Page 78 of Broken Hearted
There was a flash of light and a crushing weight on my chest, and we were back in the drawing room at Zane’s castle and the lavender-haired witch was grinning. “Ohh, I like that woman.”
“Would she hurt Lorelei again?” Zane asked me immediately.
“No,” I lied because I could see the terror in his face. QueenLiliana had already hit her, so I wasn’t convinced she wouldn’t do it again, or worse. But I could tell that Zane was spiraling, so I didn’t point that out to him. Before he could do anything to help Lorelei, we had to get Adrien back. Something I needed him for right now.
“Zane, I need you to focus on Adrien and help me,” I told him. I’d done what he asked. We’d checked on Lorelei and told her he was coming, and now I wanted my mate back.
He took in a cleansing breath and nodded. “We need one more thing,” he told Rowena and then looked at me in anticipation.
I knew more about the situation so it was probably best I explain. “A blood witch is holding someone I care about captive. She’s created a soul-tie with my sister so we cannot harm her.”
Rowena’s eyebrows bunched together. “A soul-tie? That’s powerful stuff. Who is this witch?”
“Elisana, she—”
“Elisana?” Rowena stumbled backward shaking her head as she eyed the door and the window, seemingly looking for an escape. She began to pack her things, strapping her dagger back on her belt and moving for the door.
“Wait a second, you have to help us.” I stepped in front of her.
She shook her head, looking frightened. “There are few blood witches I would refuse to go up against, but Elisana is one of them. You may imprison me, torture me, do as you please, but I will not help you.”
What in the world?
Zane looked confused. “Is she more powerful than you?”
Rowena’s lips flattened and her nostrils flared as if she wouldn’t dare admit such a thing. But finally, she relented and gave a shortnod of her head. “Not just that … she has power over me, overallblood witches. Her mother is the coven leader,” she explained.
“And that means?” I asked her.
“It means when I was born my blood was taken and is currently being held in her house. One drop and she could end me. I cannot help you with this, and that is final.” Her tone was pleading, and I looked at Zane in defeat.
He sighed and called to his man who hadn’t left his post at the door. “Take her back to where you found her but keep an eye on her. We may need to revisit this.”
* * *
The rest of the day passed in agony. We scoured Zane’s extensive library but found nothing about a soul-tie. Dinner was pretty silent that night as I tried to come to terms with the fact that I had nothing to help Adrien.
“We can start planning our attack on Elisana’s village. Ready the troops and even get them in place one town over,” Zane offered.
I swallowed hard. “But we can’t move until the soul-tie is broken, and right now we have nothing on that.”
Dawn reached over and slipped her hand into mine. “Stryker and Aribella have sent word: they are having some troubles in their kingdom with the curse, but they can be here in two days’ time. Maybe they will have some knowledge—”
“Two days?” I whimpered, suddenly losing my appetite. “Adrien doesn’t have two days.”
Dawn frowned and said nothing more.
After dinner I checked on my sister and was pleased to see she was up and laughing with her nurse.
“You’re feeling better?” I asked.
She smiled at me. “I am, thank you.”
The nurse was only a few years older than Seraphina and she was showing her a book. We’d grown up around sisters and we were never alone, so I was glad she’d made a friend.
Stepping out onto the balcony, I looked out over Zane’s beautiful land. Orange leaves fell from the trees in a soft swirling motion as they made their way to the ground. I sighed, looking up at the moon and praying Adrien was okay. As I glanced at the fountain in the middle of Zane’s garden, I froze.
A figure dressed in all black snuck through the moonlight, toward the castle. At first I thought it might be a thief or an attacker, but I noticed the telltale outfit he wore and recognized this as one of Adrien’s spies.
