The Runaway Witch (The Cursed Prince Book 2)

by Teresa Roman

  “That’s a good question,” Maria replied.

  “It’s Peter’s accomplice. I’m certain of it,” I said. “She stole Grace’s memories the same way Peter stole Willow’s father’s memories. Then she made it look like Grace killed herself to cover her tracks.”

  Maria nodded in agreement. “She took Grace’s form so she could come after Willow.”

  I met Delilah’s panic-stricken gaze with my own. There was no point in stating the obvious. Willow was in terrible danger. “We need to find Willow. Did she tell you where she was going?”

  “Just that she was going out for drinks with Grace. But this is a college town. There are tons of bars. Willow could be at any one of them.”

  “Dammit,” Maria muttered. She looked at Delilah. “I’m guessing we have you to thank for my failure to scry for Willow.”

  “Yes. But in my defense, Willow had good reasons for not wanting to be found.”

  “Enough about that,” I said. “Once Willow is safe, she and I will have a chance to sort out our differences. But first we have to find her. Do either of you have any idea how we can make that happen?”

  “I do,” Delilah said. “The spell Willow used only blocked Maria from finding her. I can still scry for her.”

  “Then what are we waiting for?” I asked.

  “Come,” Delilah said. “Follow me.”

  She led us up two flights of stairs and into an attic. I recognized it as the room Willow had been in when I’d reached out to her telepathically. Her scent filled the room. So close. So close. But close wasn’t good enough. We needed to find her, and we needed to find her quick.

  Delilah laid a map down on the table and dangled a crystal over it with a shaky hand. Nothing happened. “I’m sorry, I haven’t done this in a long time.”

  “Focus,” Maria said.

  “It’s not the easiest to do that right now.”

  “But you must. For Willow.”

  Delilah nodded, took a deep breath, and closed her eyes. A moment later, the crystal began to sway ever so slightly. Time seemed to stand still as we all waited for the crystal to show us Willow’s whereabouts. Finally, it landed on the map with a loud thud.

  “That can’t be right,” Delilah whispered. She lifted her head. “It says she’s in the woods just off Route 13.”

  “Actually, that makes perfect sense,” I said. “C’mon, we need to go.”

  I raced down the stairs with Maria and Delilah at my heels.

  “What’s going on?” the woman who’d answered the door earlier asked.

  “It’s Willow,” Delilah replied. “She might be in danger; we need to find her.”

  “I’m going with you.”

  “No,” Delilah told her. “It’s better if you stay here, just in case Willow returns.”

  “We have to hurry,” I muttered.

  Delilah’s wife must’ve heard the urgency in my voice. “Okay,” she said. “I’ll stay. But call me as soon as you find her.”

  We rushed into my car, and I sped away, praying that we’d reach Willow before it was too late.

  Chapter 22

  Willow

  The gashes in my arms burned so fiercely that it was almost impossible to think about anything besides the pain. And yet, through the fog, Nicolai crept into my thoughts. Peter’s mother, pretending to be me, would lure him to her. Then she’d kill Nicolai and there wasn’t a damn thing I could do to stop her.

  Breathe. Just breathe. I tried to clear my mind and push away the panic that threatened to consume me. The succubus had said I wouldn’t last the night. I wanted to be strong, to meet death with a brave face, but this wasn’t how I imagined my life ending. I did not want to die alone, tied to a tree in the middle of the woods. I wanted a chance to say goodbye to the people I loved. But, oh God, I also wanted the pain to stop. Death was the only thing that would bring an end to it. Unless someone found me first.

  I refused to just give up. I had to do something.

  “Help,” I screamed so loud that it made my head hurt, but it was the only thing I could think to do. Perhaps there were campgrounds nearby and people who could possibly hear me if I was loud enough. “Can anyone hear me?” No response. I tried again anyway. I shouted for so long that eventually my voice went hoarse. The succubus had chosen well. No one would find me.

  I struggled against the ropes tied around my wrists, hoping to loosen them so that I could run for help. The more I tried, the weaker I felt myself getting. The pain from the gashes on my arms had spread, and now all of me felt like it was on fire. My blood had carried the poison from my arms to the rest of my body. Soon my time would run out.

  I cried out again, “Someone, please, help me.” Tears streamed down my face.

  Death would be a mercy. I felt like I was being burned alive. The succubus wanted me to die this way instead of the way her kind usually killed. Feeding on my soul would have been too easy. She wanted me to suffer. I tried to breathe through my pain, but that didn’t help. I screamed as agony consumed me.

  Somewhere through my tears and cries, I heard something. The sound of people shouting.

  Half-convinced that I was hallucinating but at the same time clinging to a shred of hope that someone was out there, I called out, “Help,” with the last bit of strength I had left.

  “Willow.”

  Had I really just heard my name? It couldn’t be. I knew that voice. It was Nicolai’s. But there was no way that he could have found me out here in the middle of nowhere. My mind had to be playing tricks on me again.

  I opened my mouth to cry out for help again, but no sound left my lips. My head felt heavy, like my neck wasn’t strong enough to hold it up. Through my haze, I registered that someone was talking to me. A man. Whoever it was, he held my head in his hands, lifting it so I could meet his gaze.

  “Willow,” he said. “Open your eyes. Look at me.”

  “Is it really you?” I asked. It couldn’t be. Was I already dead?

  “It is. You’re safe now. You’re safe.”

  I felt a tugging sensation as someone pulled on the ropes that bound my wrists. I tried to talk, to ask what was happening, but I couldn’t seem to form any more words. My lids fell as I gave up the struggle to keep my eyes open. Someone said my name again, but before I could reply everything went black.

  I opened my eyes to find that I was no longer in the woods. I tried to turn my head so I could sort out where I was, but I was too weak to do even that.

  “You’re awake.”

  “Delilah,” I said, recognizing her voice. “What happened? How did I get here?”

  “You don’t remember?” She sat on the edge of the bed and took my hand.

  I remembered some, even though I wanted very badly not to. “Grace wasn’t Grace,” I said, biting my lip to keep from crying. What had happened to her? I was too afraid to ask.

  “Shh, Willow. Don’t think about that right now.”

  “I thought I heard Nicolai’s voice. Was he there, in the forest, or was it another dream?”

  “No.” Delilah shook her head. “It wasn’t a dream.”

  “Then where is he now?”

  Delilah let go of my hand and stood.

  “Where are you going?”

  “To find Maria. She can explain things better than I can.”

  “Wait a minute. Maria is here?”

  Delilah dashed out of the room without answering. A minute later she returned with Maria at her side.

  I tried but failed to sit up. “Where’s Nicolai?”

  Maria sat down beside me and stroked the top of my head. “You need to rest, Willow.”

  “Why won’t either of you answer me? Where is Nicolai?”

  Maria shook her head. “I don’t know.”

  “What do you mean you don’t know? Delilah said he was here.” Had he left already? Did that mean he didn’t want to see me? It was what I’d wanted, but the thought still hurt.

  “You were in bad shape when we found you, Willow.
We got to you in the nick of time and … and thankfully, I was able to heal you,” Maria said, stumbling over her words. “Once Nicolai was certain that you’d survive, he ran out of here, vowing to find who’d hurt you and make her pay.”

  I felt the blood drain from my head. “And you just let him go? How could you?”

  “There was nothing either Maria or I could do to stop him,” Delilah said.

  “She was a succubus, Maria. Peter’s mother. She looked and sounded just like Grace.” I swallowed the lump in my throat as I thought about my best friend who I knew was dead. Pain tore through me, but I pushed it out of my head. Nothing would bring Grace back, but perhaps I could save Nicolai. “She’s very powerful and very angry. She wants revenge for her son’s death. When Nicolai finds her, she’ll kill him.”

  “You should have a bit more faith in him than that,” Maria chided.

  “How long has he been gone?”

  Delilah and Maria glanced at each other, silently deciding which one of them would answer my question.

  “Well?”

  “Not long. Perhaps an hour.”

  “An hour?” I managed to pull myself into a seated position. I threw back the blanket and turned to get out of bed. Delilah put her hands on my shoulders. “Just where do you think you’re going?”

  “To find Nicolai. I can’t lie around in bed knowing that he’s out there, possibly hurt or worse. I need to do something.”

  “There’s no way I’m letting you leave this house,” Delilah said. “Not when I came so close to losing you.”

  “Frederic gave Nicolai the impression that you no longer cared for him.” Maria clasped her hands in front of her. “When he returns, he’ll be pleased to know how wrong his brother was.”

  “Nothing has changed. If Nicolai makes it back here—” I couldn’t finish my thought. The idea of something happening to him was like a knife in my gut. This wasn’t supposed to happen. Nicolai was supposed to return to Sarabia with his brothers. He was supposed to reunite with his father and the rest of his family. He was supposed to get married, have children, and live happily ever after. That was why I’d left Beaver Falls. So he could forget about me and one day have all those things. Instead, he was hunting for a powerful succubus. One he would’ve never crossed paths with if it hadn’t been for me.

  “You mean when Nicolai makes it back. Because he will make it back,” Maria said. “I have no doubt about that.”

  “How can you be so sure?”

  “The element of surprise will work in Nicolai’s favor. The succubus has no idea that Nicolai found you tied up in the woods. He will track her down and attack before she sees him coming.”

  If Nicolai failed, if Peter’s mother sensed his approach, then he would lose any possible advantage and would be doomed. She’d use her power to seduce Nicolai and drain his strength. Just one kiss and he’d be helpless. The idea made me sick to my stomach.

  “Why don’t I make us all something to eat?” Delilah asked. Food seemed to be her answer to everything. “Perhaps Maria can help you get washed up while I prepare everything.”

  I was still wearing the same dirty, blood-stained clothes I’d put on before meeting Grace. No. Not Grace. The succubus. I lifted my head. “What happened to Grace? The real one. Do you know?”

  Maria turned her head. “Perhaps now isn’t the time—”

  “She’s dead, isn’t she?”

  Maria nodded. “I’m sorry. Nicolai and I went to her house to ask her if she knew where you were, but by the time we got there it was too late.”

  I bit my lip to keep from crying.

  “How did she die?” I asked, even though I was pretty sure I already knew. Probably the same way my father did. Peter had fed on my father’s soul until there was nothing left of him but his body. The succubus must have killed Grace the same way.

  “We found her in the bathtub with her wrists slit,” Maria said. “But I don’t think that’s how she died. Peter’s mother must have fed first and stolen Grace’s memories. She covered up what she’d done by making it look like a suicide.”

  The knife in my heart twisted. Grace was so full of life. The fact that someone—no, not someone, Peter’s mother—made it look like she no longer wanted to keep going crushed me.

  “This was why, wasn’t it?” I managed to say despite the lump in my throat.

  “Why what?” Maria asked.

  “Why my mother bound my powers,” I replied. “She knew that having them meant things like this would happen.”

  “I can’t speak for her, but I imagine so,” Maria replied. “But in the end, your mother was wrong. Despite her efforts to protect you, Peter sensed your dormant powers. If I hadn’t unbound them, there’s no telling what he would have done to you.”

  It was all so much to process. Grace, my best friend, dead. Nicolai hunting for the succubus who’d almost killed me. Thinking about it took my breath from me. “I need a few minutes to myself.”

  Maria hesitated, then stood. “Promise us you won’t do anything stupid,” she said, looking down at me.

  “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  “No going after Nicolai. Do you hear me?”

  “Even if I wanted to, I couldn’t.” The image of the succubus’s clawed hands flashed in my mind. Even the memory of the pain they had caused me was excruciating. I shuddered.

  Maria frowned. “Is everything all right?”

  I wasn’t sure things would ever be all right again. First my father, then Grace. The body count kept piling up. Pain and death seemed to follow me like a black cloud. But I kept that sentiment to myself. Instead, I nodded and mumbled, “Yes.”

  Maria walked away and closed the door behind her. After she left, I managed to get on my feet and slowly peel off my dirty clothing. I hobbled down the hallway to the bathroom where I turned on the shower. As soon as the water was warm enough, I stepped into the tub. The water washed the dried blood off my body. I watched as the rust-colored water disappeared down the drain. The wounds on my arms had healed, leaving only faint scars. I ran my hands over them, hardly believing that only a few hours ago that skin had been flayed open and filled with poison.

  The warm shower felt nice, but I didn’t have time to linger in the bathroom. Maria had ordered me not to do anything stupid, but Nicolai needed me, and I had no intention of failing him like I’d failed my father and Grace.

  Chapter 23

  Nicolai

  I’d been angry plenty of times, but my rage at seeing Willow so close to death was like nothing I’d ever experienced. The succubus had destroyed Willow’s poor arms. The pain must have been dreadful. I wished I could turn back time and take it from her.

  A familiar energy pulsed through my body, but instead of yielding to it, I fought back. I took Willow’s head in my hands and said her name. She replied with her last ounce of strength. By the time Maria and Delilah finished untying the rope that bound her wrists, she was completely unconscious. Stay with her. The wolf wanted out. He wanted to find the monster who’d hurt Willow and make her pay, but that would have to wait. I lifted my mate in my arms and ran with her to my car.

  I drove like a madman while Maria and Delilah sat in the back with Willow, chanting spells and shoving healing potions down her throat. Once we returned to Delilah’s home, I brought Willow inside and laid her down on her aunt’s bed. She had still not woken up, but the blood had stopped dripping from her arms, and the gashes looked like they were beginning to close. Though they looked dreadful, they weren’t what had me the most worried. I could smell poison running through her veins, and I worried that even Maria’s magic wasn’t powerful enough to overcome it.

  “Why isn’t she getting any better?” I asked.

  “These are no ordinary wounds,” Maria replied, confirming what I already knew to be true.

  “She can’t die,” I said. “Do you hear me?”

  “Then be quiet,” Maria snapped. “I need to focus.”

  Maria reached for Deli
lah’s hand. “Lay your other hand on her heart,” Maria commanded, “and then repeat after me.”

  Delilah did as Maria instructed. Both she and Maria closed their eyes and then began to chant.

  A corruption strong and sure,

  turn this woman’s poisoned body pure.

  Over and over they chanted those words, yet nothing seemed to be happening. Sweat broke out on Maria’s brow. She stopped using English and repeated the spell in Sarabian instead. Delilah managed to keep up, and after what felt like forever, their hands took on a faint glow. I did my best to remain patient, even though my skin was crawling. The minutes ticked by slowly and painfully, and just as I had reached my last shred of hope, Willow gasped. A substance, pus colored and just as foul smelling, escaped from her, wafting from her open mouth and upward before dissipating and then disappearing completely.

  “Was that the poison?” I asked.

  Still focused on Willow, Maria and Delilah ignored me.

  “Why isn’t she opening her eyes?”

  “Be patient,” Maria said. “She was close to death when we found her.”

  “Will she be all right?”

  “Yes,” Maria replied.

  For the first time since we’d found Willow, I allowed myself to believe it. The wounds on her arms were closing, and the color returned to her cheeks. I clasped my hands behind my back and began pacing. Delilah put her hand on my shoulder. I knew what she was going to say, but I didn’t want to hear it. I spoke before she could. “Would asking for some time alone with Willow be too much?”

  “Of course not.” Delilah glanced at Maria, who got up from the bed.

  “I see those wheels of yours spinning,” Maria said. “Please don’t do anything crazy.”

  She walked out of the room without waiting for a response. Delilah followed. I sat down beside Willow. Even with makeup streaked on her cheeks and her arms covered in dried blood, she was the most beautiful woman I’d ever seen. I reached for her hand and almost gasped at the feel of her skin against mine.