by Sarra Cannon
“The more you resist them, the tighter they will grow,” she said.
Rope snakes slithered around my throat, red fangs protruding from their gaping mouths.
“As long as you don’t try to break free, they’re practically harmless and will disappear in about an hour,” she said. She leaned closer. “If you do try to get away, though, you’ll be introduced to a very particular form of poison that I’m afraid you would never recover from. You’d be dead in minutes.”
I stopped struggling, but inside, my heart was breaking. Was I doing the right thing by staying here? How could I make any other choice?
“It has truly been a pleasure, my dear,” the ruby priestess said, smiling. She sat on the edge of the bed and stroked my hair, a move that seemed eerily familiar, as if she’d done this once before.
My body shivered at her touch, but I was powerless to move away.
“Before I go, I will make you one last promise,” she said, looking into my eyes. “I highly doubt I’ll ever see you again, but if, somehow, you do manage, despite all the odds stacked against you, to find your way home and save your friends, I will devote my life to you. I do like being on the winning side, after all, and if you can make it back from this, I will give you all the information you need to take down the rest of the Order of Shadows. I give you my word.”
Her snakes were coiled so tightly around my neck, I didn’t dare move to respond.
She stood and smoothed her skirt.
“Goodbye, Harper,” she said, smiling down at me.
She lifted her palms into the air and a shimmer of red dust seemed to fall on her from out of nowhere. Her body disappeared, but the door of the bedroom opened and closed as she left.
If I could just somehow manage to follow her with my astral projection, I could find the portal. If she’d been telling the truth that these snakes would only last an hour, there was some hope that we could still get to that portal before it closed.
But I had to follow her.
I closed my eyes, praying I still had some power left.
I reached deep inside, connecting to the core of my strength. Beneath the snakes coiling around my body, my skin buzzed with energy. I pushed deeper, seeking out any other source of power I could find. The grass, the animals, the trees. I begged for more.
I stilled my racing heart and focused on separating my spirit from my body. I poured all of my will and strength into this one last wish, but just as I felt my spirit begin to detach, a sharp pain shot through my head.
I cried out and felt the snakes coil tighter around my throat.
My spirit fell back into my body, and the last thing I remembered before passing out was the hissing of a snake in my ear.
Amethysts
Jackson
I paced the floor of my room late into the night, trying to think of any other possibilities the Order might throw at us tomorrow. We could be facing anything once the ritual began, and right now, I really couldn’t afford to lose anyone else. I had to find a way to keep them all safe.
Someone knocked on my door, and I ran to it, knowing no one would disturb me at this hour unless it was important.
Joost stood in the hallway, a worried look on his face.
“Sorry to wake you, but we finished going over everything at the asylum and that house,” he said.
“Come in,” I said, sweeping my arm forward. “I wasn’t sleeping, anyway. What did you find? Anything promising?”
Joost shook his head. He held something in his hand, but it was wrapped in a white cloth, and I couldn’t quite tell what it was. My heart tightened.
“What is it?” I asked. Had he found something of Harper’s?
He swallowed and handed me the wrapped item. “We didn’t find much,” he said. “But just before we left, something in the hallway upstairs caught my eye. It was wedged under one of the steps leading up to the third floor, and it was completely covered in dust, like it had been there for a long time.”
My stomach knotted as I unwrapped the small items inside the fabric, but what I found inside did not belong to Harper. I had a feeling, though, that it belonged to someone who wanted her dead.
“Oh my God,” I said.
I lifted the collar from the fabric and held it up to the light. Dust covered the stones, but there was no mistaking their color.
The entire collar was made of large, square amethysts.
Disappear
Lea
I returned to the throne room just as my mother announced that it was time for the feast to begin. The crowd slowly made their way to the dining hall, where I was expected to sit at my father’s side.
I searched through the mass of demons for the one who might be able to help me right now. I was sure most of the King’s Guard was here tonight.
When I finally found him, Ezrah was standing near the head table, guarding the council members who had already been seated.
“I need to talk to you,” I whispered.
“Good evening, Princess,” he said. He smiled, but behind his eyes was a warning.
I completely ignored it.
“Midnight,” I said. “I don’t care what you have to do to get away, but I need you to meet me in the south garden.”
“Of course your safety is our priority, Princess,” he said loudly as he nodded at a couple walking by. When they were out of ear-shot, he gave me a look of pure frustration. “You’re asking this tonight of all nights?”
“Tonight is the best night,” I said. “With everything going on, I’m not being guarded by my watchdogs. I can disappear for a while and not be missed.”
“Lea—”
“I’m begging you, Ezrah,” I said, holding his gaze with my own.
Finally, he gave a subtle nod and looked away.
My shoulders loosened, and I took a deep breath. My mother caught my eye as I turned and waved me over to the table.
“Where have you been, sweetheart?” she asked. “I was looking for you everywhere.”
“It seems everyone wants to talk to the long-lost princess tonight,” I said with a laugh, ignoring the angry expression on her face. “What’s for dinner?”
I sat down at my father’s side and for the next several hours, I played the role of the returned and faithful princess. As the hours of eating and dancing ticked by, though, I kept my eyes open, watching the patterns of my parents’ movements. I watched Kael make his rounds, talking to everyone. I noticed when he was watching me and when he wasn’t.
I noticed every guard who seemed to always be around when I turned to check. I wasn’t dumb enough to believe I had freedom tonight just because the handmaidens had not been allowed to attend the opening of the festival. I was certain either Kael or my parents had asked specific guards and servants to keep an eye on me.
And I couldn’t have anyone finding out where I disappeared to when the time came.
Shortly before midnight, I saw my opportunity.
Father had fallen asleep on his throne, and Mother was deep in conversation with several ladies I recognized from my childhood. Kael had his back turned to me at the moment, and I knew that wouldn’t last long. His eyes seemed to seek me out every few minutes lately.
The guards assigned to watch me would be the hardest to trick, but at this late hour, there was only one guard I had noticed following me. He pretended to look away any time my eyes fell on him, but he was always there, just a few steps away.
A demon stood next to him with a full glass of winterberry wine. I moved closer to the woman, and just as she stepped forward to greet another of her friends, I slipped my foot right in front of hers and stepped away so fast, no one noticed me in the chaos that followed.
The woman’s glass flew out of her hands, the crystal shattering on the pure obsidian floors of the main throne room. Wine went everywhere, splashing onto the fine dresses and suits of every demon in a small radius.
The guard turned to help the demon to her feet, and with a quick glance to make sure none of
the other players in my secret game of chess had moved, I ran.
As soon as I was out of sight, I shifted and flew through the hallways as fast as I could. There were no guards patrolling the main parts of the castle tonight. The crowd had been contained to the dining room and the throne room, so all of the castle’s guards had been stationed there for the evening.
By the time I stepped into the garden, it was a few minutes after midnight. At first, I saw no sign of Ezrah, and my heart beat faster. What if he couldn’t get away? What if he refused to take the risk?
Impatient, I tapped the heel of my shoe against the stones at the base of the fountain. I pressed my lips together, trying to keep my nerves under control, and when footsteps sounded at the garden’s entrance, I tensed with a mixture of hope and terror.
Ezrah stepped into the light of the spring moons and shook his head.
“I can’t believe you’re really here,” he said. “Do you understand how dangerous this is? What’s this about?”
“I understand exactly how dangerous this is, Ezrah,” I said. “But I’m finished with playing it safe.”
His eyes flashed with concern.
“Why do I have a feeling you’re about to ask me to do something even more dangerous than I could have imagined?”
“Because I am,” I said, excitement and hope building inside me. “I need you to take me to see Aerden.”
I Will Give You Mine
Aerden
Today’s training still wore hard in my muscles, and I lay across my makeshift bed and prayed for sleep.
In the distance, I could still hear the music from the festival. I imagined Lea dressed in a new gown, dancing with the demon she was now promised to. Was she as miserable as I was?
Or was she starting to get used to life in the castle again?
Once upon a time, she had been very happy there, dreaming of her future with Jackson. I could close my eyes and still remember the way her smile would light up an entire room. Even the seasons where six suns were out and shining could not compare to the smile on Lea’s face when she was genuinely happy.
I hadn’t seen that smile in so long, but I could still see it in my mind. That smile had kept me sane during my century of imprisonment.
But she never smiled like that anymore, and deep down, I knew I was to blame for her sadness.
Footsteps sounded on the steps, and everyone in our small cell sat up from where we were resting. It was late. The guards didn’t usually come back to check on us at this hour, so we were all on edge, waiting for the next hammer to drop.
After the training earlier, we were all exhausted. Whoever walked through that door, I prayed they weren’t bringing bad news.
To my surprise, though, it wasn’t Reynar or any of the regular guards. Instead, Ezrah appeared, his eyes locking with mine the moment he stepped into the cell block.
I stood quickly, walking to the door of the cell I shared with my teammates.
Ezrah made a show of jangling his keys and unlocking the door.
“Aerden, I need to see you outside,” he said.
My heart raced. If he’d taken the risk to come all the way down here this late at night, something must have happened. On the outside, I kept my head down and pretended to be a subservient prisoner. I knew that role well, and I was good at it, but inside, I was in a panic.
It seemed to take forever to walk past the other cells and up the stone steps to the arena’s holding area.
“What’s happened?” I asked as soon as I knew my voice wouldn’t be heard by the others. “Is Lea okay?”
“Just follow me,” he said sharply. “And keep your voice down.”
I wanted to take him by the throat and force him to tell me what was going on. The training and the aches, I could handle. I could even handle the constant sting of the whip. But I couldn’t handle waiting to hear if she was okay.
It took all my willpower to simply do as he’d asked and follow him quietly through the holding area toward the main entrance to the arena’s battlefield.
It was mostly dark outside, all the training lights from earlier having been extinguished and the light of the two moons lost in shadows. I opened my mouth to ask why he’d brought me here, but the moment my eyes landed on the woman standing in a patch of moonlight at the center of the battlefield, I lost my voice.
Please, don’t let me be dreaming.
The delicate skirts of her dress skimmed the dusty floor as she turned, and our eyes met across the darkness.
I nearly fell to my knees at the sight of her, and for a moment, we both stood still, hardly able to believe this was real.
She broke out into a run, one hand holding up the skirts of her long dress. I ran toward her, and when we met in the center of the battlefield, she fell into my arms.
Everything else vanished in the truth of her embrace. For this moment, there was no pain. No battle. No chains. There was only the feel of her body against mine.
I’d been so afraid I wouldn’t see her before the beginning of the games, when we’d have nothing but a distant gaze to connect us to each other. But she was here, her head pressed against my shoulder and her arms tight around my waist.
I lowered my head and brushed my lips against her perfect braids, wishing I could hold her forever, but knowing we might both be killed if we were seen together.
When she finally pulled away, she grabbed my hands.
“Are you okay?” she asked, her eyes sweeping up and down my body. When she noticed the fresh lash-marks across my chest, pain and anger shone in her eyes. She ran a delicate fingertip across one of the wounds, and I shivered at her touch. “Oh, Aerden, what have they done to you?”
“I’ve been through worse,” I said, laughing, but she lifted her eyes to mine and there were tears hovering at the edge of her lashes.
I ran my thumb across her cheekbone to catch the first tear as it fell, and she leaned into me, closing her eyes.
“Don’t cry, Lea,” I said softly. “We’re survivors, you and me.”
The light of the silver moon fell across her face, and her beauty in that moment was a gift I would never forget. When she opened her eyes again and looked at me, I knew that this was the woman she was always meant to be. The outward appearance of a true princess, but the eyes and heart of a warrior.
I was grateful her time in the castle had not changed that.
“How did you get here?” I asked. “Please, tell me you didn’t put yourself in danger coming to see me like this.”
“I had to see you,” she said.
“Has something happened?” I asked. “Are you safe?”
“I’m safe for now, but things are shifting, Aerden.” She looked away for a moment. “Tonight, I met a demon named Kael. I don’t know who he is or where he came from, but somehow, he’s managed to gain incredible power here in the city. These games were his idea, Aerden. And…”
Her voice trailed off, and my heart tightened in my chest.
“I already know,” I said.
Her eyes snapped to mine. “You do?” she asked, almost breathless.
“Prisoners talk,” I said, attempting to laugh it off, but coming up short. “Is he nice, at least?”
She shook her head. “He threatened me,” she said. “Not directly, but I felt it. He told me he was going to find a way to break me.”
“He obviously doesn’t know you,” I said. I swallowed back the anger that was boiling inside me. If he dared to hurt her, I would kill him myself. Twice.
She smiled, but I could see that he had shaken her. “I need to figure out where he came from,” she said. “And how he got onto the council after only being here for a few years.”
“Be careful,” I warned. “If he’s serious about these threats, he’ll be looking for any opportunity to hurt you.”
“Let him try,” she said.
“You should get out of here, Lea,” I said. “Have Ezrah talk to Andros and arrange something during the games, when everyone is distrac
ted.”
“I’m not leaving here without you,” she said. “Besides, I can’t go until I figure out what’s really going on with my father. Aerden, he’s different. You saw him the day we were brought before him. He’s sick, but I think it’s more than that. It’s like he’s cursed or something. Also, something your mother said to me tonight scared me more than anything.”
“You spoke to my mother?” I asked. “Don’t trust anything she says.”
Lea shook her head. “I don’t know. I think we’ve misunderstood her actions,” she said. “She told me that the council isn’t really making the decisions around here anymore. That’s why she couldn’t get you out of the dungeons when you returned.”
I looked away, not sure I could believe that.
“If the council isn’t making the decisions, then who is?”
She raised an eyebrow. “What if it’s Kael?” she asked. “Or someone we don’t even know about? I’m telling you something terrible is going on here, and I can’t help but wonder if it’s connected to the Order somehow.”
A sick feeling knotted in my stomach. If the Order somehow had control of this city, she had to get out of here. We both did.
“I’m going to find out what’s going on,” she said. She bit her lower lip, as if she were considering whether or not to say what she was thinking. “Your mother told me about the key, Aerden. Why did you give it to me when you knew it was supposed to keep you safe?”
I avoided her eyes. “You are the future queen,” he said. “You were marrying my brother. Your safety was more important than my own.”
It was the truth, but not all of it. I couldn’t bring myself to tell her the rest.
“She told me she bought it from a shaman in the borderlands,” she said. “The shaman told her it was a key used by hunters to pull demons through to the human world.”
