Page 104 of Castle of the Cursed
Even though I knew it was him, my heart still canters at the sight of the shadow beast. I recognize the hungry look in his eyes, and I know what’s coming next.
He grabs Antonela by the hair, exposing her neck.
“NO!” I cry, as his fangs bear down.
This can’t be! Sebastián killed my sister—
But he shoves her to the floor instead of biting her skin.
“What is this?” he demands, as my twin scrambles back. The shadows retreat, and as the lights brighten, I see that we are in a chamber made of sleek stone. “Why have you carved CASTER on your neck?”
“Because that is what I am,” she says from behind the oxygen mask, her voice shaky. I spot the blood and move closer to see that Antonela has sloppily cut the word into her skin, probably while she was in the coffin.
“Humans cannot be casters,” he says dismissively. “And my guard would not have let you in if you were one.”
“Well, why would they think I am one if humans cannot be casters?”
He frowns but there’s a flicker of interest in his silver eyes. It’s strange to think that in so little time, I already know him well enough to read his expressions. Like picking up a new language and finding out you’re fluent.
“Prove what you say is true,” he commands.
Antonela isn’t fazed, so I assume she expected this kind of reaction. She closes her eyes in concentration, then she shoots up in height, until even Sebastián has to tilt his neck back to look at her.
It’s a strategic move because her proof of magic doubles as a show of intimidation, which is the language the vampire speaks best.
Her power move works; she’s still breathing.
When she shrinks back down to size, the blue mask pulses faster than before, like it’s producing double the oxygen. The spell must have worn her out, or she would have remained in that form, since it gave her an advantage.
I don’t see how she’s going to be the first Brálaga to make it back when she’s not exactly Merlin.
“I was the one who orchestrated the events that brought me before you,” she declares, and I’m taken aback by the steadiness of her voice. If she’s still breathless, she doesn’t show it.
“I knew I could not make it here on my own, as I lack wings or strength, so I got my classmates to transport me. I came to meet you because I seek to make you an offer.”
My sister squares her shoulders, and I know that I’ve underestimated her.
Everyone has.
She baited Red and Cyclops with what they love most—bullying her—and left open the book about Bleeders so they would take her where she needed to go. She risked everything… just as Brálaga instructed.
Sebastián moves closer now that Antonela is small again, swallowing her in his shadow. “You have nothing to offer me, human caster,” he says, his voice as even as a heart flatlining, “except blood.”
His hand closes around my sister’s neck again, and her face turns purple in moments—
“Your Highness?” asks a voice outside the door.
He grunts and eases his grip. “Yet you may entertain me a little longer.”
“Prince—?”
“I hear you!” he growls at the door, making my bones shake.
Antonela looks down at the final moon on her wrist. Time is nearly up. “Please,” she whispers, “listen to me—”
But before she can say another word, she’s swallowed by shadows.
CHAPTER 24
