(Skeleton Key) Princess of the Damned

by Wendy Knight

  "You what?" Landon asked, aloud. Like she could hear him. But of course, she couldn't. You're sorry you failed me? I'm the one alive and well and free, Eiress.

  "I was being pulled by something—something invisible—but I wanted to explode the gate so the souls would be pulled in, and I was so angry and so…desperate, and when I raised my hands, fire exploded, but it exploded everything, and Elizabeth and Vlad, all the souls, everything, it's gone. They're gone. I'm here alone. But—but Landon, there's something else." Eiress stared at the mirror as though she could see right through it and into his soul. In a way, she could. Without seeing him at all.

  He missed her so much, the feel of her skin, the silk of her hair, her fierce determination. The thought of never being able to touch her again nearly drove him to his knees. But she was still talking.

  "Mary took your place in the mirror. She's on your side of it now, Landon. Be wary. I don't know what she'll do, but she's…"

  Mary was on his side of the mirror.

  There have been fifteen attacks since your wife was brought in.

  "Mary's here." The room spun, the floor seemed to crack and tip beneath his feet. A woman so evil hell hadn't wanted her there, had come back to life.

  Because of him.

  "My mom," he gasped, and prayed Eiress would understand when he bolted out of the bathroom and left her behind. He jerked on his jeans and tugged his shirt over his head while he ran from the room. "Laura Heritage's room, please? I'm her son."

  She gave him an odd look before going to the computer to check. By that time, it didn't matter, because his dad had just come around the corner. Landon expected a lecture or a reprimand or something, but his dad just motioned him to follow, and Landon didn't hesitate. They hurried down the hallways without speaking, Landon's brain racing as fast as his pounding heart. Mary was here, and his mom had been attacked. Mary had taken his place in the mirror.

  By the time they got to his mother's room, he knew what he would see. He'd watched Mary do it often enough with her razor sharp claws—to the other princesses, but never to Eiress. His mother's throat had been slashed.

  Bloody Mary had attacked his mother.

  EIRESS WASN'T USED TO THE SILENCE. There were no moaning souls. No screaming Elizabeth. No Mary. The nightmares beyond the castle seemed to be giving it a wide berth. Eiress wasn't sure she was the reason, but she liked to think she was. She'd blown up the gates to hell.

  She was tough.

  So why did she feel so empty and alone?

  Because she'd had Landon, and now he was gone. She'd had hope, and now it was crushed. There was no way out for her now.

  But she also couldn't kill herself and take out the Isle now. Not while Mary was still free. She'd have to wait. She was okay with that. A small, stupid part of her kept expecting Landon to swoop in and save her. To come crashing through the mirror and pull her to the other side.

  Instead, there was just silence.

  Lots and lots of silence.

  She lay curled on her bed most of the time, healing. Reliving every moment she'd had with Landon, every touch, every smile. That one single kiss. The brightness of his soul and the kindness of his eyes. His determination against all odds.

  She had failed him.

  She cried. A lot.

  For hours. Maybe days or years. She wasn't sure. There was no nightly ball, now. No Vlad or Elizabeth to threaten her or terrify her. No Mary. Nothing that forced her to get out of bed and try to live.

  So she lived in her memories.

  She'd only felt Landon come that one time. He'd been full of pain, and upon hearing her news, panic. No doubt having Mary on his side of the mirror had to be terrifying. Who knew what she'd be capable of.

  And Landon, of course, would go after her. To try to save the day.

  He'd try to save the day.

  Eiress sat up in a rush, nearly toppling off the bed. She had to help him. Somehow, she needed to fight by his side.

  But how? She had no chains, but she also had no way to get out of the mirror. Someone had to call her. She'd have to pull some innocent in so she could get out.

  Running a hand through her tangled hair, she paced her silent room, idly twisting her fingers. Try as she might, she couldn't think of a better, less evil way. "But I'll come back." She promised the empty room. "I won't abandon them. I'll come back."

  Gathering her skirts, finding courage in having a purpose that didn't involve her blowing herself up, and being able to save Landon the way she should have the first time. She swept from the room, Kaida on her shoulder. She marched down the empty halls, keeping her spine straight, trying not to hate herself for what she was about to do.

  "I will come back."

  Kaida puffed on her shoulder in approval.

  The throne room was scarred and black, showing the damage of the explosion. Scorch marks covered the floors, the walls, the ceilings. The thrones were black and brittle. Mary's had toppled over on its side; Elizabeth's was on three legs and leaning dangerously.

  Only Eiress's stood tall. The plush red velvet was hardly charred at all. The gold was covered in the ash of the souls, but it fell away as she approached it. The symbolism wasn't lost on her. Mary and Elizabeth were gone, and their thrones were toppled. Eiress alone remained, as the Queen of the Damned.

  Until she ended this place.

  LANDON'S MOTHER WAS TOUGH. She wasn't a big woman, but she was fierce, and she'd nearly died trying to protect Landon. The heart monitor beeped regularly as Landon held her hand, watching her sleep. "She's going to be okay," his dad said from the other side of the bed. "They're just keeping her in a coma to let her heal."

  Landon nodded mutely. He wished he could talk to her. He wished he could tell her how sorry he was. He wished…well, he wished a lot of things.

  He could almost hear her in his head. "You can't do anything sitting here, Landon. Go save Eiress. There's still time."

  He sat back, staring at her in surprise, wondering if her lips had moved and he'd just somehow missed it. But her eyes stayed closed, her face pale. And yet…

  Landon nodded and let go of her hand. "I'll be right back." He stood stiffly, still feeling like he'd been run over multiple times by a steam roller. His dad watched him with dark, worried eyes. No one could see his injuries—they were wounds of the soul and just as deadly.

  He'd been given a second chance, when Eiress had given up her soul to dance with him. To send him home.

  She'd given up everything for him.

  He went into the bathroom and shut the door quietly, torn between staying by his mother's side and searching for Mary.

  Again, he heard his mother's voice in his head. "Stop her, Landon. There's still time."

  Eiress sensed him, apparently, because she looked straight up at him and that heartbreakingly beautiful smile lit her face. "You're okay. I was so worried." She put a hand up to the mirror, and he wondered if she longed for his touch the way he longed for hers. Slowly, he placed his hand next to her, pretending they were palm to palm and not worlds apart.

  "I can feel your pain." Eiress clutched at her chest with her other hand, her words strangled. "I know how awful this must be, Landon, to face this nightmare. But you have to stop her. Okay? You have to send her back to me."

  Landon rubbed a hand over his face, peering at her over his fingers. "How, Eiress? How do I stop her?"

  But Eiress, of course, couldn't hear him. She couldn't answer him. She must have felt his panic, though, because she shuddered. "You can do this, Landon." A small smile almost lit her face. "You, who never says can't."

  "Landon? Are you okay? Did you fall?" His dad was jiggling the handle.

  "Uh, yeah. Yeah, I'm okay." Landon pushed the door open, nearly bowling his dad over. "I fell, a little. Still trying to get steady on my feet." He gave a weak laugh.

  "Maybe you should go back to your room. I'll keep your mother company." His dad gave him an even weaker smile.

  Landon nodded. He had to lea
ve them.

  Again.

  On an impulse, he threw his arms around his dad, ignoring the pain that came with it. "I love you, Dad."

  His dad hugged him back, just as tightly. "I love you, too, Landon. We'll get through this."

  Landon nodded and moved away, bending to kiss his mother's forehead. He whispered, "I'll save her, Mom. And I'll stop Mary."

  He had no idea how he'd do that, but somehow, he believed he could.

  Maybe it was Eiress. Maybe it was his mom, who had told him a thousand times that he could do anything he put his mind to. Maybe it was his dad, who really thought they'd get through this okay.

  It was all of them. Landon knew that. He knew he could do it because they believed he wouldn't fail.

  LANDON WENT BACK TO his room and gathered his things.

  "You haven't been cleared by the doctor to leave yet. Just sit tight, hun." The nurse patted him back into the bed, checking her charts and barely noticing him. "I'll go find him and be right back."

  Landon had played football his entire life. He'd been in the hospital with concussions, broken bones, sprains, bruises, tears—often enough that he knew when the nurse said she'd be right back, that could be anything from ten minutes to three hours. And then they'd have to track down his dad and get his signature.

  Groaning, Landon went into the bathroom. Flipping on the light, he focused on the mirror, hoping Eiress would feel him and also somehow magically read his mind and answer all his questions.

  It was dark in the ballroom, and Eiress sat silently on her throne, the black sheet of hair hiding her face from him. Still, she was alone. No lost souls, no Vlad, no Elizabeth.

  "They're gone," Eiress said quietly without raising her head. "I killed them all when I tried to blow up the gates to hell."

  "What are you doing, beautiful?"

  She didn't answer. Only pushed herself to her feet and walked away from her throne.

  "What are you doing in the throne room, Eiress?" Landon suddenly had a sick feeling that he knew what she was doing. He hadn't spent fourteen years watching her every move to not know what she was planning. She was waiting for Mary to come back, waiting for Landon to stop her and send her back to the Isles.

  And then Eiress was going to kill them both.

  "Eiress," he said, slapping his hand against the mirror. "Eiress, you can't do this. We'll find another way. Eiress!"

  As if she heard his every word, she looked up at him, eyes shining with tears. "I wish we could, Landon." She pushed her hair away from her face and paced the ballroom. "I thought I could come to your side of the mirror and help you find her and—and stop her. But three little girls have called for her now, and every time, I couldn't do it. I couldn't pull them in. I can't…I can't do it, Landon. You're on your own."

  "Landon?" His dad's voice, tight with stress, echoed through the bathroom and Landon prayed no one had heard him pounding on the mirror. He pressed his palm again to the mirror, hoping she could feel his goodbye.

  "Yeah, Dad?" He left the mirror and Eiress and went back into his room.

  "Are you trying to leave? The doctors haven't even figured out what was wrong with you."

  "Just exhaustion, Dad. I'm fine."

  "No, they said your white blood cell count was elevated and your blood pressure is elevated and several other things are elevated—"

  Landon sucked in a breath, gathering courage. "Dad, I know you don't believe me about any of this, but my friend is still in trouble and I can't save her from here. I have to go, and I have to leave Mom even though she tried to save me, and I have to defy you and I know—"

  "Landon, I know you think you're invincible because you're young, but there's a reason the doctor hasn't signed you out yet. Your body needs to recover, you need to rest. Whatever you've been out doing, your body has to recover. Just because you can't see an injury doesn't mean it isn't there."

  Landon dropped his head. "You're right, Dad." Without arguing, he climbed back into his bed and hoped his dad didn't notice he had his shoes on.

  "Good boy. I'll see if I can find out what's going on. You just rest." His dad tucked the blankets around him and patted him awkwardly on top of his head.

  "Yeah. Thanks, Dad."

  As soon as his dad had disappeared, Landon shoved the blankets off him and slid out of bed. His legs were still wobbly, so running didn't seem like the best option, but he did it anyway, skidding out of the room and down the hall, making sure it was the opposite direction his dad had gone.

  LANDON STARTED CALLING THE number on the little card the police officer had given him as soon as he hit the elevator. He barely waited for the man to answer before he started talking. "I think I know what the lady looks like."

  "What? Who is this?"

  Landon ground his teeth, searching for patience. He did not have time for this, but he had no idea how else to go about finding a centuries-old demon woman running loose in his city. "Landon Heritage. I talked to you at the hospital a few hours ago. My mom was attacked. I think I know what the woman looks like."

  "Woman? Why do you think it's a woman?"

  "Because it is. She's super pale, short frizzy hair, dead, evil eyes. She—she walks like royalty—you can't miss her."

  Yeah. That didn't sound weird at all.

  "Could you describe her to a sketch artist?"

  "No. I don't have time. Do you have any idea where she is?"

  "Look, Landon, I know you're very upset about your mom, but let us handle this. It's our job."

  The man was very nice, but Landon just wanted to throw his phone.

  Not. Helping.

  "Yeah, but I know things about her that can help—"

  "Is she a friend of yours?" The man's voice had changed, imperceptibly.

  "No. Definitely not. She's been torturing my—" he suddenly froze. What did he say here? "—my friend for years. I can help you!"

  "Son, your mother was just attacked," the man said, not unkindly. "I know how much you want to avenge her or whatever, but this is our job. This is what we do for a living, every day. We're trained for this—"

  "You're not trained for her. Please, you have to listen—"

  The man cut him off. "How do you know her, Landon? Who is this friend she's been torturing?"

  "I don't know her—I mean, I know her, but I—"

  "Did you have a fight? And she came after your family?"

  "No." Landon was getting nowhere. "No, it's not like that. She's just a very, very bad woman, and she's not…" How to explain that without sounding crazy?

  He'd been sounding crazy his entire life. No reason to stop now.

  "She's ancient. And more powerful than you can realize—"

  "Ancient? You're telling me an old woman is behind these attacks?"

  "No. No, she just doesn't…"

  "What Landon? And how do you know her?"

  Landon couldn't answer his questions. If he did, the man would only think he was crazy and have him committed or something. At the very least, he'd laugh in Landon's face and ignore his words, anyway.

  Landon hung up.

  "I will lead you."

  Eiress's mother. Landon recognized her voice despite how faint it was.

  "Okay. Okay, I've just gotta get home. I need my truck."

  EIRESS HADN'T FELT LANDON'S PRESENCE IN hours. Maybe days. She'd lacked the courage to pull three separate groups of children through the mirror. Now, she didn't even respond. Just waited in the empty throne room.

  Waited to die.

  What else was there to look forward to? And if she died in this place and was sent to hell, at least she could make sure that no one else ever had to share her fate.

  She'd tried to get Kaida to leave her, to seek his own kind and safety. He refused and had even nipped at her hand when she'd tried to urge him away from her. Now he dangled over the backrest and randomly blew smoke rings into the air.

  So when the room chilled, she assumed at first that Kaida had just run out of stea
m. It was Kaida himself that alerted her when he started hissing angrily, smoke surrounding them both.

  Even the smoke didn't dispel the cold by then.

  Eiress rose slowly to her feet, looking from Kaida to the direction he was hissing, and back again.

  The gates. He was hissing at the gates.

  Terror clawed at Eiress's throat. No. It couldn't be. She'd blown the gates open and everyone had been pulled down to hell. They couldn't come back up.

  Could they?

  It was Elizabeth. Or what was left of her. She materialized through the darkness, her soul roiling with maggot-like darkness. "You little bitch," she hissed.

  She moved with a limp, sliding to the left with every step. "I had everything. The world bowed at my feet. I was beautiful. I was more beautiful than you will ever be and Mary said 'don't touch her. She'll be the end of us. I see her in my nightmares,' and then she leaves me here to die with you!" She screamed, throwing her fisted hands in the air.

  Eiress stumbled backward in the face of Elizabeth's anger. "How did you get out?" Fear nearly paralyzed her.

  "I clawed my way back like vermin. You've reduced me to vermin!" Her screams echoed through the rounded room, attacking Eiress from all angles.

  Blow her up. Blow her up. Blow her up.

  But fear stood in the way and Eiress couldn't seem to find her strength or will or whatever it was that had served her before. Instead, she crept backward, stumbling on the torn edges of her gown. She fell to the floor and scrambled on hands and feet until she smashed against the mirrored wall. Elizabeth loomed over her.

  "I'm going to drain you of your blood slowly, and watch you die. I'm going to watch them drag you to hell and this time, you'll have nothing to fight back with, and then I'm going to bathe in your blood and toast Mary, who left me to rule alone." Her eyes were black, black pits with no spark of mercy.

  "I love you, Landon," Eiress whispered as Elizabeth's clawed hand reached for her throat.