I felt Kai’s winter in my veins, washing through me with a comfort known only to those of us who were born of winter magic. Snowflakes fell over the land, blanketing it once again in thick fluff as it had been before Snow White ruined it. A peace fell over everyone then, even the dragons, but it was fleeting. My magic soothed the darkness for mere seconds before dissipating.
“I hope it’s enough time. Hurry!” I shouted toward Annabell. She clasped hands with Caroline and Dannie, who took Pieter’s. Between the four, the light of the stars seeped down their veins and into Annabell in waves. Soon, the fallen star began to glow with an ethereal light that distracted Snow White.
Annabell’s face was illuminated, her arms, her torso—her whole body absorbed so much light, I was sure she had become a star once again. Snow White screeched, but Cole tackled her again before she reached Annabell. Once the transfer was complete, Annabell broke the bond and ran toward the open field.
My trance broke, and the chaos resumed. This time, the villagers, soldiers, and everyone else fought to keep the monsters at bay while Cole focused on Snow. They poured in from all corners—trolls, hellhounds, and the Drool Monsters Caleb hated. The Austerlitz dragons scorched all they could, but they arrived in the kingdom in surges that were fast approaching unmanageable.
“Stella!” Ollie grasped my hand and dragged me away from the others. “Brant got Marcus free, but he’s hurt badly.” My brother’s wife didn’t seem the type to get worked up over minor things, so I believed her when she said it was bad, but I had to be with Annabell. The fate of the world depended on it.
“Get him to Kylie and Ari as soon as possible! I need to help Annabell!” I shouted over the noise of battle. Ollie nodded and rushed back toward the castle. Behind it, my brother’s army descended into Schwarzwald. It triggered something in me that had been dormant for days—the Huntress roared to life again, and with her, an insatiable thirst for the blood of anything evil.
I spied Cole shrinking from his dragon form into a human, which should have been a good thing, but I had a sinking feeling it meant he was ready to steal the power from the Seven before his sister got her claws into them. Snow was battling with Ulrich, who put up a good fight, but he was weakening fast. Once she was done toying with him, she would move on to the Seven. When she did them in, it was all she wrote for the forest... and the world.
“Now what?” Kai asked, still keeping up with me. I ran toward Cole, dodged an incoming hellhound by sidestepping it, then spun on my heel and concentrated on blowing it up. Much to my surprise, the hound exploded and rained down on us.
“That was... disgusting. Thanks for that,” Kai said as he wiped guts from his face.
“Sorry, still practicing. We need to stop Cole from absorbing the Seven. Hurry!” I burst into a sprint, followed by Kai and Zeke, who had just arrived with the rest of the Black Forest resistance army. Now the fight was more fairly matched as the angry villagers pummeled every creature Snow threw at them. Members of the Organization worked alongside them, but this was more than even they were prepared to manage.
Cole didn’t have the stones, no one did now, so I wasn’t sure how he intended to draw the Seven into a merge, but it didn’t take long for that to become evident. As he stood at the base of one of the last towers that remained erect, Cole let his darkness release in a fog that contained a red glow. It seemed, despite having lost the stones, Cole had a back-up plan to begin the merge.
As if called by a siren, Calla darted toward him, though her arms flailed as if reaching for anything to slow or stop herself. She was soon followed by Elizabeth, who put her paws forward in a futile attempt to slow herself, but she only dragged along until both she and Calla were side by side, advancing on Cole.
Sierra howled as she tried to run toward the forest, but he had her, too. When Sutton flew past, I tried to grab her. She whined when I pulled against Cole, but I had to try. Kai grasped her around the waist and pulled, but it was difficult to hold on to a wolf so large. The fog enveloped all three of us and dragged us over the field.
“Now what?” Kai asked as his feet dragged along the cobblestones.
I knew if Cole managed to force them to merge, then tried the absorption, I would have to kill them first. I didn’t want to, not even close, but I couldn’t ignore the reality of that scenario became more solid every second.
“Just... pull harder!”
“I don’t think that matters!” Kai said, his feet digging into the ground as his grip slipped. Sutton and I went flying across the field and slammed into Calla, Sierra, and Elizabeth. My own grip released, so I decided it would be easier to head off the next person. I had forgotten the rest were all bigger than the wolves.
Parker was already flying, but it was uncontrolled and disoriented, then he spiraled toward the others. Ulrich, giant as he was, was also sucked into the glowing fog. Losing her opponent redirected Snow’s attention just long enough that Annabell had time to get into position. If she didn’t hurry, it would be too late.
Finally, the Austerlitz dragon released a fiery screech as they were ripped apart. I could not imagine the pain that caused, but Ethan, the monstrous dragon, slammed into the other members of the Seven Sworn, causing a brilliant display of color that swirled in a tornado as the Seven all called out in howls and screeches and screams.
“Uh... call me crazy, but if you were supposed to kill them before they merged with Cole or Snow, I think maybe you missed your window of opportunity,” Kai said.
He wasn’t wrong. I had not anticipated the beast they would turn into, but as the swirling colors faded, it was clear it would take more than a few guns and swords to take them out if necessary. The size of a dragon, the new wolf’s mouth alone could swallow a hundred men, and its claws dug deep holes into the soft earth. It raised its head toward the moon and howled, shaking the foundation upon which we stood. Taller than the Salien castle, its fur glistened brilliant silver in the moonlight.
Kai grasped my arm as the earth shook, then everything went silent—no sounds of battle, no creatures shrieking, nothing. The inky blackness absorbed all light, leaving everyone on edge as we waited for the next thing to happen.
I felt another person beside me and turned my head to see, but I could not. Even the stars in the sky refused to shine, all hiding behind thick clouds. The moon offered a tiny sliver of light, but it too fell behind the clouds and waited.
Growling, at first quiet and low, soon erupted into a frenzied snarl that, admittedly, scared the snot out of me. Then I felt it—hot, warm breath against the front of my body. The creature stood in front of me.
Quiet chanting grew louder and louder until a faint light illuminated the face of the beast. It sniffed me, then nudged me. Was it rolling over in submission for me to kill it?
Kai leaned in close and asked as much. “Does it want you to... you know?”
“Maybe,” I whispered. “Where are Cole and Snow? And why is it so quiet?”
The chanting increased the illumination, but only enough to see that the entire field of villagers, organization members, royals, and the like were all on the ground fast asleep. The only people awake were those with magical ability—the fairies, the witches, and the fallen stars... and that one Jack Frost who seemed glued to my side.
“What is happening? Was this part of the plan?” Kai asked.
“I don’t know,” I whispered. “Annabell didn’t—”
My sentence was interrupted by an explosion of light that blinded me. I fell backward on top of Kai and elicited a groan from the other person who’d approached—Hayden. She shifted her weight and shielded her eyes, then helped me up.
“We need your power,” she said. “Both of you come on.”
“What’s happening? Annabell didn’t mention this part,” I said, thinking back over the plan we had devised once she realized I was the one who was supposed to help her all along.
“Yeah, about that... I might have planned this part myself. Come on. Annabell was ri
ght. We need your power to boost the spell and make sure she can manage the darkness.”
“But I have very little control over my own power,” I said, hesitating.
“It doesn’t matter. You are the strongest in the forest, even if you don’t know how to use your power to its fullest. Clara and Aline do, so come, please.”
I pressed my hand into hers and took Kai’s. We joined the likes of Heidi and Ravenna, veteran witches who could kick butt and take names while having a sip of tea. The fairies—Nikola, Petra, and Alorna, along with Fiona, who was likely seething with hatred toward Snow for using her to perpetuate the lie of the prophecy. Aline and Clara, though siphon witches, could project other people’s magic so that it was more concentrated. There were Rebecca and Jeanine and Julianna and a variety of villagers who were all blessed with some ability. We clasped hands around Annabell, who stood in the center of the circle with Caroline, Pieter, and Dannie forming an arc around her.
Cole and Snow were also inside the circle, both pacing like caged tigers. Cole had shifted into a wolf form, a downgrade from his dragon, but I didn’t know why. Snow had resumed her human form, likely so she might test her magic against those she’d fooled for so long.
And behind me, breathing down my neck like a nightmare, the wolf creature the Seven had formed. It did not appear to be a flight risk, which was a good thing because there was no way it would fit inside the circle we had formed.
“You think this will stop me? Puny magical misfits and that grotesque beast?” Snow cackled maniacally, but her lower lip trembled. She turned this way and that, but she was surrounded. Cole still paced, but he seemed less and less concerned with what was about to happen. Instead, he seemed to welcome it as he grew nearer to Annabell.
Annabell said nothing for a moment, then clenched her small hands into fists at her side. When she did, I felt every ounce of magic drain from my body and flow forward with such force I almost fell on my face. It manifested around Annabell in a ring of light that flowed into her until she, too, illuminated even brighter than she had when only the stars offered her power.
The process seemed mighty painful to me, but she did not utter a single groan or gasp. Instead, she focused on the woman in front of her, who was now on her knees trembling.
“No. Elfriede, please! I can change! I can be different if you only help me!” Snow struggled to stand again, but it was useless.
Annabell grasped her arm and forced her light into Snow. Snow’s body convulsed as thick, black ooze drained from her mouth and eyes. It flowed over her skin and down her arms toward Annabell’s hand, where it was absorbed by the light. Despite the brightness, one could see the ooze swirling with the light, fighting it until the light covered it and squeezed the life out of it, disintegrating it into nothing.
Snow could not scream or cry, nor could she escape. All she could do was bleed evil until Annabell’s light had its fill. Cole stared at the scene; his fur bristled as he watched his former love destroy his sister. I was sure I saw a smirk on his muzzle, but it was difficult to make out in the shadows.
“Hold a little longer,” Hayden said, but I was sure I had nothing left to give.
Annabell released Snow, who fell at her feet. She turned her attention toward Cole, who tried to back away but had nowhere to go. Instead, he shifted.
“You can’t do this,” he said. “Ellie, it will kill you! You’re already fading!”
“You promised, Cole,” she said, then offered him her hand. “I won’t kill you. I swear it. I will only take everything from you permanently.”
“And what would you have left to contain the evil in this world?”
“That’s just it, Cole. No one should have to shoulder this burden alone. The sin and evil in the world belong to all the people, not only to you. There will be a time of adjustment, but the world will go on. I will relieve you of your curse and eliminate dark magic from the land forever.”
“No! Not if it kills you!” he shouted, but the man had no choice. Annabell lunged at him and dug her fingers deep into the flesh of his upper arms. “No! Ellie, please. You can’t die again. You can’t.”
“I must,” she said, then sucked the man’s darkness from every thread of his body. His was different from Snow’s. It exited in a fog as if it were happy to leave him, but it was tricked when it entered Annabell instead. Once again, her light surrounded and swallowed it, leaving nothing but the lingering scent of burned... something.
Cole heaved a great sigh and fell to his knees but did not lose consciousness. Annabell, on the other hand, released him and fell backward. Her light died as she fell, and the forest was black again.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
Calla
The Salien Castle, Schwarzwald
SPECKS OF COLD SPLATTERED my face, bringing me back to the present moment. My heavy eyelids opened, and I blinked several times. Staring up at the sky, shades of pink and orange filled the space between the clouds, but my mind didn’t register that it was morning, only that I felt the cold on my face. I brushed my fingers over my cheek—skin... not fur.
“Oh!” I yelped and sat straight as my head spun. I groaned and tried to take in the landscape around me. I was no longer one-seventh of a massive wolf, which opened up even more questions. Stella had not given any of us the cure for her anti-shifting elixir, so when I shifted to defend my family seconds before the merge, it took me by surprise. I could only reason Snow had done something... or maybe one of the Lanes or another Organization member? It didn’t matter. All that mattered was that I was alive, awake, and no longer part of a beast.
“Calla?” Stella’s voice, haggard, and quiet, carried on the wind. The snow still fell, but I saw her well through the sheets of white.
“It’s me,” I said. “What... what happened?”
“You’re the first to regain consciousness, after me, of course,” she said. “And Cole.”
My eyes immediately shot toward the last place I remembered seeing the man—in the middle of a circle of witches comprised of my family and friends. There he still sat, but he cradled a woman in his arms.
I gasped. “Annabell!”
Stella took a few steps toward me and helped me up, then wiped tears from her face. “She’s not dead, but she won’t wake up. No one will, but I think... I mean, I think they will eventually, but Annabell is... I don’t know. Just come see.”
I hurried toward her with Stella, but Cole had such a tight hold on Annabell, it was impossible to see what Stella wanted to show me. There was something different about Cole, something... peaceful. He looked up at me with tear-filled eyes—blue eyes, not black eyes or flame-filled, but a lovely shade that made him seem human.
Once again, I gasped. He swallowed and lowered his head back toward Annabell. Stirring behind us distracted me, then to my right and left. People rose, including the witches and fairies who had fallen in a circle around Cole.
“Where is Snow?” I asked, my head darting this way and that, suddenly in defensive mode again.
“There,” said Stella, pointing toward the charred remains of a woman who’d played us for centuries.
She wasn’t even my sister. The thought rolled around in my mind repeatedly until Wil ran across the field and tackled me. I fell on my back and slid several feet down an embankment before Wil managed to stop us both. He kissed me, his nose cold against my already cold cheeks, but it was a welcome kiss I had thought I would never have again.
When he sat, he kissed my forehead and cheeks several times. “I thought I’d lost you forever. And Elizabeth?”
“She’s... somewhere,” I mumbled, still disoriented from everything that had happened since I first shifted. “Wait. I feel... different.” I stood and tried to shift, but nothing happened. “I can’t shift, but I did right before the merge.”
“Neither can we,” Caleb said as he and Julianna approached. “No one can. It seems we’re all human again.” Seline and Henry stood near each other in the distance, but the way Seli
ne looked over her body, I assumed she could not shift either.
“Us, too,” Larkin said. “I can’t even feel the dragon inside anymore. It’s just... gone.” She looked down at herself as Seline did as if observing her body would somehow show her where the dragon had gone.
Ophelia helped Parker to his feet as her brother wiped snow from Petra’s hair. “Jordan, have you seen Chris and Ross?” Ophelia asked.
“Here!” Chris yelled from across the circle, where he helped Alorna. Ross was beside him aiding Jemma, who was desperately trying to get her mother to pay attention to her while she tended a forehead laceration.
Kylie and Ari darted around the field tending to wounds, applying bandages, and all manner of other medical tasks, but I was too distracted with my confusion to worry about who had been injured. Finally, my mother managed to stand erect and focus her attention on bringing us all together.
Just as she opened her mouth, Hayden and Jack ran from the side of the castle at full speed toward Cole, who only lessened his grip on Annabell for a moment when Hayden fell beside him. My heart was destroyed for them, and all I wanted was to hold my son. Little Wil... how devastated he would be if Annabell never woke, then I realized that even if she woke, she might never be a child again. How curious.
Eventually, everyone found their significant others or siblings, someone who was just as confused as they were and wandered toward my mother.
“Ravenna, what happened?” Jay asked, holding my sister’s hand.
She wiped her forehead and pressed her hands over her pants, then said, “The back-up plan. When Cole took the Seven, and we discovered Snow was the real threat, those of us with magic devised a plan.”
“Uh... what?” Felix, who had hardly left Scarlett’s side, asked. I noticed his sister looked much improved, perhaps even lucid, as she stood between Felix and Cecily.
“We were afraid, even with the aid of the stars, that Annabell might not be able to complete her task, especially since she believed Cole was the only threat. We knew she would need even more power to absorb the darkness from both Cole and Snow, so we gave her what she needed.”
The Heart of the Darkness Page 20
