Destined for Doon

by Carey Corp

  She should’ve seen it from my angle — but that horror would be her reality soon enough.

  One of the henchmen, sent ahead to scout the tree line, called for us to halt. “The mark of the witch is upon the trail,” he cried. “Her flowers swallow the path ta the Brig o’ Doon in darkness.”

  Sean MacNally peered into the trees. When he saw the flowers, he crossed himself. Then he took the axe from his henchman and handed it to me. “Time to prove yer loyalty, lassies.”

  For a moment I fantasized about chopping him in half. My thought must’ve been obvious, because Beardy clucked at me. He gestured toward his men restraining Duncan at knifepoint. “If you have any regard for Prince MacCrae, ye’ll march inta the limbus as ye’ve been told.”

  Duncan appeared unafraid despite the variety of blades pointed at him. His right eye — the one that’d taken his brother’s fist — was swollen and discolored. I wondered if I would ever see his ridiculously gorgeous, slightly imperfect face again. I didn’t even care if I survived as long as I saved him and his beloved kingdom. His image shimmered, and I blinked to clear my glassy vision. I wanted my last memory of him to be a clear one.

  Unable to help myself, I slowly crossed to my prince. The men who held him watched me carefully as I approached. As if he could read my thoughts, Duncan growled my name as a warning to keep away.

  I shook my head and took another step forward. With his hands tied behind his back and armed men on both sides, he was unable to stop me from fitting my body against his. I pressed my cheek gently against his jaw and whispered, “A night of lasts, remember?”

  I didn’t care that I was in full view of our captors. They already knew that Duncan MacCrae was my weakness. The only thing that mattered was that he knew it. “I’ve already said good-bye to Doon.” I pulled back to cherish his bangedup face — perfect brows, blackened eye, slightly crooked nose, amazing cheek bones, and lips worth dying for.

  “All that’s left is to say good-bye to you,” I whispered.

  “Don’t!” His velvet-brown eyes pleaded with me to stop. But it was the last midnight, and we were out of chances. Raising up on my toes, I placed my hands flat against his chest as I angled my mouth over his until we shared the same breath. My eyelids drifted shut. When my lips touched his, he turned to granite. His mouth refused to respond as I tried to steal one last kiss.

  Utterly humiliated, I stepped back. “Sorry,” I mumbled. “I maybe shouldn’t have done that.”

  “I’ll no’ kiss you good-bye.” He pierced me with his man of steel glare. “You’re goin’ to come out of this just fine. You were called here to destroy the limbus. As soon as it’s done, I’ll see you safely back to your chosen life. Just as I promised ye I would.”

  Duncan was right — a last kiss wasn’t in the job description. He’d made it clear all along that I was only here because they needed me to destroy the limbus. I’d let the bleakness of the moment play on my emotions, but now that the whole kingdom knew our Calling was a ruse, we no longer had reason to pretend.

  He wanted to move on with Analisa . . . And me? Maybe I would start collecting cats. Or better yet audition for Cats: the international tour. I could spend night after night lamenting what I’d lost in German until he was purged from my system. But in truth, I suspected I would never get over Duncan. I’d been mourning him since I was twelve years old. And I would never stop.

  CHAPTER 28

  Veronica

  Kenna turned to me, blinking back tears. But her show of emotion wasn’t the result of a poignant Austenesque kind of epilogue. In so many words, Duncan had told her to do her duty and get the heck out. I’d been positive he still secretly loved my best friend, but now I doubted those instincts. I moved toward her, the wounded look in her eyes making me want to both comfort her and sucker punch a particular tall, dark, and brooding prince.

  But before I could do either, Sean MacNally intercepted me. “This is it, girl.” He gave me a rough shove toward the limbus. “If yer really the queen, go fix it!”

  I stumbled, caught my balance, and spun on the leader of the mob. I had one more thing to do before I cashed in my ticket to Zombieland. “Not until you untie Jamie and let me say good-bye.”

  He narrowed his eyes, sweat dotting his scarlet cheekbones above his beard. “No.”

  I lifted my chin and stared him straight in his beady eyes. “I might die saving your sorry hide, Mr. MacNally. But if I don’t, I’ll still be your queen and you’ll wish you’d treated me with more respect.”

  He blanched. “Ye’ve got one minute.” He gave a curt nod of assent to his goons.

  The moment they cut Jamie’s bonds, he jerked out of their grasp and sprinted toward me. Picking up my gown, I ran to meet him and threw myself into his arms. He pulled me tight against his chest.

  “So this was your brilliant plan? Sacrifice yourself to stop the limbus?”

  “I — ”

  “I canna do this.” He drew back and cradled my face in his hands. “I’m not like my brother. I canna watch you walk to your death.”

  “That’s not how this ends.” I took his hands and enfolded them in mine. “I’ve seen it, Jamie. Kenna will break the curse. We just have to be brave enough to follow the Protector’s will.”

  “Do ye really think it’s going to be that easy?” His brows hunched over his eyes, his grip on my fingers verging on painful. “The limbus is pure malevolence. Anythin’ could happen in there. Did the vision happen to show you getting out alive?”

  I shook my head and my heart stuttered in my chest. The prophecy had ended with us breaking the stone. Was it possible the curse could take us with it? Suck us into its vortex of evil as the limbus drained away? For the first time, I let myself admit that we knew next to nothing about what we were about to face. But I pasted on a smile for Jamie’s sake. “No, but the rings will protect us. We’ll be — ”

  “Time’s up!”

  Jamie’s dark gaze intent on my face, he leaned in. Hyperaware this could be our last kiss, I closed my eyes and drank in the whisper of his breath before rough hands yanked me back.

  Two men restrained Jamie’s arms. Rage contorting his face, he twisted out of their grasp and spun, his fist smashing into a goon’s nose with a loud crack. He caught the other one’s punch just before it hit his face, countering with an uppercut that snapped the man’s head back and dropped him to the ground. The fight was over before I could take a breath.

  Jamie turned murderous eyes on the ringleader and rushed him. Duncan, still at knife point, yelped his brother’s name. Jamie hesitated mere inches from his target’s face. “If we survive this, MacNally, I’m going to take great pleasure in killing you.”

  Three men jumped Jamie from behind. One subdued him with an arm around his throat, while the other two secured his arms and forced him away from their leader.

  Now that Jamie was restrained, Sean followed. “We shall see about that, my laird,” he spat as he rammed a fist into Jamie’s stomach.

  Jamie’s face paled and the breath whooshed from his lungs.

  When Sean reared back to deliver another blow, I leapt forward and grabbed his meaty arm in a death grip. “Stop, you bloody coward!”

  MacNally whirled on me with clenched fists, bloodlust gleaming in his eyes. I braced for the impact, determined not to go down. But the hit never came. Instead, he spat, “I granted your request, girl. Now get to it.” He gave me a mighty shove in Kenna’s direction.

  I tripped sideways and bumped into my friend, both of us stumbling over our skirts. Kenna grunted as I grabbed her arm to steady us. With a glare at MacNally, I gained my balance and straightened my dress. I may not allow Jamie to kill the man, but letting him beat the snot out of the jerk was a definite possibility. I turned to Kenna. “All set?”

  Her face as white as snow in the moonlight, she held up the Arm o’ the Bruce in answer. She glanced over her shoulder at Duncan, who gave her a solemn nod. Then side by side we began to move toward the edge of th
e forest, the unnatural darkness waiting to swallow us whole. Cold curled in my gut and tingled over my skin.

  A visceral touch, like the brush of silent fingers, made me pause. I turned to find my warrior prince tied to a tree, a knife held against his ribs. His searing stare cut across the clearing and our eyes locked, the moment freezing in time.

  “Come back to me, love.”

  Like the first time he’d spoken to me in the parking lot of Bainbridge High, the deep timbre of his voice reverberated deep inside me.

  Promises of hope and security and courage flooded my soul as I backed away, holding Jamie’s face in my gaze as long as I could. Then, I turned and marched into the forest with renewed resolve.

  On the other side of the trees, Kenna took my hand, and the stench of putrefaction radiating from the limbus blasted into me. I gagged and covered my mouth with my free hand. Kenna made a choking sound as we staggered forward.

  At the edge of a line of black petunias we stopped. The undulating abyss on the other side was hypnotizing, like staring into the depths of the ocean — fathomless and utterly alien. A shiver ran through me. My stomach rolled and my vision spun. I reached in my pocket and squeezed the pendant until the points of metal pressed into my flesh. This was no time for a migraine.

  Taking a deep breath, I asked, “Ready?”

  “I guess.” Kenna glanced at me and then back to the murky wall. “I just wish I was wearing nicer underwear.”

  “What?”

  “I really don’t want to die in my granny panties.”

  “For the last time — we are not going to die.” I repositioned my hand so it was more firmly in hers. “Come on. Three steps and we’re in. Let’s count it off together.”

  We stepped forward, “One . . .” The rings ignited, and the stench faded into a minor annoyance.

  “Two . . .” The flowers shriveled under our feet.

  “. . . Three!” We stepped into the black hole.

  As soon as our feet crossed the border, the blessed Rings of Aontacht blazed, lighting the path before us, but that protection did nothing to block the wind ripping into our hair and tugging at our gowns. Leaning into the gale, we found the narrow path to the bridge. Gnarled trees arched overhead. Their naked limbs linked like a tunnel made of long, spindly fingers. Part of me knew we were safe, but some other more primitive portion of my brain screamed a warning signal. Run! Get out or die!

  To my right, a rapacious cry rent the air. I jumped and stepped on the hem of Kenna’s gown, our shoulders bumping.

  “Hey, we’re fine.” She held up our linked hands, the rings glowing like sparklers on the Fourth of July. “These puppies protect us, remember?”

  The desperate caw sounded again, closer. I jerked my eyes up, searching the branches above. There, just beyond the circle of our ring’s light, perched the most hideous creature I’d ever laid eyes on. Decomposing flesh peeled from its bones, and only a smattering of feathers peppered its remaining gray skin. The zombified crow cocked its head, voracious red eyes watchful.

  When we were directly under it, the bird’s desecrated wings spread wide, and with a bloodcurdling shriek it took flight. I jerked my hands up to cover my head, bringing Kenna’s hand with me. The beast circled the glow blazing from our rings. But before I could digest my relief, it dove straight for us.

  I screamed, pulled my hand from Kenna’s, and everything went black.

  Claws dug into my scalp. I spun in a circle, blindly swatting at the creature entangled in my hair. My hand connected with something slimy and wet as a burning pain exploded across my head. With another desperate tug, the crow came loose. I hurled it away with all my strength, and as I turned to flee, I smashed into an invisible tree.

  The vision had been wrong, I realized as I lay crumpled on the ground. We were going to die or become zombies. And worse, we were going to fail.

  CHAPTER 29

  Mackenna

  Failure is not an option. So get up before I pull you up by your tiara!”

  Vee lay huddled on the ground, babbling nonsense. She was covered in scratches, but safe for the moment. The zombie crow had lurched away, taking a long dark clump of hair with it.

  She teetered on the verge of hysteria, and I was right there with her. Ever since I’d first witnessed the undead crow, I’d had nightmares. Turns out my fears were not unfounded. The forest was full of red, beady eyes peering at us. I had to assume they were the limbus’s defense system, which meant there’d be more coming.

  “Get up!” I shouted.

  In an effort to reclaim the path, the fungus had begun to creep its way onto Vee’s gown as she thrashed about. Her head whipped one direction and then the other. “Kenna? Where are you?”

  “Right here.” The zombie crow hadn’t pecked out her eyes — to my great relief. Yet she stared sightlessly in my general direction. Why couldn’t she see — Of course!

  I bent down and slipped my hand into hers. The stench, which had been nearly unbearable, receded as the red and green glow of the Rings of Aontacht blazed to white.

  As if touched by Rapunzel’s tears, Vee blinked up at my face. She sighed, relief softening her features. Then, suddenly remembering where we were, she started to scramble to her feet. Holding tight to her hand, I helped her up. “You’re safe.”

  With large, haunted eyes, she wildly surveyed her body. Her tiara was hanging off to one side, her hair disheveled, arms scratched, and the limbus had begun to disintegrate the hem of her dress, but all things considered, she was okay. Satisfied that I was telling the truth, she took a calming breath. Her body trembled despite the resolution to be brave.

  “The crow?” she croaked.

  The cold wind nipped at my exposed skin, causing my teeth to chatter. “It’s g-gone — for now. But we need to keep g-going.” After an instant of hesitation she nodded vigorously.

  In our little bubble of protection, we continued along the path to the riverbank. Mere inches ahead of our feet, the fungus shriveled away only to swallow up the path in our wake. Our heavy skirts were a nightmare in themselves, but as much as I longed to rip away the bottom half of the fabric, I wasn’t letting go of Vee for anything.

  With each step, unholy things scurried in the underbrush. Every time I glanced behind, the number of beady, red eyes following us multiplied. As the light of the Rings of Aontacht illuminated the way, I caught sight of an undead squirrel. When the light caught the tip of its rotting tail, it shrieked and scampered off the path.

  We’d been foolish to go into the limbus without any weapons other than an unwieldy axe. If we’d thought to bring a knife, we could’ve easily hacked our skirts away — not to mention undead animals. As it stood, we were nearly defenseless and totally dependent on one another.

  When we found the Pictish stone, would we have to swing the axe in tandem? I was a whole head taller than my bestie, and although I didn’t know much about lumberjacking I knew we wouldn’t get an effective swing approaching it like a three-legged race or a bicycle built for two.

  The trail narrowed to the width of a deer track. Still gripping my hand, Vee shuffled awkwardly behind me. The rings ensured we were protected from the limbus, but skeletal remains of underbrush snagged our gowns with every step.

  The sound of rushing water grew louder. As I led us around a bend, the clearing for the Brig o’ Doon became visible through the trees. I gave Vee’s hand an encouraging squeeze. “We’re nearly there.”

  Ahead, I could see the bridge. Our side of the riverbank was covered in black slime and little black flowers that’d already made it halfway across. Vee’s vision had been dead on. In addition to destroying Doon, the limbus would attack Alloway. We were the modern world’s only defense against the zombie apocalypse.

  To the left of the bridge stood a four-foot-high tablet of stone protruding from the ground at a crazy angle. Little purple sparks — witch’s magic for sure — erupted from the surface. All we had to do to break the curse was chop the stone in half with the
axe. For the first time, I felt as if we might come out of this okay.

  Rustling at the mouth of the path drew my attention. While the whole forest bristled with zombie critters, whatever made this noise was significantly larger than a bird or a squirrel. It sounded more like an elephant or a bear.

  I made a shushing noise and froze in my tracks. From Vee’s blizzard encounter, I knew the occasional grizzly roamed the woods as part of the kingdom’s natural border protection. I seriously hoped we wouldn’t have to face down a zombie bear to get to the stone.

  Vee’s free hand dug into my waist as she peered around my side. Mirroring my alarm, she asked in a low voice, “What is it?”

  “Can’t tell,” I whispered as a shiver crawled its way down my spine. “But whatever it is, it’s big.”

  Her fingers tightened ever so slightly. “Maybe we can sneak past it.”

  Despite the sinking feeling in my chest that said otherwise, it was worth a try. Unwilling to risk another sound, I nodded. Ever so slowly, we began to sneak along the path. The light from our rings provided our protection, but it was also a giant beacon. If it did draw the creature, I hoped the divine force field, or whatever it was, would continue to hold.

  The noise grew louder as we crept into the clearing. Just as I stepped free of the woods, Vee gasped. Spinning around, I saw her terror-stricken face first. But then, in the dimness of the limbus, I discerned another face looming just above hers.

  Hunks of gray flesh hung from the emaciated face and one eyeball dangled precariously down its cheek. The other lidless eye gaped at Vee like something from the horror movie that’d haunted me since childhood. Its nose and lips were missing, along with its hair. Decomposing skin exposed yellowing bone all over the creature’s body. It still wore the tattered remains of pants, which covered most of the hips and thighs, and part of one rotted, flapping boot.

  The creature made a guttural sound and reached hesitantly toward Vee with a bony finger. It stopped just short of the light bubble and gurgled again. My stomach heaved as I realized it no longer had a tongue.