by Carly Fall
He slowed his downward trajectory with his wings and gently landed on the edge of the rock. After studying the situation for a moment, he didn't sense any trickery from Ulric. Whatever this was, it seemed it would be the three of them battling it out. He smiled, liking the odds.
As he glanced at Arabella, he longed to go to her, swoop her up, and get them out of there. However, he also knew this had to end right here, right now, or she'd never have any peace in her life.
He stepped closer to her, ready to toss her his holy sword, but then he saw a glint of something out of the back of her sweatpants. Before being taken, had she managed to grab the holy knife? Based on the glitter of the small part he saw, he had to assume so.
Pride washed through him. This time, his princess would not be left helpless.
* * *
Bella could barely breathe as she stared down at the flames. Her heart raced in her chest, and her breath moved in and out of her lungs raggedly as fear, uncertainty, and horror twisted in her sternum. Would she be able to kill Ulric when the time came? And when would that time be? How would she know? It had to be getting close to when the seals would close.
What if Jayden didn’t come for her? A shred of doubt clouded her soul, and she tried to push it away. She focused on the special bond of love they shared.
Jayden would be here, and if he couldn’t get here, he’d die trying.
At least, she kept telling herself that.
Could she actually slam a knife into Ulric’s chest? What if she didn’t have the physical strength to do so? What if he overpowered her, and she would burn in Hell for eternity?
She shut her eyes as the flames began to morph, and she wondered if she could be on the verge of passing out from the unbearable heat. Glancing around, she found herself once again transported to her past life.
* * *
She lay upon a bed, the only light in the room coming from the hearth. Her body shook with chills and pain—so much pain! She gazed up at the canopy above her, wishing for death. As she tried to move, she was reminded that her hands were stretched behind her, tied to the bedposts. They'd gone numb days ago, but tingles of agony went through them when she tried to find a comfortable position.
He'd done this. Her husband had tied her to a bed and used her as he saw fit. Sometimes, her body was a place to land his fists. Other times, he came in and brutally fucked her.
Upon arriving at castle Praegan weeks ago, she had resolved to be an obedient wife, and she had. Ulric could have her body, but she had her memories of Jayden, and no one could take those from her.
As the days went on, Ulric's sexual requests became cruder and more demanding. She realized he didn't want to respect her as his wife, but looked at her more like a whore to do with what he pleased. Yes, she'd vowed to be obedient, but she did believe she deserved a bit of regard. She was, after all, a princess.
One night, he’d come into her chamber and demanded she turn over so he could take her from behind, in her arse. She’d refused, and he’d unraveled before her eyes. Arabella had fought him, but proved no match for his strength. He’d then tied her to the bedpost as spittle had gathered at the corner of his lips, his cold, blue eyes wide with madness.
From then on, her life became a living hell. He did as he pleased, when he felt so inclined.
How long had she been forced to endure his insanity? It had been more than a fortnight; of that, she was certain. She’d survived on little else but bread and water. He allowed her to use the chamber pot thrice daily, a torturous endeavor as each movement had her crying out in agony. Her body ached from his fists and animal-like rutting. Large bruises marred her skin, painful to the touch.
Each time after he’d used her, he instructed Agnes to clean her up, which the woman did with gentle hands and tears in her eyes. Once her body had been washed, he'd haul her to the bed and bound her hands to the posts again.
The first couple of times, she'd fought him with everything she had. Eventually, her strength had waned, and she’d accepted her fate.
He’d threatened Agnes with death if she did not obey and remain silent, and the lady’s maid had not dared defy him, until recently. Although Arabella knew she lay precariously close to her end, she hoped Agnes would bring Jayden to her. She had no hope of escape—she had become too battered and weak. But she did want to see her true love one last time before she passed on.
Yes, death hovered near. As she closed her eyes, she felt its presence all around her in the silent room. No longer could she stand, and she found it difficult to breathe. The beating he'd given her the day before had been long and brutal.
She dozed off, and was awakened some time later by a soft whisper.
"Arabella?"
She slowly opened her eyes and turned her head.
He was here! She tried to smile at him, but her dry, cracked lips didn't allow for it.
"Jayden."
Tears welled in his eyes as he took her in. She experienced a brief moment of shame at having him see her like this, but it passed quickly as she gazed at her love.
He wore one of the castle’s servant tunics, and how she longed to run her fingers through his disheveled hair. The horror of her condition was mirrored on his face as he looked her over. Finally, he shook his head.
"My love. What has he done to you?"
As she began to cry, he untied her arms. Deep grooves of angry flesh circled her wrists, and she whimpered as shooting pains from her ribs slashed through her torso.
He pulled a blanket over her, and tried to assist her to a sitting position.
"No," she hissed as she shook her head and tried to swallow the anguish of the movement. She lay back down. "He ensured that I cannot walk out of here, Jayden. I believe he has broken many of my bones."
Heated rage flashed across his face, and she knew he wanted to kill Ulric. Right now, she needed to talk to him, to tell him why she'd sent Agnes for him.
He glanced around the room. "We need to get you out of here, Princess."
She coughed, wiping a thin line of blood running from her mouth with the back of her hand. "I think I am meant to die here. I cannot summon the strength to move, and I feel death's presence."
“No! I won’t allow it!”
Gazing up at him, she felt the love radiating from her very soul, as well as comfort from having the opportunity to experience such joy before dying.
She ignored his declaration. "Thank you for coming, Jayden."
"I would have come sooner, but I did not know ... I had no idea that you endured such horror, my love."
"I know you would have come if you had been aware of my situation."
She coughed, a smattering of blood landing on the blanket. He wiped it away with the sleeve of his tunic.
Moment by moment, she grew weaker, and breathing had become more difficult, but she would press on until she'd told him what lay within her heart. "I need you to listen to me."
He leaned in, her voice barely above a whisper.
"I want you to know that I never stopped loving you. My memories of you are what have kept me alive. Because of what we shared, I've been able to leave this place in my mind. I've felt your kiss thousands of times. Your hand has caressed my cheek, bringing me peace and joy when there was none to be found. You have always been with me, and our time together has been the joy of my life."
"And we will have it again, Arabella!"
She smiled, and wished he understood that her time grew shorter by the second. "No, we will not. I am beyond help, but I can die in peace now that I have seen you one last time."
She shut her eyes, and he gripped her hand in his.
"Arabella, please, let me help you!"
Glancing up at him, tears welled in her eyes. She caught movement behind him, and furrowed her brow at what she saw—a large man with wings folded at his back. He wore black, a kind smile on his dark-as-night face. Did she now hallucinate?
Suddenly, her pain dissipated, and she realized the man must
be an Angel of Death. Tears fell on her cheeks as she stared up at Jayden and then back to the angel.
"It is time for your suffering to end," the angel said, his deep baritone voice soothing away any fear or doubt she may have had.
Jayden stared at her desperately. "Arabella, let me remove you from this place! We—”
"There is nothing left to do. I see the Angel of Death. He is strong and beautiful. He will take me from this place and deliver me to Heaven."
She squeezed his hand one last time, joyful to be free of her life, yet her heart ached to know she would be separated from Jayden. "I love you. Always know that in your heart, my love."
Her eyes fluttered shut, and she rose from her body. She glanced down at her spiritual self, the bruises gone from her skin, the physical horror she’d suffered completely relieved. The angel held out his hand with a smile, and she lay her palm in his. He waved his hand—a bright light appeared, then he guided her inside it. As she stepped into the portal to Heaven, her heart hurt at the sound of Jayden and Agnes' cries, yet her soul relished the freedom from her torturous life.
She turned one last time to see Jayden laying his head on her chest while Agnes stood behind him.
“Goodbye, my love.”
* * *
Bella returned to the present, realizing she still sat in Hell. She saw the irony in the thought as she'd just witnessed the horror of the hell her fourteenth-century self had been through.
How much time had passed while she had been given a glimpse of the end of her life so many centuries ago?
Turning her stare to Ulric, anger so deep and pure railed through her that her hands shook. Any doubt she’d once had of her ability to bury a knife in him had disappeared. She would not have the slightest bit of trouble sending him deep in the bowels of Hell forever.
She caught movement out of the corner of her eye, and relief swept through her as she found Jayden standing on the edge of the rock, his large, black wings flapping at his back, his sword held at his side.
Their gazes met, and for a brief moment, she thought she saw a shadow of doubt cross his face. If it had been there, it only lasted a second. He then gave her a slight nod and a small smile that conveyed his belief in her.
The time had arrived, and his presence gave her strength.
Turning slowly, she stared at Ulric.
The man had truly been a demon in life, and as she recalled what had been done to her, her anger rose to even greater heights. She allowed it to consume her, to fuel her for the next few minutes. He'd tortured her once before, and she wouldn't allow him to do it for an eternity. No, he would remain in Hell for the rest of his days, and she would damn -well be the one to make sure of it.
She stood and pulled the knife from the back of her sweats. It felt right it her hand, as if it had been made just for her. Creeping toward Ulric, she envisioned herself burying the blade in his back, then pushing him over the edge.
Then, she would be free.
20
As Bella approached Ulric, Jayden prayed that she'd be able to surprise him, and there wouldn't be a battle. He’d never forget killing Ulric the first time, and the urge to do so again almost overwhelmed him, but he forced himself to stay in place. Bella needed to deliver the death-blow to free herself from the demon. Unfortunately, time was not on their side, and they needed to get out of Hell before the portal closed.
Ulric paced the side of the rock, his arms waving around his head as he talked to himself like a mad man.
“The three of us will be together, forever,” he muttered. “I will have my wife back, and I will brutalize that damn knight by beating and fucking her over and over again, just as I had done all that time ago. It will be marvelous to watch the agony and torture on his face, knowing that I put it there.”
As Bella drew closer to Ulric, every muscle in Jayden’s body tightened. She had the element of surprise—all she needed to do would be to plunge the knife into the demon’s back and push him over the edge. There didn’t even need to be a battle.
Instead, she tapped him on the shoulder, and Jayden groaned.
Ulric spun around, glaring at her. “What, Wife?”
She stared at him a long moment, her chest heaving. Jayden willed her to end this.
“I remember what you did to me.”
Jayden cursed. What was she doing?
Ulric grinned and traced a claw down the side of her face. “Excellent. That is what I plan to continue to do to you for all eternity.”
She shook her head. “No.”
The demon threw his head back and laughed. “You really are not in a position to compromise or defy me, Wife.”
She pulled the holy knife from behind her back, and plunged it into Ulric's abdomen.
The demon screeched, a high-pitched sound that echoed around the chambers. Jayden had never heard anything so horrible, so grating, and it seemed as though his eardrums would burst if he had to endure it much longer.
Bella grinned, a smile that sent a chill down his spine. “Yes, I am, you sick son of a bitch. You and I … this ends right now.”
Ulric gaped at her in horror as she withdrew the blade. She'd obviously caught him off guard. He tried to jump upward, as Jayden said he might, but Bella was ready. She brought the knife over her head and slammed it into his chest. His ascending force only buried the blade deeper.
His mouth opened, yet thankfully, his screaming had stopped. Bella removed the blade, and Ulric lunged at her, knocking her to the ground. He pinned her down, trying to get her knife. She kicked and squirmed, fighting him with everything she had.
Panic rose in Jayden, and he didn’t know what to do. Should he help her and pull Ulric off her, or wait and see if she could handle herself?
Black matter that smelled like rotting corpses oozed from the demon’s wounds, covering Bella. She still struggled against Ulric, but Jayden could see the demon weakening.
He moved to pull him off her, and she met his gaze over Ulric’s shoulder.
“Don’t you dare,” she said through gritted teeth, the look of hate and determination on her face causing him to step back. This was obviously something she felt she had to complete, and it pained him to stand by and watch it.
After a moment, she got the upper hand and plunged the knife into Ulric’s side. The demon yelped again, rolling away from her. In a flash, she got to her feet and pounced on him, holding the knife above her head, ready to bury it in his heart.
Time seemed to stop as Jayden took in the scene with horror and fascination.
Bella looked like a woman possessed, her hair snarled and matted with demon innards, her chest heaving, her eyes glinting with hatred so dark and deep, it almost frightened him. As Ulric weakly tried to claw her torso, she slammed the knife into his heart again, and the sheer force of her assault reminded Jayden of when he’d killed Ulric all those centuries ago.
* * *
Jayden laid his head on Arabella's chest, his tears of pain and fury flowing freely. Agnes placed her hand upon his shoulder, and he could hear her sniffling behind him.
He'd lost her.
He never should have let her leave him. They should have run away together, and he shouldn't have been concerned about the material wealth he could not afford to give her. Mayhap, all they would have needed was each other. It had been easier to think of Arabella as alive and well. Now that she had died, he wondered how he would continue on with his life.
Suddenly, they heard footsteps from behind the door leading to Ulric's bed chamber.
Jayden stood and turned to Agnes. "Go! Leave quickly! You cannot be discovered here with me!"
She hesitated only a moment, then scurried out the other door just as Ulric entered. Jayden drew his sword and moved to the other side of the bed, putting himself in between Ulric and Arabella.
The man walked in completely nude, his erection jutting out from his hips. The shock upon his face when he saw Jayden would have pleased him if he hadn't been so angry.
/> "What are you doing in my wife's bed chamber?" the prince asked, stepping around Jayden and pulling the blanket from Arabella’s prone body. He then wrapped it around himself.
Jayden closed the space between them, his whole body aching at the desire to bury his sword into the monster who had killed his princess. "You call yourself a man? This is the way you treat a woman, your wife, no less?"
He brought the tip to Ulric's neck, drawing a bit of blood as he nicked the man’s skin. His heart raced, and his own blood rushed in his ears, the need to kill Ulric nearly crippling him.
Ulric stared at him, his icy blue eyes wide with fear.
"You have killed her with your sick and demented ways. But, hear this … and look at me, because I want you to hear every word that falls from my lips."
He poked the man again, this time eliciting a small cry from him as his sword dipped into his neck. He then placed the tip of the blade at the man’s vile, decrepit heart.
"When you married Arabella, she did not come to you untouched. Before you received her hand in marriage, she was mine. Ours was a love you could never understand, one that you could never have."
Ulric's nostrils flared, the fear now replaced with anger.
"That is right. Your wife gave me her body and soul. She was never yours, no matter how many filthy ways you laid your hands upon her. You will pay for what you have done to her. When my king, her grandfather, realizes your sins, he will call for your head."
Ulric stood up straight and wiped the blood from his neck with the blanket he held. "You will not kill me, you coward. As your superior, I command you to lower your weapon. You are the one who will pay for the brutal murder of my gentle wife. You are obviously quite mad, a danger to yourself and others. You must be detained and punished accordingly."
Jayden stared at the man. Although naked with nothing but a blanket to cover him, he still stood tall and proud, as if dressed in all the finery befitting his royal status. He held his head up high and acted as if the body of his wife mere feet away did not concern him.
