by Kaylin Lee
“Mom?” Bri’s voice was unusually soft and hesitant. “Are you leaving soon?”
“Yes.” I could barely force the word out past the lump in my throat.
“You’ll tell us before you leave, right?”
“Yes,” I whispered. “I will.”
The twins fell into a deep sleep, but I just sat there. Weslan was right. I needed to get it together. I needed to be stronger for the twins, for Ella. Why couldn’t I be better? Kinder? Braver? It had been over thirteen years since I left Draicia, and yet I was still the same frightened girl, cowering in her tower, too scared to stay and too scared to flee.
Much later, the unfamiliar sound of a fomecoach in the alley startled me out of my guilt-ridden daze. I straightened and peered out the window, but all I could see was the building across the alley. The kitchen door slammed, and soft voices reached me from the kitchen. Ella was back.
Then new sounds interrupted the night—a series of fomecoaches rolling down the narrow cobblestone lane in front of the bakery, unfamiliar voices, and lots of footsteps. I turned my luminous dial all the way down and peered down at the street.
They’d found me. The fomecoaches’s doors bore the unmistakable flashing gold of the trackers’ insignia. I stood as though in a trance. I had to leave. If they found the girls here, they’d never admit them to the Mage Academy. The twins would be arrested and sent straight to the dungeon. I hurried down the stairs before he could wake the twins. If I surrendered to the trackers before they had the chance to come inside, perhaps—
“FEMALE CITIZENS. ASSEMBLE.” The tracker’s amplified voice was painfully loud in the quiet of the night.
What?
“CITIZENS,” the voice said, “You are harboring a fugitive suspected of attempting to assassinate the crown prince. Assemble in the street now. All female citizens aged thirteen to twenty-one will be taken in for questioning now.”
Ella and Weslan were already in the bakery’s shop when I joined them.
“Assassinate?” Ella looked like she was about to faint. “I don’t understand—”
“CITIZENS. All female citizens aged thirteen to twenty-one, assemble now, or we will enter and bring you out.”
They weren’t here for me. Relief rocked me, and then the tracker’s words finally hit me. They weren’t here for me. Even worse—they were here for Ella.
“Mom?” Bri rubbed her eyes sleepily. Alba huddled at her side. “What’s going on?”
I opened my mouth, but no words came out. In all the good-byes I’d ever imagined, I’d never thought of seeing Ella led off to her execution.
“Zel, I’m so sorry.” Ella’s voice was raw and broken. “I never thought this would … I don’t know why they’re doing this. I’ll go out, tell them it was me, and get them to leave.”
No! It was supposed to be me. I grabbed her arm and held tight. “Ella, if you go out now, they’ll execute you. If you’re even just suspected of this crime, you’ll be executed without trial.”
“I-I-I don’t know what to say. I’m just so sorry.”
Ella pulled away. but Bri stepped in front of her. “Stay in here, Ella.”
I gaped at Bri. What was she doing? In a heartbeat, Bri whisked outside and into the street. And Alba followed her sister.
Ella rushed after them, but Weslan held her back from the door. “Ella, wait. Think! They’re obviously too young to have infiltrated the ball and gotten anywhere near the prince. The guards will take them in for questioning, bring them home, and keep looking for the real culprit. This way, no one will come looking inside our house. That’s all that matters. Keep the trackers out. The girls will be home as soon as anyone gets a clear look at them.”
Somehow, his logic finally reached me. He was right. Unlike me or Ella, the twins would be safe with the Quarter Guard. I stepped in front of Ella.
She wriggled in Weslan’s grip. “You can’t know that! It’s too big of a risk!”
“You’re a fine one to talk about risk.” Hadn’t she been telling me all this time that the risks we’d taken were worth it? “Would you rather risk your execution, or risk that the twins will be held in the Quarter Guard station for the night?” Ella sagged as the fight drained out of her. Weslan let her go as I pushed her toward the kitchen. “Go to your room and shut the door. If they decide to search the bakery for more girls who fit the description, there’s a better chance they won’t see you.”
I waited until the twins entered a fomecoach and the line of coaches left the street. My power was quiet. All I felt was a thick fog of grief and helplessness—unbearable, smothering, and tearing my heart in two.
“I'm so sorry.” Ella came out of her room. Her voice was hollow.
“It’s not your fault.” It wasn’t. It was no one’s. After all my plans to leave Ella, after resolving to let Ella make her own choices and take her own risks, I had never foreseen something like this. I collapsed into a chair at the kitchen table. “I thought …”
Fresh tears fell. Perhaps it was indeed my fault. I’d told them about Darien, hadn’t I? What had I said? To love someone so much you would give your life for them—that’s beautiful. They’d taken me at my word and offered themselves up in Ella’s place. I hunched my shoulders and tried to breathe.
“I told them about their father. How he sacrificed his life for me so I could get away, so I could leave Draicia.” I choked out the words like someone had a death-grip on my throat. “I thought if they knew of his love, it would be a comfort. But I should have known Bri would want to be just like her father.”
I stared at the table, replaying that conversation with Bri and Alba in my head. Had I been wrong to tell them about him? Had I been wrong about love, about beauty, all along? He’d loved me, but he’d left me. What was the point of love that sacrificed itself? Then there was none of it left for comfort, for help. And yet, what was the point of love that was unwilling to make a sacrifice? Was that truly love?
A knock sounded at the front door.
Weslan stood and placed a hand on my shoulder. “Don’t worry, Zel. That must be them now.” He left the room.
I held my breath. Back so soon? I strained to hear the rumble of male voices at the front door, but I stayed where I was.
Suddenly, Weslan shouted, his voice sharp and angry. “What’s the meaning of this?”
The door slammed, and Weslan entered the kitchen, cradling a dusty box in his arms like a baby. He held the box out to me, his face heavy with sorrow. What was he doing?
I took the box and lifted the lid. All the air whooshed out of my lungs. It couldn’t be. How? Why? What were my daughters doing out there without their shoes? A small scrap of red paper peeked out of one shoe. Reality stretched, then snapped.
The Blight. They’d taken my precious girls. An image of slender bare feet slipped into my mind, and then an image of the ruthless men who’d taken them. I’d kill the Blight for this. I’d kill them all.
I was dimly aware of Ella speaking and Weslan standing at my side. There would be no more fighting the rage. No more holding back my power. I let the waves of hunger crash over me as my power strained to absorb every last drop of Crimson Blight and the trackers who’d obviously helped them.
“Weslan, you’ll come with me.” My voice was hollow and distant. “We will get them home safely, whatever it takes.” And when the girls were safe, I’d unleash my power on the enemy who’d been tormenting my family for months. There would be nothing left of them by the time I was through.
My power strained again, but I kept it under control long enough to meet Ella’s eyes. I couldn’t leave her like this. I had to give her something to hold onto. “Stay here and stay safe, Ella. I-I forgive you. And I love you like a daughter, no matter what. Never forget that.” The truth of those words sent pain spiking through my chest, but I smothered it.
I had to act. The time for cowering in the bakery was over. I let my power sweep me away again, and I left her in the bakery alone.
~
<
br /> Weslan led me through the dark, city streets. “The old warehouse at Merchant and Silvus streets. In the River Quarter. That’s where he said to get them.”
I let my power’s hunger carry me along. I didn’t know how long we walked, and I barely felt the ache of my feet when we finally entered the dusty, dirty River Quarter. I only knew I had to find my daughters and kill their captors.
After several more blocks, Weslan stopped and pointed. “There it is. Silvus Lane.”
A faded old street sign was nailed to the building on the corner where we stood. We were close.
I pressed my fingers to my temples. Now that I’d surrendered to my power, its hunger was only growing. A vicious headache stabbed at my temples. It had to be at least two hours past midnight by now. We had to get this over with. “When we arrive, stay out of sight. I’ll stay at the entrance, and only go in if they let the girls out first. Then you take the girls and run.”
He nodded. “Agreed. But what about you?”
What about me? I simply shook my head to dismiss his foolish question. What did it matter what happened to me? Once inside, I’d kill them all or die trying. There was nothing left for me to worry about.
When we reached the warehouse. I signaled for Weslan to stay back. He melted into the shadows across the street. Then I approached the door. Soon, I whispered to my power. As soon as the girls were safe, I’d let it loose.
The door opened before I raised my hand to knock. A tall, blond man answered the door with a smile, and light spilled out of the warehouse, illuminating the shadowy street. His face was finely structured, and his body was long and narrow. His appearance was Kireth in every way—golden, pale, and terrifying. Just like me.
My power wanted to rush at him, but I held it back. “Send them out.” My voice was cold and empty. “Send them out now, and I’ll come inside with you.”
“Of course,” he said, his smile widening. “Wait but a moment.”
I held myself still, though I ached to wrap my hands around his throat. Then two men appeared behind him, with Bri and Alba gripped tightly in front of them like shields. My daughters were bound and gagged, clad in their soft, white nightgowns, and wearing a single shoe each. They were silent. They weren’t even crying. They only watched me from over the strips of dirty rags binding their mouths, their eyes wide and faces pale.
At the sight of their helpless, terrified faces, my power strained even harder. “Send them out,” I repeated. “Now.” I stretched out my hand to the blond man to let him know what would happen if he didn’t.
Instead of rearing back in fear, he inched closer, watching me with unwavering attention, his lips parted as though with anticipation.
Then he broke into laughter.
I tensed. Could I kill him and his men before either of his men had a chance to hurt my girls? I’d been fast before, but I hadn’t been tested in thirteen years. Perhaps I still had my old speed.
A cry of pain came from the street behind me. I whirled around, my stomach sinking.
Weslan fell to his knees several steps away from me as two large, muscular men shoved him down. A third man—thin and pale, with stringy black hair—stood over him, his face twisted in horrifying excitement. He grabbed Weslan’s hair, pulled out a long, wicked knife, and held it to Weslan’s throat.
I started toward the man with the knife, but then he jabbed the tip into Weslan’s throat, drawing blood as Weslan let out a hoarse gasp. The man with black hair smiled.
I turned back to see the blond man in the doorway had stepped closer to me. He drew closer still, until our bodies were mere inches apart.
My power raged with hunger at his nearness. With one touch, his life would be mine.
“Your True Name, my dear. Or all these precious young mages will die.”
The two men holding Bri and Alba drew long knives like the one at Weslan’s throat. Alba let out a high, fearful noise. Bri leaned away from the man’s knife, but he responded by pulling her closer to it. She shut her eyes.
Fury ripped through me like lightning in a summer storm. I was fast, but not that fast. I’d have to choose—save one of them. An impossible choice.
I looked over my shoulder at Weslan. “Don’t do it,” he managed, before the knife was pressed against his throat again.
I took a deep breath. I’d trained for this, hadn’t I? I’d prepared myself to be under my True Name’s control again. I could do this. For my daughters. For Weslan. For Ella. I could be strong.
“Rapunzel,” I breathed as the man leaned closer. My voice was soft and light as a feather, but the power in my name filled the air.
The blond man sighed, a rapt expression coming over his face. “Rapunzel,” he repeated.
I tensed. Now was my chance. I’d find out if my training had any affect.
“Rapunzel, don’t move a muscle unless I tell you to.”
I straightened my spine as the leash of my True Name circled around my will. I’d fight it. I’d kill him, and then …
The leash tightened, and my will disappeared. My arms fell slack at my sides. I stared straight ahead, my face relaxing into a blank, neutral expression. I was his.
~
The Blight’s leader, Flavian, kept us in the hot, stifling warehouse for hours. I had no idea how much time had passed, but from the occasional glimpse of outside light, it had to be midday or later. That meant we’d been here for at least twelve hours. I could swear I’d been enduring his constant torment and humiliation for weeks. I followed dutifully on Flavian’s heels, stopping only when he came to a halt in the warehouse’s old loading bay. The air smelled of dust and rat droppings. I wanted to sneeze, but I couldn’t. Don’t move a muscle. My eyes watered as my thoughts screamed.
Flavian took a step to the side. I followed, compelled by his command, stopping when I was mere inches away from his side. He sighed gleefully. “I’ll never get tired of this. Never.”
He placed a hand on my back, then dragged it to my waist. I longed to move away, but no matter how I pulled at my True Name, the leash held.
He winked. Then he pinched me, twisting the thin skin at my waist until I wanted to cry. Still, I didn’t move. He winked again and dropped his hand at last.
The men around him waited silently, their expressions covered by close-fitting red masks. Finally done playing with me for the moment, Flavian addressed them. “We’ll take the Mage Division first. Argentarius and Falconus will take care of each other while we do so. Rapunzel here will eliminate the other top-ranked authorities, but I’ll require the rest of you to handle those lower in rank. Give every mage a choice—join us or die.”
A man with a gravelly voice spoke. “What about humans?”
“No choice. Just kill them.”
The masked man nodded. His tight-fitting red mask twitched. I had a feeling he was smiling.
“Wait! Zel! Wait, it’s me!” Ella’s voice rang out, echoing in the large empty bay.
No. Impossible. How had she found us? What was she doing here?
“Zel, I brought help,” Ella said as she came to a stop in front of us. Her wobbly voice was nearly swallowed up by the ominous silence in the air around us. “Prince Estevan’s men are here.” She gulped. “I mean, they’ll be here soon.”
Get out, Ella! Run! My screams never reached my mouth. I only stood silently, watching my worst nightmare unfold.
The man with the gravelly voice grabbed Ella by the arm as Flavian laughed again. “Cinderella, Cinderella. Here you are. After all our little shared moments, I’d started to miss you.”
He knew her? How could he possibly know her?
“Call me Flavian. It’s so nice to meet formally, isn’t it? I chose you the day you won the scholarship, and I bided my time. Who knew I had selected such a prize? You led me to your stepmother. I couldn’t have asked for more.”
He continued to taunt her as she sobbed hysterically, and as I listened, the pieces of a horrible puzzle clicked into place. Ella’s nightmares, her con
stant fear and paranoia, the attack on her school, the market, the bakery’s street—none of them had been a coincidence. He’d been stalking her deliberately, tormenting her under my very nose, and I’d never suspected it. What kind of stepmother was I? All I’d ever wanted was to protect her, and I’d utterly failed.
I blocked out his voice and strained with all my might at my True Name, unleashing my rage against it. My power pulsed with hunger for his life, but as I fought my Name, my body grew even more taut and still. His command held. My Name would not falter. There was nothing I could do.
Then my Name rang out from his mouth once again. “Rapunzel, my dear, kill her.”
No, no, no! I’d always known that my power would ruin Ella’s life, but not like this. Please, not like this.
My feet stepped toward Ella, closer and closer. She moved desperately in the bruising grip of the guard who held her. He was too strong, and she was too small. She couldn’t escape.
I raised my hand toward her throat just as she collapsed and stopped fighting. This was it. After all my plans and prepared speeches, I was finally saying good-bye in the worst possible way, just like the monster I was.
Chapter 22
Ella met and held my gaze. The strength in her eyes was like a knife in my heart. Why was she so strong after everything she’d been through? And why was I so weak? I couldn’t even buck my True Name, and that was the one thing I’d been training myself to do for years. It was the one thing that mattered.
Then she spoke, and her voice was small but firm and certain, no longer wobbling in fear. “Zel, I forgive you.”
What was she doing? My hand drew closer. Monster, monster, monster …
“I love you like my own mother. No matter what. Never, never forget that.”
I’d spoken the same words to her last night. How could she forgive me? How could she love me? I’d ruined her life. I was worthless. No, I was worse than worthless—I was evil. A nightmare personified, dropped into Ella’s life when she had no choice in the matter.
The soft feel of my bed’s coverlet. Cold spring rain hitting the window beside our heads. My belly swollen and straining, the twins moving restlessly in my womb as little Ella lay beside me, twisting the folds of the blanket with her fingers.
