by L. P. Dover
“Why is that?” I asked, hooking a glance over my shoulder.
Oh, that’s why. It didn’t take me long to figure it out. The place looked like a dingy bar, all dark and disgusting, with nasty drunken men that you would see in the mortal realm. What made it even more like that were the trolls gathered around outside, toppling over each other with mugs of liquid in their hands. They were celebrating, and I knew why.
Bastian whispered in my ear, “I’m not going to hurt you, but go along with what I do. When we find Gothin we need to get him alone.”
“And then kill him,” I finished for him.
Taking my arm, he pulled me along behind him as we approached the building. Trolls were hideous creatures—with their warty faces, bad teeth, and various sized bodies—who probably never saw a bar of soap in their life. You could smell them from a mile away, and the ones here definitely didn’t disappoint. Some of them were short and stocky while some were tall and lean. Out of all the creatures in the land it made me wonder how a disgusting creature like a troll could ever be the sorcerer’s right hand man.
Ascending the steps, I followed behind Bastian and entered into the dank building that smelled of trolls and urine. The whole room fell silent as they spied us. “I’m looking for Gothin,” Bastian called out.
All heads turned to the one troll at the back table who was sandwiched in by two faerie women. They looked worn and haggard, and immediately my hackles rose. An overwhelming sense of disgust swarmed through my body. I wanted to rip him in two and laugh while I did it. I wanted to save them, to get them out of this hell hole that they’d probably been living in for years with no hope of ever being saved.
Bastian gripped my hand tighter and shook his head. “Patience,” he whispered. “We will get them out of here.”
Gothin stood and eyed me curiously as we approached him. He had pointed, rotten teeth, and still smelled foul like the others, but also happened to be dressed better than them, too. “What do you want?” he grunted. “As you can see I am busy.”
Bastian jerked me forward and pushed me toward the troll. “I have a gift for the sorcerer. I think he would find her to his satisfaction.”
“Indeed,” Gothin approved.
Dismissing the faerie women with a flick of his hand, he narrowed his gaze and ran his dark, beady eyes up and down my body like a vulture, while rubbing his scruffy chin. “Yes, I think she will do just fine. I can take her from here,” he insisted greedily, licking his lips. “The master is not here for the time being, but she will be happy in my care until he returns.”
Like hell I would be. Where the hell was the sorcerer?
The last thing we needed was to have to stay in the Black Forest longer than necessary. The longer we were there the harder it would be to keep our cover. Over Gothin’s shoulder, Merrick shrugged and disappeared out of the bar with determination. Hopefully, he would find some answers or hear something somewhere about Alasdair’s whereabouts. Gothin held out his hand, but Bastian didn’t want to let loose of his hold on me, so he hesitated.
“I told you I can take her from here,” Gothin snapped. “You brought her to me so now you can go.”
I squeezed his hand reassuringly, hoping he would understand my message. I’ll be fine, I wanted to say to him. Letting go of his hand, I circled around the table and sat down in the chair beside Gothin. I nodded quickly at Bastian and glanced at the door, hoping he would get the hint. He needed to leave before he drew too much attention to himself. Reluctantly, he turned on his heel and marched out the front door, never once looking back.
It was up to me now.
BASTIAN AND MERRICK were nowhere in sight when I left the trolls’ meeting place with Gothin. Taking my arm in his slimy hand, Gothin quickly led me away from the curious onlookers. Pretending to be distressed, I gazed over at Gothin nervously and asked, “Where are we going?”
He grinned wolfishly at me with those rotten, pointy teeth. “I am taking you to my dwelling. A pretty little lass like yourself wouldn’t last a night in the prison with my men.”
The blood boiled in my veins as thoughts of helpless women without a way to protect themselves ran rampant through my mind. It sickened me to think that out of all the years the sorcerer had been here, there were probably thousands of women he’d had tortured and killed. Now that I was there it was going to stop.
I bit my tongue to keep from lashing out, and I clenched so hard I could taste the metallic essence of my blood going down my throat. I wanted to kill him and I wanted to kill Alasdair; I wanted to kill them all. I wanted them to suffer the way they’d made countless others suffer over the years, especially the people I loved.
Gothin’s dwelling was a crappy little shack made from the oily black trees of the forest. I dreaded going inside, but I knew that I must. I took one last look around the village, hoping to catch a glimpse of Bastian or Merrick, but came up disappointed.
Where were they? I wondered.
Gothin pushed me inside and slammed the door behind me, barring it with a heavy wooden beam. There were no windows in his one room shack or even a bathroom, only a rickety old bed and some chairs. “Sit,” he ordered, motioning toward the bed.
I could feel the dagger up against the bare skin of my back and I ached to have it in my hands and taking the life away from the worthless creature in front of me. I had never killed before, but I was ready. I was ready to show them once and for all that my people will triumph … we will save our land.
“When will the sorcerer be back?” I asked meekly.
Gothin grabbed a bundle of rope off of the floor and stalked over to me. He grabbed my legs and held them together while wrapping my ankles tightly with the rope. “The master will be back on the morrow. He is bringing over the mortals for the final battle.”
“When does he plan on attacking?”
Gothin tightened the rope and it cut into my skin, drawing a line of blood. He glared at me and snarled impatiently, “You ask too many questions, lass. The only thing you need to be worried about is surviving tomorrow when the master has his way with you. Just sit tight and keep your mouth shut.”
He got up to grab another bundle of rope, and turned his back away from me. That was a big mistake. Reaching behind my back, I slid the dagger out carefully and sliced it through the rope at my ankles. Quietly, I stalked over to Gothin and tapped him on the shoulder with the blade.
“See, that’s the problem. I’m not the type of person to just sit tight and keep my mouth shut,” I remarked.
With wide eyes, he turned around, glancing quickly from the tattered rope on the floor and then to me. “How did you …” he started, but then noticed the dagger in my hand. “Who are you?”
I smiled and grabbed him by the shoulders, forcing him up against the wall with the dagger at his throat. “You ask too many questions,” I snarled in his face, repeating what he just said to me. “I think the only thing you need to be worried about is surviving the next few seconds. However, I will answer one question for you before you die.”
The glamour I had shielding my true form slowly vanished, revealing who I really was … an Ice Queen. Gothin shook his head, his small beady eyes gazing at me first in disbelief, then to pure animosity. His breath stank of old, rotten meat when he teased, “I see you came into your power, Princess. It is a shame it won’t be enough to defeat us.”
I pressed the dagger into his skin and watched it sizzle and burn away like the iron blade does to our skin. His mouth flew open in panic, but before he could call for help I slapped my hand over his mouth and slammed his head against the wall.
“I’m not just a princess anymore you worthless sack of shit. I’m a queen,” I hissed. “And judging by the way you look right now I would say that I have a pretty good chance at killing you … and him.”
“How are you doing that?” he sneered, observing the dagger in my hand and trembling from pain. “This is impossible.”
The skin around the puncture wound in his neck w
as slowly disintegrating and exposing the flesh and tendons underneath. I had never used the dagger on anyone before, so seeing it in action was interesting to say the least.
“Let’s just say that things aren’t always what they seem and leave it at that,” I answered. “I hope you enjoy Hell because that’s where you’re going.” Gripping the dagger firmly in my hands, I lifted it back and plunged it deep into Gothin’s chest. He gasped for one quick second, his eyes wide and terrified, before he crumbled away into a dark pile of ash almost instantly. He was gone.
The first step had been accomplished. Unfortunately, the next stage in my plan required me to look like the hideous troll. Groaning, I concentrated on the gray skin, scraggly hair, and rotten teeth of the troll and willed my magic to do its work. As soon as I stepped outside the door of his rundown dwelling, a searing pain echoed throughout my head and I fell to my knees.
No, no, no … this couldn’t be happening! I screamed in my head. I knew what was going on, but I had to stop it. I couldn’t let him in.
“Oh no,” I said aloud, trying to keep my wall in place, but failing. When I glanced up, Merrick and Bastian were right there, cautiously approaching me but uncertain if it was me behind the glamour. “It’s me,” I whispered, cringing in pain.
Rushing to me, they helped me to my feet. “What’s wrong?” they both asked at the same time.
In my mind, I could slowly see my protective wall crumbling piece by piece. There was nowhere to hide, nowhere to run, because once that wall came down I wouldn’t be able to build it back up. It wasn’t just his power tearing it down, but the power of the others.
“It’s him,” I wailed. “It’s Brayden, and he’s forcing himself into my mind. I don’t think I can stop it.” And I couldn’t. Although the wall was barely hanging in there I could hear the tiniest echo of his voice calling my name.
“Ariella …”
“WE’RE ALMOST THERE,” I exclaimed triumphantly. Ariella had kept me blocked from her mind from the beginning of our bonding. She let me in a couple of times, but for the most part she refused to let me in. Not anymore. Forcing myself into her mind was not what I wanted to do, but she gave me no choice.
Her wall was strong, but Elvena had figured out a way to help break it down. We were standing in a circle; Elvena to my right, holding my hand, while Calista was on my left. All around the circle our families joined hands and lent me their power. The wall slowly began to disintegrate and I could feel Ariella behind it. She was alive, except the second our power pushed into her she felt it, and I could feel her heart break.
“Ariella …” I waited for her to speak, but we hadn’t gotten through to her yet. Just as we were about to break through the barrier, the door to the throne room burst open and Coran, my second in command, rushed in.
“Your Highness!” he shouted. When he saw my angry glare he continued quickly, “The Tyvar are here and they have word from the queen.” Meliantha gasped, running out of the room, while Kalen and I followed behind her. “They are at the gate,” Coran called out behind us.
Unfortunately, the Tyvar couldn’t be allowed inside the walls because of their curse on women. I hated that we couldn’t let them wander around our court, but it was too dangerous to put them near our faerie women. Meliantha reached the gate first and outside was the Tyvar leader, Bayleon, and a few of his men.
“Bayleon, what’s going on?” Meliantha demanded breathlessly, grasping his hand through the gate.
Reluctantly, he smiled at her and kissed her hand, but didn’t let it go. “I’m sorry to bring you this news, but—”
“But what?” I roared impatiently, catching his attention. “What do you know about my queen?”
Bayleon bowed his head and sighed regretfully. “It seems your queen has made it to the Black Forest, Your Highness.”
No! She couldn’t be there.
Never in my life had I succumbed to fear, but I couldn’t stop it from tearing away at my soul. Ariella was there, alone, and surrounded by thousands of creatures, including the sorcerer who could tear her apart in seconds. “Did you see her? How do you know that?”
He hesitated for a second before responding, “No, I have not seen her. Apparently, my brother was the one who saw her and had sent one of our warriors to relay the message to me.”
“Where is he now?” I demanded angrily. “I wish to speak to him.” I had a feeling I knew where he would be, but I didn’t want it to be so.
“Bastian went with her, Your Highness. He is sacrificing his life to keep her safe.”
In that moment, I saw nothing but red. Bastian had found Ariella and didn’t bring her back? If I ever saw him again I was going to kill him with my own bare hands. Shaking with pent up rage, I grabbed the bars of the gate and they bent under my grasp.
“Brother, calm down,” Kalen said softly.
“Do not speak to me right now,” I warned, glaring at him over my shoulder. Meliantha backed away and let go of Bayleon’s hand as I took her place in front of him, eying him with nothing but fury in my gaze. “I am only going to say this once,” I spat. Bayleon stared at me warily and nodded for me to continue. “Your brother better hopes he dies if anything happens to Ariella. If she dies and he survives he is going to have hell to pay, and in this case, death would be a lighter punishment compared to what I will do to him.”
When all I got was silence, I turned on my heel and marched back into the palace. I wasn’t going to sit idly by anymore. If no one was going to help me, I was going to go in alone. With my heart pounding, I pushed open the doors to the throne room and stood my ground.
“I’m going after her … now,” I announced. “Even if I have to go alone, I’m going.”
They all gaped at me uncertainly for a few seconds, but it didn’t take long to get the approval I needed, and the help I wanted. Drake stepped forward and nodded. “I’m with you. They can’t go up against the dragon,” he said, grinning.
Sorcha snorted and glared at him. “I think you mean dragons,” she retorted. Turning to me she said, “Besides, if you find out where she is we can fly in there quick and grab her. She’s not going to be happy about that, though. She’s risked her life to save us, and if we go in there it’ll all be for nothing.”
It was true, she had, but I was too selfish to let her go through with it alone. “I don’t care,” I argued. “She’s my queen, and be that as it may we are supposed to make decisions together. She doesn’t get the right to dictate how I am supposed to live out the rest of my life. I want her in it and I’ll be damned if she throws it all away trying to save the world, not when we can help her.”
Drake smirked and clapped me on the shoulder. “When will you ever learn that Ariella will do as she pleases? I’ve lived with her a lot longer than you and nothing ever stands in her way. The sooner you learn that, the better off you’ll be. Now come on and let’s go find her.”
“I’m coming, too,” Calista insisted, joining her brother’s side. “I can ride on his back. He only flew with Ariella, so it’ll be a first for me.”
“And you can ride on mine,” Sorcha added, elbowing me in the side.
“Thank you, to all of you. As soon as I get through to Ariella we leave,” I announced.
As everyone fled the throne room, I stayed behind with Elvena. I needed her help to push through that last barrier to her. “Are you going to tell her you’re coming for her?” she asked, taking my hands in hers.
Sighing, I shrugged my shoulders and said, “With how Ariella is I don’t think it would be a good idea. She will just run away from me.”
“She wouldn’t be running away from you, child. That is the last thing she is doing.”
I knew she wasn’t running from me, but it sure didn’t make it any easier with her blocking me out. Squeezing Elvena’s hands, I closed my eyes and concentrated. Her power flowed through me and I could see it mingling with mine as we pushed against that barrier in Ariella’s mind. When we first started it was like a thick sl
ab of stone we had to push through, but now it was more like a pane of broken glass waiting for that last pebble to be thrown to make it shatter.
“We’re almost there, child. Just keep concentrating,” Elvena muttered.
The more we pushed, the more I could feel Ariella and her sadness. She knew what I was doing, but I wasn’t going to back down. With as much force as I could muster, the barrier shook and shattered into a million pieces. I was in.
“Why?” she cried through the bond. “Why are you making this harder on me?”
“Because,” I said, “I love you and I am not ready to give you up.”
“ARE YOU OKAY? You’re not hurt, are you?” Brayden asked.
Merrick and Bastian were both staring at me curiously, noses wrinkled in disgust. Since we were behind closed doors, I changed back into myself to make them feel more comfortable. It had to be strange knowing the grotesque creature in front of them was me.
“No, I’m not hurt physically, but emotionally is a different story.”
“I’m sorry for what I did. I just had to know you were all right. Bayleon came to us today and told me about Bastian. Needless to say, I was not happy with what I heard.”
“He’s only trying to help me, and so is Merrick,” I replied, feeling defeated.
“It should be me helping you!” I could feel the anger flowing off of him and pouring through our bond. He was close to losing it and it was all my fault.
Gently, Merrick tapped my arm and asked, “Are you talking to him now?”
Sighing, I nodded and hung my head. “Yes, and he’s not happy with me, and especially, with Bastian.”
“Brayden, I understand you’re angry but I’m doing fine on my own. The sorcerer isn’t even here right now. He’s in the mortal realm getting his army. He’s planning on bringing them over tomorrow. I have to be here to stop him before he gets them all here.”
