AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Thea nodded. “I had to knock her out for her to stop and to properly secure her, but she just woke up. Still dazed, but you should be able to talk to her.”
She stepped aside and let us pass.
We crossed through the doorway and into another long corridor. Two vampires stood at the end of the corridor where a set of stone stairs led down. They nodded as we walked past them and down the stairs. At the end of the stairs, two other vampires stood guard. A thick wooden door greeted us a few feet from the stairs. One of the two vampires guarding the door opened it for us, then promptly closed it behind us. Another long corridor stretched in front of us, though this one was lined with wooden doors with small openings on the top. Toward the back, the doors changed into ones made of bars, and Dot was in one of them.
She was seated crisscross in the center of the medium-sized cell, a white witch’s circle around her, and bright blue cuffs around her wrists.
She lifted her head, her long dark hair spilled from her face, and smiled at us. “Shane! Raika! You’ve come to see me!” Her words were slurred, and her head and shoulders swayed to the side. “To what do I owe this pleasure?”
“Cut the crap, Dot,” I barked. “You’ll undo my curse.”
“Oh, the curse.” She nodded. “Riiight. Hm, but that’s such a fun curse. I haven’t seen it in action in months. Tell me, how many people have you killed in your Shadow Wolf form?”
I clenched my hands into fists. “You—”
Raika placed a hand on my chest. “Just do what he says, Dot.”
Dot turned her heinous grin to Raika. “Little wolf, I—”
Rage surged in me. “Do not talk to her!”
Dot’s eyes shone with amusement. “Is that anger I hear in your voice? Hm, I actually can see it. That’s fabulous. I would love to see the Shadow Wolf right now.”
I took a deep breath, trying to calm down. I wouldn’t give her the satisfaction of seeing me losing my shit. “Here’s the deal. You will break my curse one way or another. Option one, you can break my curse nicely, or option two, I’ll torture you, like you tortured me, until you agree. I’ll make you wish you had agreed sooner.”
She stared at me blankly. “You don’t scare me.”
A growl rose from my throat. I leaned the bars and barked, “You should be scared.”
Her smile widened and I suppressed a shudder. She was insane, like all the other Nightmist witches I had met.
Without any more to say to her, I held Raika’s hand and marched out of the prison.
Once we were outside the castle, Raika tugged at my arm. “Are you okay?”
“I’m great,” I said, my voice high. I let out a long sigh. “I really am great, though. You’re here with me, unharmed and whole, and we have Dot. Soon, she'll break my curse, and everything will be fine.” Or almost everything. There was still Paimon for us to deal with. I frowned. “How about you? Are you okay after confronting her?”
Raika’s shoulders drooped. “I’m … I don’t know. While I was with them, Dot was like a cool, crazy aunt. If only I had known she was spelling my mind so I couldn’t remember anything, and muting the bond.” Raika shook her head. “I was so naive.”
“Hey.” I cupped her face. “You’re not naive. You didn’t know anything and you did the best you could.”
She rested her head on my hand. “I’m just glad I’m back beside you.”
“I second that.” I leaned into her, pressing a soft kiss on her forehead. “Now let’s get you home.”
23
RAIKA
It was so late,but Shane said certain things couldn’t wait. So, as we walked from the castle to the village, he called Dom and let him know we were coming.
“We?” Dom asked, confused. His voice was faint to my ears, but I still could hear it.
“Yeah,” Shane said. “Just get Minsi and Tyren up, if they are sleeping. And call Lucille. She’ll be mad at us if she misses this.”
“Man, you’re scaring me.”
Shane’s lips curled up and his eyes met mine. “It’s a good thing, Dom. A wonderful thing. Just get everyone together at my house. We’ll be there soon.”
