by H. D. Gordon
She could see the resignation in his eyes, and he pulled her closer to him, brushing a lock of lavender hair off of her forehead. He gave one small nod and held her gaze, making her forget for just a moment that they were in a terrible position and the universe had dealt them an incredibly crappy hand.
Charlie kissed her then, and Surah let the problems slip further away for just this small space of borrowed time. His lips were warm and gentle, but urgent and hungry, a perfect mixture that she thought was reserved only for last kisses.
When Charlie kissed her this way, it was not hard to understand why she’d made the choices she’d made. And it was too late to regret them now. There was no time for that, either.
A low rumbling in Samson’s chest shattered the moment.
Surah broke apart from Charlie to see that the three of them were surround on all sides by Fae Guardians.
This time, Charlie’s brother was with them.
Chapter 33
Surah
“I must admit, that was quite a touching moment,” Black Heart said, taking a step forward, a wide grin on his pale face. “I’m almost sorry to have interrupted it.”
Surah had already slipped her sais out of her cloak and was clutching them tightly. Samson was on his feet, standing in front of her with his head lowered and his teeth bared. Charlie stood behind her, protecting her from the rear, his crossbow at the ready.
Surah regarded Black Heart coldly, all of the turmoil giving birth to immense anger as she stared at the crazy Sorcerer. His long, black hair was slicked back in a ponytail, his dark cloak hanging around him like a black aura.
“Take your little army of fairies and go,” she said, scanning the trees all around them, in which dozens of the Fae were perched. “I’ve taken enough lives today.”
And her father was running out of time, but she didn’t think she needed to add that.
Black Heart shook his head and made a clucking sound with his tongue. “Always giving orders, little princess, even when you’ve found yourself in no position to do so.”
“Let us go, Michael,” Charlie said, wrapping his arm around Surah’s waist, the crossbow still aimed at the nearest Fae on his side. “Don’t you think you’ve caused enough today?”
Black Heart’s eyes narrowed to angry slits as he looked at his brother. Surah wouldn’t have bet money on it, but she could’ve sworn she saw a flash of hurt in Black Heart’s gaze before it was covered over by his hate.
“You want to know something funny, Charlie-Boy?” Black Heart asked. “There’s an entire kingdom that believes you to be a traitor, and though they’re wrong about what makes you one, they’re right about you being one. You’re not just a traitor. You’re the worst kind of traitor. A traitor to your own blood.”
Charlie’s hold on Surah tightened, and she stole a quick look at his face to see the same hurt that had crossed Black Heart’s face a moment ago had transferred to his.
Just as quickly, it was gone. Charlie’s response to his brother was simple, but it rang through Surah’s head on a loop and lifted her sunken heart.
“I won’t let you hurt her,” Charlie said.
Black Heart rubbed a hand down his jaw, a habit the brothers shared.
“I guess it’s a good thing I’m not asking for your permission, Charlie-Boy,” Black Heart said, and snapped his fingers.
Samson charged forward first, but Surah and Charlie were right behind him.
Less than a heartbeat later, Surah felt something sharp prick her neck, like a sting from an enormous wasp, and she halted in her tracks and slapped a hand over the spot that still stung.
All of a sudden, her head was swimming… and then it was spinning, taking the world on a whirlwind with it. The scene before her grew blurry, her fingers numb as they pulled away the small dart that had struck her.
She looked down at it and saw not one, but three darts because her vision was so blurry.
The dart and sais slipped free of her hands and thudded to the grass by her feet.
Then, she was falling, landing on the grass, her head striking against the ground and making her vision go completely black for just a moment.
Peeling her eyes open was difficult, but she did so just in time to see that Samson and Charlie had also fallen to the ground beside her, darts sticking out of their necks as well.
The last thing she saw before the world went black again was Charlie’s face… and a look in his eyes that was all apology.
The last thing she heard was Black Heart’s pleased laughter.
She tried to scream, and couldn’t.
Then, she was lost to the world.
Chapter 34
Surah
The world swam back into focus slowly, painfully, nothing but blurred outlines and dim colors.
Her back ached terribly, as did her head, and Surah reached up to rub her eyes, but found that something cold and hard was holding her wrists in place.
She blinked several times until the images in front of her grew clear, and it took her a while to remember what had happened and how she’d gotten here.
Wherever here was.
In her aching head, a familiar voice spoke. “Good. You’re up. Are you okay, my love?”
Surah pulled herself to a sitting position and bent her head down so she could push her hair out of her face. She took in her surroundings slowly, and saw she was chained up in a small room made of stone, the only light coming from a small window on the west wall.
There was a wooden door to the right of her that had no handle to open it from within.
Beside her, Charlie and Samson were also chained to the walls, the manacles around them keeping them just out of touching reach.
Panic tried to rise in her, but she did her best to clamp down on it.
Then, everything that had happened came back to her, and there was nothing she could do to stop the frantic beating of her heart.
Her eyes went back to the small window on the west wall, and she breathed a small sigh of relief when she saw the sun had still not completely set.
The relief was short-lived, though, because night would fall in less than thirty minutes, and that was a generous estimate.
She had to get back to her father. She told Samson as much, not bothering to answer if she was okay. She was anything but okay.
“Calm down, love,” the tiger told her. “We are not going to die here today.”
“But what about my father, Sam? What am I going to do?”
“One thing at a time. We have to worry about getting out of here first.”
He was right, and she knew it, but with every passing moment she was finding it harder and harder to breathe.
Who knew how far from the castle Black Heart had taken them? Who knew if her uncle would even wait until the last moment to make his move? Her head whipped around and she saw Charlie had not yet awakened. She called his name twice and got no answer.
She looked back at Samson, her blood rushing in her ears. “Sam? Is Charlie okay? He’s not…he’s not dead, is he?”
“No. He’s not dead.”
“Are you sure?”
“I can hear his heart beating.”
At that moment, the wooden door swung open, and in walked a creature with skin that swirled and changed colors. She wore a dress that hung down over bare, clawed feet. Her hair was long and shimmering, her eyes set wide and slanted on her face. Black and blue feathered wings were tucked in behind her back, and a sharp grin was pulling up her lips.
Beside Surah, Samson growled lowly in his chest, and without having to be told, Surah knew who this creature was.
The Fae Queen.
The Fae Queen shut the door behind her and came to stand in front of Surah. She clapped her hands and her eyes glittered as she stared down at her.
“They said the Sorceress princess was pretty! They were right! So right! Pretty! Pretty princess!”
She knelt down, careful to keep just out of Surah’s reach, ignoring the angry soun
ds of the tiger. “I am so pleased to finally meet you, Princess Surah. I’ve heard so many things! I am Tristell, Queen of the Fae. I believe you’ve met some of my Guardians?”
Surah’s hands tightened into fists as she raised her head. “I know who you are,” she said. “And I didn’t meet some of your Guardians, I killed them.”
Surah wasn’t sure what response she was expecting, but it certainly wasn’t the one she got. The Fae Queen clapped her hands again and laughed for several seconds, holding her stomach as if what Surah had just said was the best joke she’d ever heard.
“Oh, pretty princess!” The Queen trilled. “You are a funny creature! I think I like you! Such a shame! Such a shame we can’t be friends!”
“Unchain me,” Surah said. “Then we can be best friends.”
The Queen laughed again, rolling back on her heels and grinning like a child. The wooden door swung open again, and Black Heart entered the room.
Surah felt more hatred looking at him than she had ever felt for anyone in her life, and it was only made worse by the fact that her piece of White Stone was hanging around his neck.
“There won’t be any of that,” Black Heart said, taking the Fae Queen gently by the shoulders. He gave Surah a droll look. “I won’t make the mistake of underestimating the ‘pretty princess’ again.”
“So pretty!” trilled the Queen. “Pretty princess!”
“Darling,” Black Heart said. “You’ve made the acquaintance, now please go so I may have a conversation with the lady and my brother.”
The Queen’s red lips pursed out. “Michael is so selfish! He has all the fun! Please let Tristell stay! I will be quiet! I just want to watch!”
Black Heart sighed heavily. “All right. Fine. As long as you’re here, you might as well wake him up for me,” he said, waving a hand a Charlie.
“Why does she need to wake him up?” Surah asked. “What did you do to us?”
Black Heart grinned coldly and reached into his cloak, pulling out one of the darts she recognized from earlier.
“This dart is tipped in frog poison from the Fae Forest,” he said. “Clever, right? The poison is very potent, and leaves the victim immobile for about an hour, but don’t worry, princess, my brother will be just fine.” He rubbed his chin, as if considering this. “Well, the poison won’t kill him, anyway.”
“And I,” said the Queen, “have the power to make the poison recede, as I have power over all the elements of my land. Wonderful, isn’t it?”
Surah’s jaw clenched. “Fuck off, fairy,” she said.
The Queen giggled at this, and Black Heart made that annoying clucking sound with his tongue.
“No need for foul language, princess,” he said. “I thought Highborns had better manners.”
Surah didn’t dignify this with a response.
Instead, she said, “What do you want? Why haven’t you just killed me yet?”
Beside her, Samson growled at this question, but Surah told him silently not to worry. She needed to know what angle these psychos were coming from.
Black Heart knelt down in front of her, her stone swinging from the chain around his neck. “I’d always heard you were a clever one, Surah… May I call you Surah? Anyhow, haven’t you figured it out yet? If you haven’t, I have to say, I’m disappointed.”
He looked back at the Queen, who was cooing over Charlie’s unconscious body.
“Oh!” she said. “He’s a pretty one, too! Doesn’t look much like Michael. How strange!”
“Will you just wake him up already?” Black Heart snapped.
The Queen sighed and leaned in close to Charlie. Then she gently blew her breath in his face and stepped back.
A moment later, Charlie gasped and sat up, rubbing his head.
Black Heart turned back to Surah. “So, what have you figured out?” he asked.
Surah was looking at Charlie, finding it was just a touch easier to breathe now that she saw he was coming to. Her eyes flicked back to Black Heart, her jaw clenching again.
“I know that you want the Highborns dead, my father off the throne so you can have it for yourself. I know you’re under the ridiculous impression that you could do a better job running the kingdom. I know you feel betrayed by the Highborns.”
Black Heart nodded and raised an eyebrow. “That it, princess?”
“No. I also know why you had the Fae attack the city today.”
“And why is that?”
“You were proving a point. You need followers.” Surah tossed a dirty look at the Queen. “You need more than just a small army of fairies to take over my father’s kingdom, and you know it. So you get the common people to follow you by showing them where the Highborn’s priorities lie when things really go wrong.”
Black Heart smiled widely, his eyes, the same emerald color as his brother’s, glittering with approval. “So, you are as clever as they say. I must admit, I’m impressed.”
Surah lifted her chin a fraction more. “That’s not all I know.”
Black Heart waved a hand. “Please, do tell.”
“I know that no matter how hard you try to make it seem so, it’s not hate that drives your revenge. It’s hurt. I know you’re broken and feel like you’ve been made to suffer.”
Surah swallowed once and let a small grin lift her own lips. “Like a child, you’re taking out your hurt on others, because you don’t know any other way to deal with it. If I didn’t think you aren’t worth my pity, I would feel sorry for you.”
By the look that crossed Black Heart’s face just then, Surah could tell she had struck a chord, and she was glad for it…
Until he spoke again.
“If you know everything,” he said, “then why ask me why I haven’t killed you yet? Why ask me what I want? You should know. So tell me, princess. What is it you think I want?”
Surah’s heart stopped as she glanced toward the window in the west wall, where the sinking sun was paying no mind to her predicament. Her voice came out smaller now, and her head fell forward a little on its own.
“You want me to suffer,” she said.
And by the sound of his laughter, she knew she was right.
Chapter 35
Surah
The last of the day’s light slipped out of the sky, the sun setting below the horizon like a drowning star.
Surah gasped, doubling over and clutching her midsection.
Both Charlie and Black Heart did the same, the stone around Black Heart’s neck glowing and sizzling.
Surah’s neck also burned where her sister’s Stone hung against her chest, but she got the almost undeniable urge to close her eyes and bask in the feeling of the returning magic.
However, she could do no such thing, because if the magic was back, that meant her father’s blood was being spilled.
And that was as far as she allowed that thought to go.
If she was going to have a shot of getting out of here, it was right now.
She gathered her strength around her and formed two fireballs in her hand, her teary eyes glowing at the sight of the magic in her palms.
Then, she threw the orbs at Black Heart and the Fae Queen, striking them in the chest and knocking them both off their feet.
Next, she cast a spell to loosen the metal around her wrists and slipped free of her chains, hands shaking.
Surah stood, not allowing herself to think, and cast another fireball at Black Heart, who was quickly recovering.
She didn’t want to leave the stone around his neck, but she wanted to teleport out of there right now, so she cast another spell immediately after that lifted the necklace with the stone from around Black Heart’s neck.
A moment later, she was holding her piece of White Stone in her hand.
Samson was nearest, and she hurried over to him, placing her hand on his shoulder, freeing him of his bindings with her magic.
While she did this, Black Heart crawled over to Charlie and held a blade to his throat.
�
�Run, princess,” he taunted, “but Charlie-boy is mine.”
“If we’re leaving, I’d say now is the time, love,” Samson told her silently.
Surah barely heard him over the sound of her heart. So many emotions were roiling in her. She was pretty sure her father was dying as she stood here unable to decide what to do, but for a moment, she was frozen.
Black Heart was finding his feet now, a smile on his face as he pulled himself and Charlie up, blade still poised at Charlie’s throat.
“The King is dead!” Black Heart shouted, his words cutting through her haze and stabbing into her heart. “I think we should get drunk tonight to celebrate! What do you say, Charlie-Boy?”
Surah’s hand tightened in the fur around Sam’s neck, and Charlie met her gaze.
“Surah, go,” Charlie said.
Her heart broke. She felt it crack right down the center.
Then, she portaled out of there with Samson, leaving Charlie Redmine in the clutches of his crazy brother, knowing that if Black Heart killed him, she would never ever forgive herself.
Chapter 36
Surah & Samson
Surah and Samson landed in her father’s chambers back at the castle, bursting in on a scene that was so surreal she almost thought she must be dreaming.
Her father was lying on his bed, covered in scarlet that dripped from his severed neck and ran all the way down to his waist, soaking his white bed sheets in red.
Her uncle, Gregory Brightstar, stood over him, a dagger dripping her father’s blood still clutched in his hand, a wide-eyed look on his face.
Surah let out a cry of rage that was loud enough to wake the dead.
On the gore-covered bed, her father did not stir in the least.
