ellie Margot
“I’m not getting into fucking lore here, but Zeke is only still alive because most mages think he’s dead. The crimes he committed happened three thousand years ago, but the wounds haven’t healed. He’s too powerful. Too arrogant. Too dangerous.”
“He sounds lovely,” said Mekhi.
“Pack your shit. We’re kicking rocks in ten.” Samantha turned, and Damian followed her. She didn’t slow down when the others started talking, and Riette respected her a little, despite herself.
They did start traveling shortly after. It wasn’t hard to throw everything one owned into a bag when it just came out of it the night before.
Riette tucked Bark and Barry away, soothing them as she did it. They didn’t mind the origami shapes they were being put into—Bark being the main victim—but it didn’t still the guilt growing roots in Riette’s chest.
Riette stayed next to Guy for the better part of the day, with Corin and Mekhi brought up the rear.
Samantha had made a point to talk about what was to happen if they met an enemy when they were traveling.
Mekhi had asked how they would know they were the enemy, ever the smart ass. Samantha had said that anyone was to be termed that if they lingered or engaged with them and they weren’t half dead already.
There wasn’t much to say after that.
Samantha and Damian led the way, with Cassian and Trinity following them.
Riette suspected that Guy was only beside her because it gave him the best view of Trinity without being suspicious, but she wasn’t going to call him out on it, not when she wanted the company, as foreign of a feeling as that was to her.
It was miles of walking and two breaks later when Samantha’s warnings came to fruition.
Cassian had seen them first. It was a group of four men. They were short and cut through with muscles. They traveled in a squared shape, and the one at the front of the group had something gripped in his hands that he seemed to play with when he saw he was en route to meet them.
Riette didn’t like the excitement that seemed to pull at his lips and cause an unnatural smile to form on his face when they were close enough to see it.
Samantha didn’t slow. She started saying something under her breath, and in response to her demands that the rest of them couldn’t hear, Damian turned toward the woods that flanked them and disappeared within them.
“Where did he go?” Trinity asked.
“Shut the fuck up,” Samantha hissed, but her voice was quiet.
“Do you know them?” Riette asked, trying to assess the threat.
“Dark mages. All of them. And not friends of mine. Unless you all want to be snacks, follow my lead and don’t do anything exorbitantly stupid.”
And then she charged. She unsheathed a knife she had on her hip, and her form blurred as she charged at the four with a speed she had no business possessing.
The men reacted in kind. They were close enough now that Riette could see what the man held in his grip: a metal-barbed piece of leather, like a whip, but the points were sharpened and covered in a rust color that Riette could only guess was dried blood.
Mekhi pushed Corin behind him. There were enough of them in the fight to leave her out of it, but Riette could hear Corin protesting.
“We don’t have time to bicker,” Riette hissed, and she felt the power building in her gut and swirling upward.
The matter behind her eyes warmed, and she thought about how her powers had manifested before when she had used the new ones briefly. She wasn’t sure what would come to the surface. She was a little scared, yet exhilarated, to find out.
“They your food?” yelled the first leader.
“Yes, all of them,” Samantha yelled back.
“You don’t want to share your toys?” asked another, and Samantha slowed down.
She looked behind her as if to consider her options. “And if I do? What do I get in return?”
“What do you need?” asked the leader.
“It’s your job to sell me on something. Not the other way around.” By this point, there was a small gap between them, enough that they could all eye each other easily but damage could still be done in a few jumps.
The one in the back eyed Riette and blew her a kiss. He said something softly to his friend, the one at the head.
“The Elf with the fucked-up eyes looks interesting,” the leader mentioned.
“You’re still not interesting me until I hear what for,” said Samantha.
“We have power,” he offered.
“Does it look like I need power when I have them?”
“Fuck, just let me at her,” said the one in the back that eyed Riette lustfully.
The flames licked at her palms, and without Cassian saying a word, she felt his eyes on her, and she turned her palms to hide them.
Samantha looked behind her and gave one curt shake of her head.
“She’s not for sale. The redhead, tall one is. Let us pass without this getting bloody, and maybe I’ll let you keep her.”
The one in the front looked at Trinity. He touched a hand to his chin as he looked her figure over. Trinity went to open her mouth, but Riette stopped her by moving quickly to touch her arm and channel some of the rage power she knew was filling her inner well.
The current shut Trinity’s lips, and Riette rocked with the force of the current running through her.
“It’s a light show, Johnny,” said the one on the left. Riette knew he was referring to them, but she couldn’t shut it off. Her eyes were shut as she rode the force of what was shooting through her.
And then she heard the first man hit the ground and the unmistakable sound of blood as it splashed on surrounding surfaces.
Cassian pulled them apart, burning his hands as he did so, and only then could Riette open her eyes.
The men were dead.
All of them were in a small heap, one on top of the other, and Samantha had their blood splashed across her chest, as did Damian as he stood behind them.
Riette had forgotten about his foray into the woods. Samantha, apparently, had not.
“Shit,” said Trinity, her voice shaking.
Chapter 18
It took them the better part of the next week to travel close to their destination, which was close to the mage’s territory. Riette could sense they were close because of the crackle of energy in the air.
She had spent days trying to un-see the amount of blood that had come out of the four slain men, but she couldn’t. It had coated the ground in thick rivulets that stemmed from their intestines lying on the bare earth beneath them.
She couldn’t shake the idea that it didn’t need to get that far. Sure, they had wanted to trade Elves, but they were trying to talk, to bargain. She wondered if they could have been reasoned with, duped, and dodged.
Riette wouldn’t have liked the idea of them being behind them, but at least she could sleep without the memory of their insides inverted.
Samantha had cut off most conversation. She had said that they were bad men, but when questioned why, she said she knew they wouldn’t have stopped until they had taken some or all of the Elves with them.
When she had stopped shaking enough to formulate words, Trinity had asked bitingly how she knew, and Samantha had told her that they wouldn’t have stopped because she wouldn’t have stopped either.
The rest of the journey was quiet.
They had barely passed anyone else. Riette thanked their luck for quiet paths through the forest. She didn’t want more blood on her conscience, not even when she knew it might have ended up in the same conclusion either way. Not knowing it for sure was fucking with her head, though, and she didn’t want or need that.
Eventually, Samantha stopped them in the woods and spoke quickly. “Listen to me. We’re close and have absolutely no room to fuck around.”
“We’ve seen what happens when you’re fucked with,” said Mekhi. His voice was tinged with disapproval. Mekhi, Riette knew, only resorted to violence w
hen the fight was imminent.
What happened with Samantha had seemed rash to Riette, and she knew Mekhi felt the same.
Samantha nodded, unfazed. “Good, then you all will listen.” She took a breath, and Damian put a hand on her shoulder.
The gesture wasn’t out of the realm of normal, but Riette hadn’t seen much physical contact between the two of them, so she watched them closely. Damian didn’t hold her long, but Samantha seemed to straighten after that, and Riette wondered if she had just witnessed emotional support or something else entirely.
“Warlocks are not to be fucked with. They will see a pack of Elves and think it’s a fucking buffet.”
Riette saw Trinity shudder, and she wondered what memories were causing her skin to ripple in goose flesh. Maybe she, like Riette, still saw the horrors of the slain men when she closed her eyes.
“They’ll know Cassian is mine,” Samantha said. “But if you all are going to survive this, they need to think you all belong to me.”
“I didn’t think all mages took Elf power,” said Corin. Her voice was small.
“They don’t. It’s a warlock thing. Just the dark mages like me will drain your power, but we’re the ones who will be guarding Zekariah’s prison. The good ones aren’t close to here. They don’t even know this prison exists—well, most of them don’t.”
“How many dark mages are guarding the prison?” asked Cassian.
“It’s a floating prison, so less than you’d think,” said Samantha.
“How the fuck?” Mekhi asked.
Samantha leveled them with a look. “Zekariah is no joke. They weren’t going to just shove him in a box for bad behavior.”
“How are we going to get to him then?” asked Riette. She thought about the precious book in her bag and how close they were to the one who could help her read it. But it all suddenly felt impossible, despite how close they were.
“Let me worry about that,” said Samantha. She looked at Trinity, giving her a onceover. “We need to keep her close.”
Cassian put his arm around her.
“Why?” asked Riette. She didn’t like the way Samantha said it.
She stopped a moment before speaking. “It’s something in her aura, I think. You can tell she’s been drained before. Many times.”
Trinity’s face turned red, and a scowl hit her lips.
“I’m not saying it to be a bitch,” said Samantha, sounding tired. “I’m telling you why you need to be careful.” She turned toward Guy. “Keep her with you at all times. If she separates, she’ll disappear, and we’ll never get all of the pieces of her back.”
“She should be by me,” said Cassian, eyeing Guy warily.
“No, you have to be by me and Riette, or this shit won’t be believable,” said Samantha.
Cassian started to speak, but Samantha didn’t let him finish. “If a dark mage owns an Elf, they are their highest treasure. No one will believe us if I let you be in the back, away from me.”
“And me?” asked Riette.
Samantha looked at her. “You’re a freak. You’re interesting. Too much so. It’ll cause too much attention.” She took a breath. “That, and you’re practically fucking glowing from the hit you took off that one.” She gestured toward Trinity. “I could find you in the dark right now.”
Riette could still feel the power trickling through her, like it was on a constant search for a place to fill her from the inside, but having nowhere to go, the journey didn’t end, and the tingle of it made Riette feel unsettled.
It had been days since she had taken on more of Trinity’s power, and it still felt fresh in her veins.
“It would be even more convincing if you let me try you,” said Samantha.
“Fuck off,” said Mekhi.
“No way,” said Cassian.
“It’s total bullshit,” said Mekhi. “She’s been angling at that shit since she got with us.”
“I’m sorry,” Samantha said. “When did you get your fucking degree in my people?”
“You’re fucking see through,” said Mekhi. “She doesn’t want you.”
“It’s not about want. It’s about fucking survival, something I think you all should be far more interested in than thinking about my evil intentions with your precious princess.”
“It doesn’t seem necessary,” said Riette. She resented them talking about her, and she wasn’t going to run into this willingly.
Samantha looked at her with her cheeks pulled in, as if she were biting one side hard with her teeth to keep from screaming out.
“I’m not saying this to get my jollies off,” she said quietly. Riette knew that Samantha was far from used to having to explain herself. “If I had someone like Riette in my possession and I didn’t have her power in me, it means this whole shit falls apart. No warlock would let her exist without sampling, not when her power ripples around her like a fucking halo.”
“And who knows what kind of power-tripping bullshit you’d get us all into if she does,” said Mekhi, but Riette stopped his tirade with a hand on his arm.
“Fine,” she said. “Fuck it.”
“Riette, you can’t do this,” said Cassian.
Riette turned toward Samantha. “Every moment we sit here is drawing attention to us, isn’t it?”
Samantha nodded. “I’m sure we’re being tracked already.”
Riette turned toward the others. “Then we don’t have time to waste talking about it. She knows about this shit. We don’t. If it has to happen, then it has to happen.”
She saw Samantha cover her mouth to hide a smile but play it off like she was wiping something away. Dark ideas formed in Riette’s head, and the air smelled different, like something had shifted. Had she gotten them here just to do this?
There was a strong possibility that that was the case, but Riette didn’t let it stop her. They were too close to Zeke to stop now, and without Samantha as their cover, Riette knew she’d end up in a cage instead of the prison, about to free a powerful criminal.
Riette walked closer to Samantha.
“Should we go into the woods more?” Samantha asked, and she couldn’t take the joy out of her voice. She sounded like a child counting down to their birthday, and Riette’s stomach turned with the idea of it.
“No, it happens here in front of all of us,” said Cassian. His voice was hard, and Riette knew he hated this and would have told her as much if she hadn’t already agreed.
Samantha frowned.
“He’s right. Here or nothing.” Riette nodded.
“Suit yourself.”
Riette moved directly in front of Samantha. Mekhi and Cassian moved to either side of her, and Riette heard the murmurings of the others behind her. Damian towered over Samantha, and when she looked at Samantha’s face, she found that she was no longer hiding her smile.
Riette didn’t need Samantha to say how long she had waited for this. Through kidnapping Corin, through the hundreds of miles it took to find her, she had wanted this moment.
Riette waited for her touch. She thought it would be something like it was with Mark. A touch, a ripple going through her to say something was happening, and her intention to let the energy go, but this was different.
For one, Samantha moved to slide Riette’s hair away from her neck, and Riette started and jumped back. Her nerves were on edge.
“What?” she asked.
“You’re fine,” Samantha crooned, and Riette heard Mekhi growl.
“Get the fuck on with it,” he said angrily.
Samantha smiled at him and moved closer to Riette again.
Riette tried to still her heart, but she felt as if she were sacrificing herself to a wild animal. She closed her eyes and tried to force her breathing to slow. She knew it would make it harder, that it would lead her to feel everything, but she couldn’t look at the happiness in Samantha’s face and not understand how wrong the whole act was, how violated she would feel. So she decided not to face it, not when she didn’t have to look
at it head on.
Then Riette felt Samantha’s lips against her collarbone, and she let out a gasp at the surprise of it.
Samantha kissed her, and then she felt her smile against her skin.
“Release it,” said Samantha. She had lifted her lips to make the request but laid them back down quickly.
Riette swallowed down a feeling she couldn’t, or didn’t want to, fully identify and opened the gates inside of her.
The power rushed to life instantly, and she felt it pour into Samantha and heard the sigh leave her lips as the connection was made.
Riette only let it last a second. She grabbed for Cassian’s hand, hoping he would heed her signal, and he wrenched the two of them apart.
Riette opened her eyes to watch Samantha swaying as if dancing to a song that no one else heard but her.
“Perfect,” she whispered.
And Riette felt anything but.
Chapter 19
The transaction—because that was how Riette had to think of it—left her shaky and unsure of herself.
When she had transferred power to Mark, it had felt decidedly less personal. He liked her, or at least seemed to enjoy her company, and she didn’t feel like part of her soul had been taken when they had had their brief interactions.
What had happened with Samantha had felt so much different. Invasive. Searing.
Riette didn’t know whether to be sick or to jump around in her own skin to force herself to feel more settled. It was like part of herself had rattled loose inside, and she didn’t have the parts or the knowledge to put the pieces back together.
She wondered if Samantha had stolen those pieces and if she would ever get them back.
Riette didn’t let herself think of what would happen if she could not.
They walked into dark mage territory with Samantha in front of everyone. Damian was still closely her shadow, but even he couldn’t keep up.
Riette kept looking at Samantha’s feet because some part of her felt like she would catch her floating above the ground if she looked hard enough.
She had noticed the rosy tinge to Samantha’s cheeks, the suddenly and overtly high levels of happiness in her disposition. She wondered if Samantha was of her own mind right then or if they were being led—now and not before—by someone who was no longer concerned with anything that was in front of them.