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“You calmed the beast,” Bates drawls, finally looking up and meeting my gaze. We stay locked in a battle of wills for several moments as we both take each other in. My nemesis is here, in a place I never thought he’d reach me. As though sensing the direction of my thoughts, he grins, looking pleased with himself as he does a slow circle and gestures around the deadly quiet ballroom. “You’re finally here,” he crows. “We couldn’t get started before our guest of honour arrived.”
All of the nausea I felt earlier is gone the moment I lock eyes on Bates. He looks the same as the last time I saw him, but most of all, it’s his twisted smirk that triggers me the most. This male tormented me, tried to kill me multiple times, killed Nicolai, and has now stormed Haven. Righteous anger floods through my body and washes away all of my other emotions. Ignoring his comment about being the guest of honour, I narrow my eyes and cross my arms over my chest. “Why are you here?”
I’m proud of the strength in my voice, not a single waver or sign of fear on display. If he was expecting the weak young girl who was unsure of who she was, then he’s going to be in for a surprise. I’ve grown up, and I have my mates and my friends to support me. I’m not alone.
The only sign of his surprise is a twitch in his brow and the pause he takes before he starts talking. He hides it well, and I only notice because I’m watching him so closely.
“We have finally come to rid ourselves of our enemy.” He looks around the room with a sneer as the werewolves cheer in agreement. Howls echo around the room, and the witches shuffle around nervously, attempting to sink into the walls.
“It also helps that you’re here, and we can slaughter you like the foul halfling you are. We can kill two birds with one stone.” Hatred seems to radiate from him, his manic grin distorted by the violence clearly written across his face.
Taking a step forward, I feel the weight of the entire population of the ballroom watching me, waiting for my reaction with bated breath. His reasoning doesn’t surprise me, but I can’t help but think that there’s something else going on here. It’s nothing more than an inkling, a twinge in the corner of my mind, yet one I can’t seem to shake.
We have finally come to rid ourselves of our enemy. Those toxic words repeat in my mind, only stirring up my anger. That’s what this is all about. People on both sides are being killed in a war no one understands the origins of in the first place.
“Why are you attacking the witches? Because of an age-old feud that our ancestors started?” I demand with derision, needing everyone to hear these words and realise how ridiculous it is to fight a war no one wants. “We need to make a stand against this war, and onlywecan make that change. I’m not saying you have to like each other or even interact, but fighting for the sake of it is just a pointless waste of lives.” Looking around the ballroom, I address the witches. “Don’t you want to live in peace so you don’t have to hide any longer?” Hope blooms in me as I see several nods of agreement and sparks of new possibilities in several of the witches’ expressions. Maybe I really can do this and stop this once and for all.
Clearing my throat, I shift my attention back to Bates. “This has been going on for too long. Stop this madness, and let everyone go free.”
There’s no room for disagreement in my demand, and for a moment, I feel powerful and full of purpose. Warmth and love wrap around me as my mates’ feelings flood through the bond, their pride at being my mate lifting my spirit.
That lasts for all of about five seconds and is shattered by a loud, slow clap from Bates. He looks at me with a mocking smile, his werewolves laughing at the very idea that they could just release us.
“No, I don’t think I will,” he replies, clicking his tongue with a tilt of his head. “That was a very pretty speech. Well done. You see, Laelia, it’s talk like that that leads to the creation of vermin like yourself, and I cannot allow that. The council agrees with me.”
If he was waiting for my shock at his declaration that the council was behind this attack and wants me dead, then he’s to be disappointed. Sadly, none of this surprises me. While I wouldn’t put it past Bates to rally an attack on Haven on his own, I doubt he’d have this much support, not to mention the fact that the council was trying to find ways to kill me in the werewolf trials. They failed then, and they’ll fail again today.
“In fact,” Bates continues, stretching out the word, “if you weren’t here, this whole attack wouldn’t have worked, and we never would have found this place, so I suppose we have you to thank for that.”
Despite the fact that I know I’m not to blame, I can’t help but feel a twinge of guilt. I don’t know how they found us, but somehow, it’s linked to me. Star butts her head against my leg as she senses my turmoil, and I automatically thread my fingers through her fur, feeling grounded once more.
I’m working on my response when movement at the back of the room catches my attention. The queen is leaning forward, her shaking hands gripping onto the arms of her throne. “You,” she whispers with anger, and despite the low volume, the word seems to carry around the ballroom for everyone to hear. “This is because of you. I knew you’d bring destruction upon us.” Voice cracking, the queen looks up and glances around the room at her people with watery eyes. “You see, Laelia is the one from the prophecy, but because she failed the challenge, instead of bringing us together, she’s torn us apart!” Shouting now, the queen gestures towards me with a damning point of her finger.
That turned quickly, I think to myself in shock. Perhaps I shouldn’t be surprised that she’s turned the blame on me. In fact, it’s a very clever way of solving her dilemma with me refusing to kill Maliki. This way, all of the fault is on me, and the queen comes off looking innocent. Now really isn’t the time to be pointing fingers while we’re in the middle of an attack, yet she seems determined.
My mates gather around me, staying close as they sense the deteriorating situation. I take comfort from their presence, and even more so when Luna steps up with them, standing by us in support. This could cost her everything, yet knowing she’s got our backs gives me the strength to face the queen.
Fully aware of everyone watching this feud, I take a deep breath and try to calm my rising anger. “I had nothing to do with this.”
Completely ignoring my comment, she pushes up from her throne with shaky limbs to address her people. “She is the reason for the deaths of our kin!”
Unfortunately, that comment is one step too far, and my control around my power snaps. Blaming me for the deaths of the poor witches who were slaughtered is heartless and cruel, especially when the very creatures who did it are standing right in front of her, keeping her captive. Stars burst into life and float around on a phantom breeze before disappearing. The light is quickly replaced as my skin begins to glow as though I’m covered with thousands of tiny diamonds.
Gasps of shock echo around me, not only from the watching witches, but our werewolf captors as well.
“See? She still has her magic! How is it that only she was able to keep her power when all of us have been stripped of it?” the queen shrieks, jabbing her finger at me once more, her face twisted with rage. “She must be working with them. How else would they have found Haven? We’ve lived a peaceful life and gone undiscovered for centuries, then all of a sudden, she shows up, and her werewolf kin manage to break through our shields.”
“I would never betray you! The prophecy said I’d bring us all together!” I remind them all with rising panic. The queen was always going to retaliate, and she used the attack on Haven as the perfect opportunity. The fact that she’s putting the blame on me hurts. It shouldn’t, we knew something like this was coming, I just had no idea how painful it would feel.
“As interesting as this is,” Bates drawls, cutting through our conversation with a bored expression. “We have business to attend to.”
The queen seems to remember why we’re all here and falls back into her throne like a puppet with her strings cut. She looks so small and delicate with a hand pressed against her chest and eyes glazed over with agony.
“Laelia,” Bates barks, pulling all attention back to him, including my own. “We’re willing to bargain with you and give you the chance to be the chosen one, one last time. Give yourself over, and we’ll take it easy on the witches. No torturing or playing with their bodies, we’ll simply slaughter them and move on.”
I want to laugh at his offer. It’s hardly a good compromise. They are only going to try to kill me whether I sacrifice myself or not. There’s going to be a bloody fight, as I know they won’t just allow themselves to be killed. Plus, if I hand myself over, then they really are all lost, because my mates and I are the only ones with our magic unblocked. We’ll be able to protect them as best as we can. Bates and his wolves don’t yet know that Nicolai and Atlas can still use their magic, and that’s something I want to keep hidden until we need to reveal it. I can’t help anyone if I’m dead, so I’m going to have to do my best to stay alive.
Indignation and outrage start to flood in as I examine his words further. He’s talking about these witches as though they are already corpses.No torturing or playing with their bodies. These people are still alive and hearing everything he has to say, yet he acts like they are not worth addressing.
