by Amelia Oz
"I would have done anything for him. I would have died for him. She wouldn't even live for him! He’s been imprisoned in mourning, all caused by her selfishness," she shrieked.
"Were you the one? Did you steal her coffin?" I shouted over the squall's roar. The wind died down infinitesimally as Tess stopped tearing at her hair long enough to fix wild eyes on me. She blinked, distracted from her tirade.
"You’re sharper than I thought you might be. I was the one who triggered the earthquakes in Istanbul that distracted Murad. I stole her body from the Tower and hid her coffin deep within Fontainebleau Forest. I couldn't stand watching him cry over her any longer. He wouldn't move on," she cried, a disbelieving look on her face. The irony of her statement seemed to escape her.
"The Fairy Queen found out. Fontainebleau Forest holds her summer home, so it was partially my mistake. She forced me to marry her insipid son in order to buy her clan's silence. It's too bad he's a mad prince now, locked away in her vaults to keep her kingdom safe," she said, a manic gleam in her eyes to match her cunning smile.
"But then one of her spies were captured and informed Murad that Lila was in Fontainebleau. He asked Clara and me to help him look. I barely had time to move her off to the wilds of America before he was sniffing all around fucking France looking for her."
I hoped she kept talking. The more she vented, the more time it bought me to try to get off this wall. Tess was such a cliché. All this for a man. If Alaric ever fell in love with someone else I would…what? A different pain flooded and I force myself to take slow, deep breathes as she continued to spill her guts.
"Poor Murad. He needed me then. Clara was busy helping Alaric manage the Primati, but Murad knew he could always count on me. Outside his grief, those years were glorious. I knew that one day he would see me as more than a friend," she recounted in a dreamy voice. I couldn't take that delusional smirk one more moment.
"He loves her still, you crazy bat," I shouted. I was thrust forward and then slammed against the wall so hard that my head cracked. Hot, wet liquid seeped down the back of my neck. I heard Amanda’s voice. Blood was power. It could fuel magick. Desperate, I focused on the wetness and gave it a try. Alaric's name became a silent chant. Odd, I imagined his voice, saying my name in return.
"Murad cares for me! One day he'll fall in love with me the way I want him to. But that won’t be possible with you in the world, reminding him of her and giving him hope. You were supposed to die, along with all the others. It was my secret pleasure—witnessing girl after girl die as the curse took effect." How had I ever thought Tess cared about me? Because I’d wanted to believe.
"Of course, once Murad found out that one of Lila's daughters survived with Sam and that you existed, things became more complicated. Do you know how sickened I felt to have to act surprised and thrilled to learn that you lived? Clara and Alaric made it impossible to catch you without exposing myself or my associates. I waited for seventeen years, wondering if you might also inherit a thread of Lila's power.”
“But you wanted him to marry me.” My wrist slid an inch.
"When Murad suggested his solution—to marry you—I wasn't worried. I mean, you could still fall in love with a human out of wedlock, right?” she suggested slyly.
"The enchantment would find a way to kill you off. Murad thought he was being noble, saving the life of his true love's last surviving progeny. He hopes one day you will have enough magick to find Lila. He doesn't believe she’s gone, my foolish King." Her face darkened and her lips pulled into a sneer.
"But then you had to make Murad fall for you. Knowing your marriage would be in name only was the only thing that kept you alive, stupid girl!"
"You're crazy! Murad doesn't love me like that!" I panted, barely able to manage my lips around speech as I fought the violent wind that pressed me hard against the unyielding wall.
"Liar! When I came upon you all in the labyrinth tonight and saw Murad stab Alaric, I knew he must have feelings for you. I didn't wait centuries just for some little gypsy trash to take him from me," she shrieked. I gritted my teeth and glared at the unhinged woman.
"That's racist! We are Romany," I shouted. She struck out with her Pagatio and a shard of wood cut my cheek open before impaling itself in my thigh. I screamed. This was not working. Anger did not seem to be sparking or fueling my magick.
My family tree gleamed. It would end with me. All of the names that came before me—their legacy would die. I imagined each one, all the way back to Lila. Women who lived too briefly, yet existed in order for me to be glued to this wall. It was all so wrong.
"Is there even a curse or was this all you?" Tess moved to the mural and caressed my ancestors' names with eerily affectionate strokes. The pressure lessoned on my limbs, and I wiggled my arms experimentally.
"Oh, the enchantment is real. Lila was the most powerful of us, followed by my brother. But he doesn’t care about power or responsibility. No, he’d rather remain airborne most of the time. Do you want to know what I think? I think that sensitive Lila cursed herself with an Everwish. A wish of sacrifice and so intense it comes true for eternity. Cursed herself with her guilt and pain. She couldn't forgive herself for unleashing Murad on the world as a monster, and she made you all pay. An unintentional side effect of her own self-hatred. Although, I might have helped a few of you along. Your parents, for example. They deserved it with their sickening love-conquers-all attitude.”
"You murdered my parents?" I managed. Tess lit up. She touched the tip of her nose and then pointed her finger at me with a wink.
"I sent wraiths to track Vivian down in San Francisco. Different from the ones circling this chapel, waiting for me to let them devour your flesh." I glanced at the darkened windows. Had it become night so soon?
"Your mom was the only one of any of you to show signs of real magick, and I realized what a danger she could become. She evaded my attempts for a while, but it wasn't enough to save her. You see, your parents were vulnerable once you were born."
Sick fury filled every cell in my body as I pushed and gathered energy near my heart.
"Did you know that Alaric saved you? He was too late for Lasho and Vivian, but he tore that car to pieces to extract you before it caught fire. Your mother had created a bubble around you, only able to protect you from the impact as they lay broken and bled out next to you. Did he tell you that? Oh. I see by your face that your crush has been holding secrets from you," she said in a sing-song, tsking voice. My stomach flip-flopped. Alaric had been there?
"I know how much you hate secrets. Come now, Stella. See things my way." Her smile was indifferent, her eyes cold. “You come across as so confident, but all you did back in the council tower was to cower beneath that table, allowing everyone else to fight for you. You’re nothing but another weak mortal girl, the last one to be exterminated.”
How had I ever thought her kind? She was a psychopath. Empathy and mercy were things she could never understand. Mercy. Bird-Taurus had shouted "Stone of Mercy" when we transferred. It made no sense. Mercy was an action, an idea. The only stone we shared knowledge of was the crystal he'd given me when in bird form. It was still in my pants pocket. I'd been keeping it close as good luck charm.
My hands were immobile at the wrist, but I could open and close my fingers. I visualized the lump in my right pocket, imagined the stone slipping free and landing against my right palm. The harder I thought about the small rock, the warmer my leg became. I let go of any other thought and envisioned the stone in my grasp. Like a magnet, it slipped from my pocket and into my hand. I felt it there, hot and pulsing. The heat crept up my arm. A new feeling slowly began to take the edge from my rage. I stared at the names on the wall.
All of those young women who never lived to see their daughters grow. All the daughters without mothers. Their lovers came from many countries and backgrounds, all contributing to the genetic melting pot that was me. What had Lila said back in her garden? Nature fi
xes a weakness by adapting. Was I stronger because of all the women and men who came after Lila and Sam? Mahari was pretty badass. I was the sum of them all, carrying me forward in time to this moment. The truth of it released something hard in my heart, compassion softening the walls of fear.
I was tired of fighting the current of wind that held me against my will. If this was my time then so be it. Nothing would change the past. The moment I replaced resistance with acceptance, the force of the air lessened, allowing my legs to move. My eyes popped open. That was it. My power lay not in fighting the elements but in uniting with them.
Things happened when I set my intentions to be one thing, unseparated. I sensed the air around me, seeing it as I never had before. Experimenting, I pulled the wind to me, imagining all the air in the room flowing into me and out the top of my head. I dropped to the floor instantly. Whoa.
Inhaling, I gathered energy from the air. Tess turned from the wall and saw me. Her arm began to rise, her Pagatio shining. "Stop," I shouted.
Tess paused mid-step. I blinked but she remained still, panic skittering across her face as her arm remained fixed in place. I'd actually made her stop. But for how long? If there was one lesson I learned from my vicious Romany cousins it was to give no quarter. The second you let someone bigger and stronger land the first punch, you were a goner. The trick was to attack when they least expected it and not let up until they called uncle and meant it. Anger returned, swift and bitter and I rushed her.
Seconds later, I sat astride Tess, using fistfuls of her hair to ram her skull against the stone floor while she scratched at my wrists. Even when she went limp, I couldn’t stop. "I told you—slam—no—slam—more—slam—secrets—slam slam—" I was panting. How long did it take to knock out an immortal? With a low moan, Tess disappeared, and my knees hit the floor. My palms pressed the cold stones and I shook off thick strands of black silken hair from between my fingers. Blood pooled on the flagstones, but it wasn't mine. I spotted the stone on the floor where it must have rolled in my efforts to bash Tess’s head into the floor. I scooped it up, feeling it grow hot.
I searched the chapel and spied Tess crouched upon a wooden beam beneath the arched ceiling. She shook her head as if to clear it. I stalked her, raising my voice.
"All of my ancestors had what you will never know, Tess. They found love. You will never know what that's like. All of your whining—my God, no wonder Murad only saw you in the friend zone. You are the most pitiful of creatures. Not only a woman obsessed with a man who will never return her feelings, you betrayed your sister. Your family. You deserve forever all alone." Even to my own ears, my words sounded like a curse. She screamed in rage and glanced towards the windows, at the shadows churning beyond the remaining panes of glass.
I couldn't allow her to release her demons. On instinct, my hand with the stone clenched into a fist over my head and I brought it down to my side. Tess toppled as if pushed by invisible hands. The roof also cracked, stone and dust falling to reveal hazy sky. Before she could rise, I gave into a new, prickling instinct, bringing air between my hands, pulling and shaping it into a spherical force. I kept winding the air until the tension was too difficult to hold. She got as far as her knees when I released the energy. Now it was Tess pinned to a wall. She clenched her Pagatio. I walked over and plucked it from her fingers. She glared with hatred, but the wind stole any words her lips tried to shape. Now it was me who smiled. I bared my teeth.
"Stella!" The doors to the chapel had been thrown wide. Murad and Alaric filled the doorway. As if released by an invisible wall, they rushed forward. Alaric appeared at my side in demon form, his wings shielding me from where Tess remained pinned to the wall. I was sweating now with the effort and losing sight of her caused me to release the air holding her in place. Her body hit the floor with a thud as Jing San, Amanda and Clara appeared behind Alaric.
"Are you hurt?" he growled.
"Just my heart," I said, ignoring the pain in my ribs and the dizziness from my head wound. His heated hands ran up and down my arms as he bent down to study my face. The fearsome creature that struck terror in the black hearts of demons with just the utterance of his name ran his nose along the bloody gash on my cheek, growling. His nearness tempted me to grab him and never let go. But this wasn't over.
I pushed gently until he gave in. Tess leaned against the wall before an immovable Murad. She reached out to touch his chest and he hissed in warning. Her hands dropped.
"I can explain, Murad. Stella's a traitor—" She actually pointed a finger in my direction. No, she didn't. I flicked my hand and Tess's lips sealed shut as air suctioned them together. Wow. I could do that? The others turned to me in unison. I shrugged. What?
"How did you do this, Stella?" murmured Jing.
"Tess knew Lila's daughter lived and she's behind the demons tonight. She killed my mom and dad," I responded in a dazed voice, ignoring the question I wasn't ready to answer.
"We heard. She will pay," Alaric responded, his obsidian gaze staking Tess where she remained mute against the wall. Murad’s form had shifted, his fangs extended, and Tess dropped her eyes beneath his red glare.
"We could hear everything outside the door but couldn't enter until the enchantments that sealed this room collapsed," Murad explained in a raspy voice. That must have been when I reversed the air. Had I impacted her spells as well? Perhaps my knocking her insensible had caused her to drop them herself.
"We killed the wraiths outside. At least we know who's been commanding them," Clara shared, looking at her sister as if seeing her for the first time.
"We also saw the tail end of you banging the Sky Queen's head against the floor," Jing added.
"Is it true?" Murad asked Tess, his voice quietly murderous. I released the seal on her lips. Tess tried to rally. I saw she tried. The look of disgust on Murad's face undid her. She lowered her head until her thick black hair concealed most of her face. Murad placed a fist next to her head, the stone wall indented with the pressure he applied. He spoke with measured wrath.
"You will be put to death for your betrayals, Tess. I’ll remove your head from your shoulders myself. How could you do this?” Murad’s voice was guttural.
“Excuse me?” Amanda edged closer to them.
“Before you sentence her, Noble King, perhaps we could ask her about where Marcus might be? He’s the sorcerer who killed Stella’s cousin.” I screamed at Amanda in my head. Scarlet! You don’t ask a vampire at the end of his rope for favors. Unless you're me. And then you do whatever the heck you want and worry about consequences later. Her question was logical, though. We still didn’t know where Marcus was and I wanted him brought to justice. Murad bowed his head, fist still pressed inches from Tess. He amended his threat.
“I can’t trust myself in this moment to ask anything of you. But I’ll have you tortured if necessary until you tell me everything your traitorous, black heart has done and who has helped you. And know this—I will marry Stella and she will rule by my side with no interference from you. The curse will be broken. You have failed."
"No," came a deep, snarling voice. Stunned, I looked up at Alaric. His eyes glowed as a blue flaming sword appeared in his claw-tipped hand.
"She is never going to be your wife. All our lives I have given you the best of me but no longer. Stella is mine." Incredibly, he seemed to grow even larger, moving so that he shielded me from Murad with his wings. Their soft downy feathers drifted across my cheek before he thrust me back even further behind him. Jing moved gracefully to Alaric's side, her sword pointed downward, but ready.
"What are you saying? You want the curse to take her?" Murad’s tone was astonished.
"I won't let it. She loves me and—I love her," he said. I staggered towards him. Clara put her arm around my waist and dragged me backwards with iron strength.
"That's the damn problem! That kind of love has led fifteen women and innocents to their deaths! How can you make the same mistakes?"
Murad shouted.
Alaric stilled with a fury that made my skin prickle with danger. “You doubt me, brother? I'm also immortal and can keep her safe. You aren't the only marriage option."
Tess used their discussion, and distracted attention, to edge away. Clara moved to block her exit and Jing shadowed her with a raised sword so that Tess was boxed between them.
"Stop," I muttered. No one seemed to hear me, so I pushed past Alaric and stepped between the two brothers. The air was charged with violence, but I repeated myself.
"I won't marry either of you. I'm not even eighteen year's old yet for cripes sake," I yelled. Murad's eyebrows rose into his hairline. Alaric just glared down at me bullishly. I allowed myself a moment to admire just how scary he looked before shaking my head.
"The curse is mine to figure out. No one else. I appreciate the offers, but they aren't necessary," I insisted. A piece of paper was not going to matter when I had true love at my side. Maybe one day that would change, but for now I was done with good intentions and a shielded life. They wanted me to grow old, but I wanted to live. Besides, Alaric's drive to protect me was unfair. I wouldn't be a victim he felt compelled to rescue by tying his life to mine.
I was not a fragile creature and I was not Lila. My life was my own, and I was about to live it on my own terms. No matter how long or short that would be.
Chapter 32
The World
Stella
he midnight-blue ball gown I wore was hands down the most daring piece of clothing I'd ever worn. The bateau bodice was a tight corset with cream-colored cutouts that gave the illusion of skin. It molded my waist into a tulle and silk skirt that sparkled with tiny crystals I suspected were diamonds. Mira kept trying to touch them, but Clara slapped her hands away. I smirked behind Clara’s back at Mira, happy to see there was someone besides Mahari that she feared. She flipped me off. Ah, family.
