“Stop hurting my friends! Leave Ben alone!”
“Like I said,” she cried, “What are you going to do about it?”
I pushed my hands forward as to throw a fireball at her, but with Ben against her breasts, there was nothing I could do. If I killed Desmorelda, I would kill Ben too.
“Kill her!” Ben muffled through her breasts as Desmorelda let out an animated moan.
I felt tears fall from my eyes, as I didn’t know what to do. As Desmorelda used one hand to hold Ben against her breasts, she used her other to throw a ball of energy my way. The moment I saw her hand fly forward, I grabbed my stomach and lunged out of the way.
“Miranda! Go! Get out of here!” Ben screamed as his voice was muffled through Desmorelda’s skin.
As she continued to throw balls of energy, I continued to dodge out of the way as I protectively grasped my stomach. I looked towards the hall, debating whether I escape and save my unborn baby and myself or I stay and save the others. I didn’t know what to do, but as I looked around, dodging her blasts, I saw my family was lying on the ground completely unconscious as Desmorelda kept Ben pressed against her breasts.
“What do you want!” I screamed. “Please! Let me save my family. Let me have my son. I will do anything. I will give you anything. Please!” I plead.
Suddenly Desmorelda stopped and looked at me with a smile upon her face. She giggled and said, “I will tell you what...you and your stupid family can go...even that traitor Emerlee...but,” she chucked, “I will keep Benny as my own child, and Ben will make love with me, right here…in front of you!”
“I will!” Ben screamed as Desmorelda pulled him off her breasts and took a handful of his buttocks. “Let Benny go home with Miranda. I’ll stay. I’ll be your slave. I’ll do anything...anything you please.”
I felt tears in my eyes, as Ben offered himself to the evil witch. I shook my head but I didn’t know what to do.
With her tiny hand firmly grasped into Ben’s behind, she yanked him towards her, pressing his body against her naked flesh. She smiled, but then she screamed, “No! I want you both. I want you and your son. If your son is to be king, he will be my son, and I will be his mother!” She looked down at Ben, “You will be my toy, and you will make love to me now!” She howled in pleasure as she tore off Ben’s shirt and unzipped his pants.
“Please,” I begged, “please.”
“No you bitch!” Desmorelda screamed as she pulled down Ben’s pants, leaving him only in his underwear. “Ben will make love to me now; then you and your family can leave!”
I didn’t know what to do. We had traveled all this way to save my son, and now I would lose Ben too. I knew that I only had one option.
I threw my fingers forward and bottled up all my rage to create a powerful fuel. Desmorelda laughed at my threat as she tore off Ben’s underwear and began to pull him in. As I continued to power my rage, I sent fire to my fingertips and felt their warmth as the flame grew inside of me. When every ounce of energy was sitting just at the tips of my fingers, I saw Desmorelda smile and laugh as I screamed, “BEN, DUCK!” and I flung a giant fireball straight at Desmorelda’s head.
As the fireball flew straight towards Desmorelda’s face, I saw her disgusting dark eyes glare at me one last time, as her hideous smile continued to sweep across her face. Finally the ball of fire slammed into her head, decapitating her as her head exploded into the fire and instantly burned to ash. What was left of her body collapsed to the ground.
“BEN!” I screamed one last time as the fireball lit up the room.
Chapter 16
“Miranda?” I heard quietly as the glow from the ball of flames diminished into the air.
“Ben!” I cried as I recognized his voice and saw him lying completely naked on the floor near Desmorelda’s mangled body. I quickly ran to his side and saw that he was severely injured and covered in massive burns.
“She’s dead!” I cried, “We just have to find Benny,” I said as I stroked Ben’s hair.
“Are you okay? Is the baby okay?” He whimpered.
“I think,” I whispered. “Are you okay?”
“Just burnt. I’m in some pain, but I’ll be okay.”
I rubbed his shoulder and said, “I have to help Emerlee, Damon and Delia. They have to send Desmorelda to hell!
Ben weakly nodded his head and cringed in pain. I knew he was hurt badly, but I quickly ran to Delia and began to shake her awake. She was covered in bruises and blood, and as she opened her eyes, she looked to be in deep pain.
“Miranda,” she whispered, “Is the baby—”
“I’m okay,” I said quietly as she began to sit up. “Desmorelda is dead. You need to send her to hell!” Delia stood up, but I could see she was in a lot of discomfort. “Can you wake Emerlee? I’ll wake up Damon. I need to find Benny.”
Delia nodded her head as she walked towards Emerlee. I went to Damon’s side and began to wake him up. As soon as he saw me, he looked concerned and said, “Is Benny okay? Where is he?”
“I don’t know,” I said. “You need to send Desmorelda to hell! I killed her,” I cried as I couldn’t hide the smile on my face. Then I said, “I’m going to look for Benny now.”
As I left the other fairies to send Desmorelda to hell, I went searching through the cabin to find my son. I called his name and looked through every corner of the cabin. I searched under beds and even on the top of closet shelves, but he was nowhere to be found. After searching quite some time, I heard someone walking to my side.
“Ben,” I said softly as he stumbled towards me, “You should be resting. There are a few bedrooms. Why don’t you lie down?”
“I can’t rest until I see my son,” Ben said as he stood next to me and kissed me on the cheek. “I love you Miranda. I’m so proud of you for what you did.”
“I was terrified I hurt you,” I said as I began to cry, feeling the emotion of our journey weighing heavily upon my shoulders.
“It was the only way,” he said. “It was the only way to save our children,” he said as he rubbed my stomach. “I hope he or she is okay,” he whispered as he continued to gently massage my belly, as if he was trying to comfort the baby.
The baby could easily be Damon’s, but Ben already loved the child as his own. I was more than ready to find Benny, and as soon as the baby was born, return home to my unconventional family.
The two of us continued searching through the entire house, but my son was nowhere to be found. As the fairies continued their powerful magic, Nathen and my father began searching as well, but no one could find him. I felt tears begin to burn my eyes as I called out my son’s name. I was beginning to believe my worst nightmare was coming true, but it didn’t make sense for Desmorelda to demand to keep my son if he was dead. Then I realized we hadn’t seen Taylor either, and I knew something strange was going on.
As Ben and I entered a bedroom with a large comfortable bed, Ben sat down and I could see he was in pain. “Why don’t we rest up a bit?” Ben said. “You have been through a lot, and we have another child to think about too. Benny has to be here somewhere...I have a gut feeling.”
“I do too,” I said as the butterflies were still swarming through my tummy. “But I can’t rest now,” I said. “I have to find our son.”
Ben gently grabbed my arm and pulled me to sit down on the bed, “Just sit with me a moment. He’s probably hiding and scared,” he said as he groaned in pain. I could see Ben was hurting considerably and desperately needed medical care.
The two of us sat for only a few moments as my eyes continued to wander across the room. As I looked towards the white marble floor, I noticed a small line of imperfection leading from underneath a giant burgundy rug.
“Ben look!” I said as I quickly jumped to my feet.
I grabbed Ben’s attention, and he stood up quickly as I pulled the rug away. As soon as the rug was gone, the imperfection turned to a cut in the marble—a giant square.
“Miranda!” Ben
cried in excitement, “It’s a secret door. It has to be! I bet he’s hiding down there!”
I smiled in happiness, ready to pull open the trap door and hold my son. The two of us glared at the carved slab of marble for quite some time, trying to figure out how to open it. I looked around the room, searching for some clue as to how the secret door would open.
There was a large marble fireplace sitting adjacent to the bed. I quickly walked towards it, hoping to find a way to open the trap door. On the mantle stood a large clock and a vase of flowers. I studied the two objects for a few moments. I lifted the vase of flowers and even the clock, but nothing happened. I was about to look elsewhere, when I realized the clock was not working.
“The clock!” I cried as I pointed towards it.
“You’re right,” Ben said as the two of us studied the clock.
The clock was made of solid cherry wood and had a class door covering the timepiece. I opened the glass door and studied the interior of the clock for only a moment, before gently pressing the hour hand. Nothing. The hand wouldn’t even move. I quickly tried to move the minute hand, and to my delight, it gently moved to the right, until it was turned to fifteen after. Ben looked at me and smiled as he heard a soft buzzing and saw the marble square begin to slowly lift off the ground.
As the marble square rose from the ground and slowly moved forward, Ben and I creped towards the empty floor and stared down. There was now a staircase where the marble square had previously been.
I smiled at Ben and said, “Lets go get our son!”
Ben had an enormous smile upon his face, as he took my hand in his, and we carefully descended down the stairs. The stairs were made of concrete and seemed to go on forever. As walked down the staircase, we were led into a dimly lit area, which reminded me of a basement. The room had a damp feel as if we were back in the cave, but the walls and floor were made from concrete. As we walked down the last stair and entered into the room, the stench of mildew loomed the air.
The room was completely made of concrete, yet it was completely empty. Ben and I looked at one another in confusion, as we shivered from the chill of the damp room. As we turned around, we noticed a small entryway underneath the staircase; it wasn’t much taller than Ben.
The two of us walked through the entryway, and into a narrow concrete hallway, which could make anyone claustrophobic. Unlike the rest of Desmorelda’s cabin, the strange basement was dark, cold, wet and plain. There was no decor, no furniture, nothing. It was like an empty box of concrete, but Ben and I continued on, knowing we had to find our son.
When we reached the end of the hallway, there was another entryway that led to another room. Unlike the rest of the basement, this room had wood flooring and painted walls and was lit brightly. As we entered the room, we could see it was a small sitting room. It was not as eccentric as the castle or the cabin, but it was plainly decorated and comfortable. There were a few doors leading to other rooms, and just as I was about to open a door, I heard footsteps coming from one of the rooms. My heart began to race in excitement.
Suddenly the door opened and Taylor stepped out.
“Taylor!” I cried, “We’re safe now, we can go home.”
Taylor smiled at me; it was the kind of smile he flashed in front of me before we had taken his powers away.
“Well, well, well...lookie who’s here!” Taylor chucked.
“Where’s Benny?” I said, feeling confused by Taylor’s personality change.
“Oh you came for Benny,” Taylor laughed.
“Just tell us where our son is,” Ben pled in a patient tone.
Suddenly another door swung open, and I was standing face to face with a little boy with blond hair and blue eyes similar to his father's. It was my son.
“Benny!” I screamed.
I looked at Ben, as the biggest smile I had ever seen washed across his face. He quickly wiped a tear from his eyes, as he didn’t want to start a scene.
“Momma!” Benny yelled as he ran towards me.
But just as he ran from the doorway, Taylor reached out and grabbed him, as his demented smile never left his face.
“Momma!” Benny cried again. “Please let me see my momma!”
“Now what did I say boy!” Taylor snapped.
“Please, Grandfather,” Benny, pled.
“Taylor, please let me see my son,” I cried. Taylor only smirked
My heart raced as Taylor kept my son away from me. Fear washed across my little boys face, and I walked towards him so I could hold him in my arms.
“Stay back!” Taylor cried.
“He’s scared!” I whimpered, “Please…please let him go. Let me hold him. I’m his mom.
“Momma,” Benny said quietly as his eyes begged me to take him from Taylor’s grip.
I walked forward once more and reached my arms out to my little boy, but suddenly Taylor pulled a knife from his pocket and held it against my little boy’s neck.
Ben lunged forward, but Taylor said, “One more step and I'll slit his throat!”
Tears were falling from Benny’s eyes as he was terrified by Taylor’s actions.
“Taylor, please!” I begged. “He’s your grandson. He’s your flesh and blood. Don’t hurt him.”
Taylor only laughed and said, “If I can’t keep him, I’ll kill him.”
I felt tears boiling in my eyes, but I didn’t want my son to see my fear as I quickly wiped them away. All I wanted to do was hold my son in my arms and take him home to where he belonged.
I stared deep into Taylor’s blue eyes, trying to understand how he could be so evil. We had removed his vile; he had no reason to act the way he did. The last I had saw Taylor, his personality had been completely gone. I knew the Queen had done something to make him act this way.
I tried to plea once more, “Taylor what do you want. I will give you anything. I have power and money. I can give you anything you want. Just tell me. I will give you a million dollars if that’s what it takes.”
Taylor only laughed and said, “I don’t want your money and there is nothing your power can do for me.”
“Then what do you want!” I cried as Taylor pressed the knife against my son’s throat.
“I want your son! I want him as my own!” Taylor hissed.
“You can have me!” I cried. “I’m your daughter. I’ll stay here or we can go wherever you want! Let Benny go with Ben, and I’ll stay with you. I’ll never leave, I promise!”
“You're not my daughter! Not anymore you self righteous bitch!” Taylor screamed.
The sting from his words sent chills down my spine and I felt tears in my eyes, but I quickly wiped them away once more. I couldn’t do this in front of my son.
As Ben stood just behind me, he said, “Please Taylor! Please. I’ll stay behind and be your slave. Miranda has money. You can live a life of wealth and luxury. I will be your personal slave...you can torture me, beat me. Just let Benny go!”
I hated the words coming from Ben’s mouth, but I didn’t know what else to do. Taylor wouldn’t reason with us, and he refused to exchange Benny for anything.
Taylor smiled by Ben’s offer and even looked to consider it, but he said, “No. I want the boy.” Taylor paused as an evil grin washed across his face. “All I wanted was a child, so I could start a tribe of my own. I wanted what you have over in Pine Lake,” Taylor stared deep into my eyes and said, “ and it was all supposed to start with you Miranda! Your mother, you and I.”
“But you took my mother. You used your powers to make her love you. It wasn’t real love!”
“It doesn’t matter!” Taylor hissed as he pressed the knife against my son’s throat even harder.
“Taylor, you’re hurting him!” I screamed as tears rolled down Benny’s eyes and blood began to drip from where the knife sat.
I began to shake as sweat dripped from my forehead as I watched my little boy being hurt by the man who was supposed to be my father.
Taylor realized what he was doin
g, and pulled back the knife some. I breathed a sigh of relief, but this man horrified me. I had heard so many stories of his horrific actions, but I couldn’t believe he would hurt a little boy—his own grandson.
When Taylor calmed down, I said, “Tay—Dad, come home with us. You can be part of the family. You can see my children as you wish. We will be the tribe you always wished to have.” I was lying to him as after his actions towards my son, I would never allow him near by children, but I would say anything to him at this point to get my son back.
“I’M NOT YOUR FATHER!” Taylor screamed as he sliced into my son’s skin again.
Benny began to cry in pain as more blood dripped down his neck.
I looked at Benny and said, “It’s okay baby. It’s okay. Don’t be scared.”
As I tried to calm my son down, I felt terror circulating inside. I didn’t know what to do. I had to keep Taylor calm, and I had to come up with a plan. I didn’t want to kill my biological father, but at this point, I had no other option.
Ben stood still behind me as Taylor continued to speak again, “You’re not my daughter. That self-righteous man you call your father—you can have him. You were mine—my daughter, but your piece of shit stepfather took you away from me twice and raised you to be just as self-righteous as him. The first time your father came for me, he took your pregnant mother and killed me. I loved your mother, she was mine!”
I wanted to argue and disagree and tell him what he did was wrong, but I stood still and listened to keep him from hurting my son.
Taylor continued, “Then your god forsaken father has the nerve to bring me back from the dead!” Taylor smiled and shook his head. “I gathered the few friends I had left and we returned to our land only to find your dumbass dad burned down our home! You were only a baby...only a few months old. You were mine—my child! I only took what was mine and returned to my home. We were going to rebuild a home on our land, and I was going to raise you to be just like me! I didn’t care about your mother anymore, I only wanted you—my only child.”
The Portal to Sidhe: Book 2 Page 19