Page 106 of Castle of the Cursed
My sister looks on, horrified and speechless.
The prince laughs, but no light shines from his face. “Good news, human caster!” he calls up. “I got you a roommate!”
Red materializes through the shadowy bars almost instantaneously, locked in the same cage as Antonela.
“Your guests are here,” says the giant bodyguard from the doorway.
“See you soon,” says Bastian before walking out, the blood still staining his face.
“The Bleeder called you human caster,” says Red once they’re alone. “Why are you not cuffed?” They don’t even look the least bit affected by their companion’s death.
My sister shakes her head. “I do not know.”
“Can you summon any magic to spell us out of here?”
Antonela shakes her head.
“They must have sensed you have little power,” says Red. “You know we will die next, right?”
“I have a plan. But I cannot do it alone.”
“What is it?”
“I am going to convince him to bring us back to school. I found a doorway to Earth in the tower, and I will promise to take him there so he can drink all the humans he wants.”
“The school is the last place I am going to! They sentenced me to death.”
“I will tell them our one-eyed cousin forced us both to come. And in exchange, you will stop torturing me and make sure I graduate.”
Red’s shock only lasts a moment. Then they nod in assent, willing to betray the memory of their best companion. “It is a pact.”
The cage is on the floor now. It’s locked shut, and Red is asleep, while Antonela lies wide awake.
A hand opens the gate, and Prince Bastian waves my sister out.
He seals it closed behind her, then shadows engulf it. Antonela follows him to the dais.
He sits on his throne and pats his lap for her to join him.
She holds her ground in front of him. “I will stand.”
“Tell me what you wanted to say, human caster.”
“I have come with an irresistable offer. You could drink me now and sate your thirst but a little… or you could drain as many humans as you want on Earth, where blood is limitless and of every variety—”
“There is no way to Earth,” he interrupts, “so I will settle for you—”
“I have a way! I can get you to Earth,” she says quickly, likely spotting the predatory shift in his eyes and realizing she has only seconds left to plead for her life. “Besides being a feast for you, it also happens to be beyond the reach of nearly every realm, including this one. You would be completely free!”
Prince Bastian stares at my sister. He’s already underestimated her once, and I doubt he’s in the habit of making the same mistake twice.
“Even if you could pull this off,” he says carefully, “I cannot leave my castle. The king is fighting a war, and I am his heir, protected above all Bleeders. Whereas you are a human with minimal power who does not stand a chance against my guard.”
My sister’s expression hardens with offense. “I did not expect you to be a coward.”
The Bleeder springs up, fury flashing on his face, and before I can blink, he snaps off Antonela’s oxygen mask. “Goodbye, human caster.”
“How can you stand being locked up here?” asks my sister, using her final breaths to taunt him.
