Chapter 2

TWO

BASH

“She’s not going to forgive you for that.” Sandra fell into step with me as we exited The Emerald.

“I don’t expect her to.”

The truth was Collins was injured beyond what one night of rest could fix. She might hate me for it, but she was the only thing tethering me to this world. At least the only thing of any consequence. She needed rest, and I didn’t care how she got it.

“Still, you’re gonna have your hands full when she gets out of there.”

Sandra seemed almost relieved that I’d barred Collins in the infirmary after the events of the last few days. What she didn’t know was that it pained me to do so.

“I’ve learned doing wrong to get the right outcome works.”

Stellan gave a light chuckle from just behind me. “I couldn’t agree more, mate.”

“Don’t even think about it.” Elle snapped as she walked next to him. “You don’t get to make decisions like that for me.”

“Of course not, love.”

He agreed with her, but I knew he’d make the same choice if he was faced with his soulmate being so injured she could barely stand. Ellie gave a heavy sigh yet didn’t say anything. There was a chance she didn’t entirely disagree with what I’d just done either but didn’t want to voice it on principle. Which was fair. The night had been too long, and it still wasn’t over. My body ached, my head pounded, and I didn’t know how we were to end my mother once and for all.

When we stood just outside The Emerald, I sucked in a deep breath letting the cool winter weather settle my nerves. The frosty November was mild compared to my home realm. For anyone else it would send them into fits of shivers, but to me it was almost a warm spring day. The city had yet to come fully alive, the cars moved sporadically around Columbus Circle. The streetlights cut through the darkness, illuminating some of the shadows. Four in the morning was the time between nighttime antics and early morning businessmen on their way to work. Across the street the pedal taxis started to line up with their glowing lights and drivers ready to offer anyone who walked by a ride. Central Park seemed so dark and still at this time. The trees looked like creeping shadows against the skyscraper background.

Dread sat in the pit of my stomach as the cool breeze brushed over my face. A familiar scent drifted on the breeze. I froze mid-step and whipped my head around. There, just down the street, stood my mother. She hovered over a man sleeping on the street, staring at him with an intense gaze. She held her hand out and her glittering magic fell to the ground around the poor man. A long vine sprang from between the cracks in the sidewalk. Jagged barbs grew from the vine as it swayed back and forth. Right before my eyes it became thicker, and I could only imagine what she’d do with it next. She was psychotic and got pleasure from torture. I’d always known this. She would hurt that innocent man for her own entertainment. There was no doubt of that.

Rage flared in my body, and I wanted nothing more than to confront her head-on and squeeze the life from her body with my bare hands. But here and now was not the time nor place. More people would get hurt, the city could fall around her, and she wouldn’t care one bit. And I couldn’t kill her, which meant I had to get her away from this place now . When she looked up, our eyes locked and that cold smirk covered her features. She raised her hand and her magic swirled between her fingers, ready to strike. She was going to kill the poor man . . . for fun.

I gave Sandra a nudge and nodded toward my mother. We needed her gone now. “GET TO THE ISLAND! PROTECT COLLINS!”

I forced my wings from my back and shot up into the air, knowing she would take the bait and follow. She wanted Collins more than anything else. If I said she was on Megelle Island, that was where my mother would head.

Sandra was by my side in an instant. “HURRY! GET TO COLLINS NOW!”

She understood what I’d just done.

Drawing her away from people was our only choice. Ellie soared around me with her wind power holding her up. It looked like a tornado covered her from the waist down. Wind whipped through her hair and her purple magic made her eyes glow with menace. She kept Stellan soaring beside her, but he would be difficult to hold when this all came to a head. I glanced over my shoulder. My mother was gaining on us with her wings fluttering furiously to catch up. If we were going to act, we had to act fast.

I didn’t want her near Megelle Island, but there was no other choice. I stopped just above the barrier of the Island and hovered there.

Sandra flapped her wings and hung there next to me. “We need back up.”

“All we can get.”

She plucked a feather from the inside of her wing and scribbled across her arm. “On it.”

Tephine was barely fifty feet away. I knew this would be bloody. I wrapped my hand in Stellan’s shirt and threw him at Sandra. “Take him and get the vampire blood from the Vaunteros. Hopefully that’ll stop her for some time. We’ll hold her as long as we can.”

Sandra caught him with one hand and took off toward the Island below.

Ellie moved in closer to me but stayed far enough away that we would be able to fight. “I hate that we still can’t kill her.”

“I’ve known that feeling all my life.” I gathered my power in my hand, letting my black smoke start to form a ball of blackness.

“Yeah, but it’s my fault she did it.”

“No, it isn’t. I promise you it was already in the works.”

Tephine stopped only feet away. I reached for my necklaces, finding comfort in having them back even though I still preferred for them to be protecting Collins. I touched my emerald ring and my falchion sword landed in my hand. I found the curve of its glistening emerald blade comforting. I couldn’t kill her, but I would happily inflict the kind of pain that made her want to die. The way she made my Collins feel. Her death would be ours to take, but for now her pain would be my short-lived revenge . . . for now.

Bolts of lightning lit up the sky and struck Ellie’s outstretched arms. Her hair stood on edge as electricity danced through the dark strands. A wicked smile played on her lips as she faced off against Tephine with me. I’d been bruised, battered, and beaten. My body had long since felt better days. Their torture was still fresh in my mind. I held my power in one hand and my sword in the other.

My mother grinned and vines snaked down her arms and hung from her wrists. She wrapped her hands around them, and sharp barbs sprang from the ends of the vines. She swung them around like whips waiting to strike. Her wings beat calmly as she bobbed up and down in the air. “You will not survive me this time, offspring.”

I didn’t have time for words, nor the patience. I opened my hand and forced my power toward her, black smoke flew between us and surrounded her. Ellie’s lightning flashed and struck through my cloud. Tephine spun to the side, dodging the bolt. She lashed out with one of those whips. It soared toward me, my cheek exploded in warmth, and I knew she’d cut me. Ellie threw her wind toward Tephine and knocked her back, but she quickly regained her position.

I dove forward with my sword held high, ready to attack. She held her hand up and that vine hardened against my blade. It was like a sword clashing into another sword. I shoved her back and we twisted midair, my sword versus her hardened vines. She wielded them like two staffs. We exchanged blows, neither of us holding a thing back. From the corner of my eye, I spotted golden wings heading right at us. I pulled my wings in and dropped suddenly, taking my mother by surprise.

Weston and Shylock soared over my head and collided with Tephine at the same time. Blue electricity ran over Weston’s skin as he wrapped his hand around her wrist. Her body spasmed for a moment before she pushed through it and smacked one of his wings with her vine. Gold feathers tumbled from his wing, but he didn’t fall. Shylock flew in close, swinging his sword at her side. She twisted away from Weston and blocked Shylock’s blow. She chuckled as she darted between the two of them.

“Back!” Ellie screamed, and without hesitation Weston and Shylock flapped their wings.

A blast of Ellie’s fire shot from her fingertips right at Tephine, but she was just as fast with her reactions. She flew in erratic zigzag motions, dodging Ellie’s fire and trying to attack us in quick sharp movements. She landed a blow here, a block there. In the air she was difficult to combat. She was small and quick with deadly accuracy on her side. I held my guard while she shifted her attention between the four of us. The sky lit up with fire and lightning. The sound of our weapons clashing echoed over the water, sounding like thunder.

A blur of gold and purple dropped in from above us and crashed into Tephine, but she twisted in air, using the momentum to hold Nickel by the arm and toss her right at Shylock. The two of them smacked into each other and began to fall from the sky. My heart nearly stopped in my chest as they plummeted toward the icy waves below, but they opened their wings and circled back up toward us. The wind whipped around us as Ellie continued to throw balls of fire in her direction. The sky lit up like fireworks.

Tephine threw one of her vines toward Shylock, and it crashed into his chest and wrapped around his upper body, constricting his arms to his sides. The vine began to wrap around his wings. The sharp barbs grew and stabbed into him. He threw his head back and a bellow ripped from his throat.

“Shylock!” Ellie dove down to catch him.

She wrapped her arms around him, and they both lit up in a ball of fire. The vines burned away under her power, and she set Shylock free. The ends of his curls looked singed, and half his eyebrows were missing. Blood and scratches marred his pale skin, yet when she set him free, he dove toward Tephine once more with his sword drawn. His blue eyes blazed with intent.

He drew in closer and Tephine had her full attention on him. He got so close I thought she’d surely stab him with her vines. I pumped my wings trying to get there before she struck. At the last second, he threw his sword to me and I caught it. I swung and slashed Tephine across her side. A scream ripped from her throat and blood poured down her side. I glided away and threw it back to him.

“Brilliant.”

A half-smirk pulled at the corner of his lip. “I know.”

“Don’t encourage him. He’ll be unbearable.” Weston flew past both of us with Nickel coming in from the opposite direction.

At the same time, they swung their golden swords. Nickel twisted toward Tephine’s back while Weston tried to take her head on. Tephine spun in a tight circle and thorns flew from her like bullets firing in all different directions. Nickel’s shoulder jerked like she’d been hit, yet she didn’t waver from her path. She slashed her sword out. The tip of it barely missed Tephine as she flipped backwards. Weston reached for her and caught her by the throat. She smirked at him and held her hand up, then blew some kind of powder from her palm across his face. Weston dropped his grip and fell back. He clawed at his face, raking his hands down his pale skin. Grunts of pain rumbled from his chest as he blindly tried to fly backwards away from the skirmish. Red welts covered his skin, and he curled in on himself. Ellie’s purple magic whirled around his face covering him in water.

Tephine threw her head back, chuckling. “Such children.”

I came up behind her and covered her face in my black smoke. She’d only be blinded for a moment, but it was long enough for me to do some damage. I slashed my sword across her thigh and kept on flying.

She bellowed and followed after me. “Traitor!”

I soared higher up into the sky, hoping she’d continue following me. I glanced over my shoulder and winked, spurring her disdain for me. “A pleasure!”

Her magic glowed around her and more of those vines sprang from around her body. The thorns grew to the size of small daggers. They flailed around her like tentacles as she flew toward me. She closed in and her vines surrounded my peripheral vision. Right before she trapped me within them, I swung my sword, slashing through them, and let myself drop down toward the island. The air whooshed by me. It whistled in my ears and pricked at my skin. Her screech sounded from just above me, and when I spied her, she turned and dove to follow behind me.

A vortex of wind and fire surrounded me. It closed in tighter, and I could see my mother trapped within its funnel. I fell out of the bottom of it and called toward Ellie, “Close it!”

Purple power flowed in bright lightning-like bolts from her, and the cyclone closed around Tephine. Fire, wind, and lightning encircled her there. Her screams broke through the night. Ellie didn’t let up.

“Hold her!” I called over the tornado of power.

“I’m trying. She’s too strong.” I could tell it was taking everything she had to hold herself up and keep ahold of Tephine.

“Nickel!” I pointed toward Ellie.

“On it.” She soared behind Ellie and placed her arms around her waist, holding her up.

Ellie sighed with relief as she dropped the tornado of wind holding her up and shoved more power toward Tephine. Fire illuminated the dark early morning sky as if it were daylight. Sweat beaded her face and soaked into her hair. The sphere pulsed as she tried to hold it, but I could see my mother’s power building. It wouldn’t hold for much longer. I looked back toward the Island, praying Sandra would be here soon. As if my prayers summoned her, she soared up beside Ellie with Stellan in tow and held up a vial of blood.

“It’s from the King himself! Are you ready?”

Ellie nodded, and I could see the power draining from her body. Sandra tossed me the vial and I wrapped my hand around it. It was still warm from the King. Ellie’s sphere exploded outward, and it sent us all reeling back. Heat swarmed my body as her fire dusted over me. The smell of burnt hair filled my nose. Tephine’s vines lashed out, striking deep wounds into Weston and Shylock’s chests. Sandra had her sword drawn and slashed at the vine aimed at Ellie. Stellan’s silvery magic flew up in a silver shield over them, and Tephine’s vines smacked against it.

It wouldn’t hold long. I could only hope the blood would injure her the way it had once before. I threw it at her with all my might. The small vial sailed through the air and poured down the side of her neck. It ran down her chest and over her shoulders, mixing in with the blood from her own injuries. We all froze, hoping it would melt her or force her to retreat. I drifted back, waiting.

Nothing.

She looked down at herself and smiled. “Fools.”

Her power sizzled in the air around us. An explosion would come. Adrenaline flooded my body and called out to the others. “RETREAT!”

We dove toward the Island all at once. Ellie was limp in Nickel’s arms, yet she still tried to fire back at Tephine. The barrier drew closer, and I heard the whistle of my mother’s thorn-like bullets whizzing by. I spun and dipped, trying to draw her fire to give the others a chance to get through the barrier around the Island.

I hesitated just outside the barrier. “Come on, Mother. Is that all you’ve got? What a . . . disappointment.”

She arched her eyebrows at me and lifted both of her hands. A large ball of her power gathered between her hands, and I knew she meant to end me this very second. She fired it at me, her power so bright it glowed like rays of sunshine. I only hoped the barrier would hold the way it was meant to. It was invisible, so there was no way to confirm it still stood just by looking. Nor could I confirm Mother didn’t sense it. Her power expanded into a large net made of jagged vines. She meant to stab me a thousand times all at once. Death by a thousand cuts. I dove for the barrier. As I passed through it, I still had a bit of shock that I’d been trusted so much to be welcomed when they knew who my family was.

I spun and looked through the barrier in time to see her magical net smack into the barrier and bounce back toward her at full force. I held my breath, waiting. It opened wide, about to wrap around her whole body, and she was forced to dodge to the side. The net wrapped around her wing, jabbing those knife-like thorns right through it. Some caught in her side and back. A scream ripped from her throat, and she plummeted toward the sea. I expected her to regain herself, I expected her to never stop attacking, I expected her to stop at nothing to finally have my death, but when the icy waves crashed over her and she struggled to keep her head above water, a small thrill of victory rose in my chest. My breath left me in a rush.

We hurried to the edge of the Island and stood on the beach where the barrier still held. Siren fins flipped in the water and surrounded her like sharks. They grabbed onto the floating vines and dragged her down. Tephine kicked her legs and threw her arms out, trying to fight them off. Blood colored the water around her, and she choked on the water. A siren with bright red hair grabbed the back of Tephine’s head and shoved her back beneath the waves.

And then I remembered we couldn’t kill her yet. I cursed. “They’ll drown her.”

“We can’t let them kill her!” Shylock yelled at the same time.

“Unfortunately,” Weston grumbled as he dove for the water and began to splash his face to rinse it.

Ellie rushed forward and sucked in a deep breath. “Stellan, a little help?”

“I’m quite enjoying the thought of her drowning at the moment.” He opened his hands and silvery power gathered in them. “But if I must.”

I would’ve loved to watch them pull her under the sea and let the water flood her lungs for good. The thought of her lungs filling and her fighting for breath the way I fought for it every day of my life living under her roof brought me a small form of fleeting joy.

“If she dies now, my whole realm dies. The bond has not been broken. For my people . . . she must live.”

“I know. I’m just savoring the moment.” Ellie lifted her hands and the water parted around Tephine, sending the sirens away from her.

Before Stellan could grab her with his magic, she started to plummet to the sea bottom. A streak of pink flew through the air toward her.

VENUS! “Kill her!” I screamed.

But my words were too late. She’d wrapped her arm around Tephine, catching her before she hit the rocky ocean floor. She swooped up toward the sky and flew as fast as she could in the opposite direction of the Island. I could catch them. The desire to kill Venus after what she’d done to me and Collins was nearly overwhelming.

I took a step toward the direction they flew off in, but Sandra grabbed my elbow and stopped me. “The only thing that might do is get you killed. Tephine is injured for the first time. We take the win . . . for now.”