“Then you choose death.”
“I’m still alive after this long,” She said, “maybe I don’t need you.”
“You don’t know what you need.”
“What I need, is to go home and rest. I’m tired. So freaking tired of all of this.”
Foolish, woman.
She was making a mistake. A mistake that would doom her if I didn’t do something to stop it.
I carefully offered my hand. She quirked a finely arched brow in my direction, until I explained. “Your ankle is injured. I simply wish to see that you return home safely. The hunters are still out there.”
“I’ve been on my own for a long time, Elosel. And the last thing I need to do right now, is add even more problems to my life.” She shuffled past me, “I’m fine, and I’m going home.”
“Anna—”
“Please,” she raised her palm at me, “I said I’d think about it. That’s the best you’ll get from me right now. Thank you for your help.” She shook her head, “Just please, let me go.”
Every instinct within me wanted to grab her by the waist and hoist her over my shoulder, but I knew she’d only fight me further if I did.
Instead, I did as she asked—mostly.
I let her go, but I had no plans of leaving her side until she was safe. As safe as she could be without a warrior like me protecting her.
She could argue all she wanted, but the truth was, she had no idea how to stay safe in our world. It was a miracle she’d lived as long as she had. . . and I had a sinking feeling that her survival . . . was no coincidence.
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Chapter One
Altair
The purple hue of the dusky sky is fringed with orange. The sun is rising, though the daylight hasn’t yet driven out the night. The stars are still visible, winking above the city and the palace. From the roofless tower, I can hear my people below. The sounds of the city echo towards me, reaching high into the sky. Music and laughter. Laughter that will soon fall silent forever.
I narrow my eyes, staring angrily towards the mountain range in the distance. I can almost see Maaz and her Bloodbane witches soaring over the mountain peaks on their deadwood brooms. But it’s only a flock of birds.
I’m running out of time. The night is disappearing, and the days are passing too quickly. I relish the night. Every morning, as dawn approaches, I can’t escape the memory of the day Maaz cursed me. Cursed me to become the beast she saw when I refused her. I close my eyes, envisioning the moment.
Maaz, dressed in the blood-red gown slinked into my throne room as if it were hers already. She had dragged her long, black fingernails across my throat and down my chest, grinning.
I will never forget that grin. Cursed, she had said. Cursed for a thousand years or until I find a Bloodbane witch to break the spell and bind herself to me willingly. Cursed to die, along with all of my people, at the end of the thousand years.
And time is running short.
My stomach twists as Maaz’s cruel smirk flashes through my mind again. The wind caresses my cheek, and I open my eyes to stare down at my city once more. My coat snaps out behind me as the wind speed picks up. It’s coming from the West, towards the mountains.
I scowl, probably a reminder from Maaz. A gloat. A boast. She thinks she’s won already. Fury sweeps through me, sending my blood singing with blood lust. I swing my arm towards the flag pole beside me, where my banner proudly waves, and drive my fist through the wood. It splinters loudly, and the pole breaks in half. It clatters to the stone floor of the tower, the flag coiled beneath it.
I stare down at it, at the black hawk poised to strike on the background of red fabric. My crest. My boot falls over the hawk as I drive the heel of my boot onto the hawk, soiling the flag. It’s a useless symbol, anyway. Behind me, I hear the soft sound of Navi clearing her throat.
“When did you get here?” I ask, kicking the flag away.
She stoops and collects it from the ground. Always the loyal and patriotic soldier. “When you destroyed a perfectly good flag pole with a single punch,” she says soberly. She folds the flag and cradles it in her arms.
I scoff. “Just let it go, Navi. That flag won’t mean anything soon.”
“Quitting right before the end?” Navi asks, her green eyes flashing. “I expected more than that from our King.”
“King,” I echo softly. “A failure, you mean.”
“Altair,” she whispers, placing a thin hand on my shoulder. “There is hope yet.”
I turn to her, twisting my shoulder out from under her touch. She tucks her long hair behind one of her pointed ears as I stare coldly at her. “Don’t feed me lies, Navi.”
“Your Majesty, the scholars have identified the one who may be the key to ending the curse. We know where she is now.” Navi’s eyes glitter. “Let me retrieve her.”
“They found her?” I ask as the sun’s first rays slip over the horizon. Disbelief taints my voice. We’ve searched for her for hundreds of years, many of the scholars said it was impossible. That her existence was only a legend, a rumor.
I have waited almost five hundred years for this moment.
“I will go,” Navi says.
“No.” I turn to the rising sun. “I will.”
Chapter Two
Verity
The lipstick is too red for my tastes, a sharp contrast to my ivory skin. I sigh and wipe at it with a towel, smearing it a little. Tara clucks her tongue at me and uses a finger to gentle nudge my face towards her. She takes the towel and adjusts the makeup.
“What’s on your mind? I thought we
