Page 81 of The Dark Prince
My heart hurt with the trauma of it all.
A smile slowly bloomed on the witch’s face. “Yes,” she hissed, vibrating with excitement as she stood from the throne. She closed her eyes and waved her hands over Tyr. A moment later, the beast cried out and shifted, and Tyr lay on the floor in front of me in tattered, ruined clothes.
I had to ball my hands into fists at my side to keep from running to him.
“Wake up!” the witch trilled. “I have some vengeance to deliver!”
She kicked Tyr in the ribs and I twitched. Tyr groaned, and rolled over onto his right side. His mask was gone, baring the twisted side of his face to us. His eyes slit open to cracks and the witch giggled.
I heard an answering groan behind me, and watched as the king crawled toward Aella, half dead. Had she broken the curse temporarily for everyone then, just to gloat? It seemed so unlikely. It was too cocky.
The witch smiled. “Here, use my knife. It has properties that bind the victim to the wielder.”
Just like giving a small wisp of a girl a magickal knife to use against you. I licked my lips.
Stay calm.
“What properties?” I asked breathlessly.
The witch smiled, holding the dagger out. “Magickal, you dummy. The dagger rights wrongs and maintains balance when we aren’t able.”
My fingers reached toward the hilt, shaking.
Tyr moaned and reached out a hand toward me. “Iss … Isadora. D-don’t … Please.”
The witch let me have the dagger, her hands coming down around my shoulders and pushing me toward Tyr. “Let’s watch him die together,” she purred into my ear.
My eyes stayed trained on the blade as she crouched down next to Tyr. “Poor little boy, lost and alone without his mummy. This dagger killed her, too.” She held the point up so he could see.
But Tyr wasn’t looking at her; his gaze locked onto me.
My throat tightened.
“Kill him and the curse ends. It all ends. My sister will have her vengeance,” she spat. “And I will have mine.”
I kneeled down next to her, staring at the floor. I couldn’t meet Tyr’s eyes. I could feel the pain and sorrow radiating off of him, and if I met his eyes again, I’d lose my nerve. “Your sister died because of the same curse,” I couldn’t help but whisper as our fingers entwined on the hilt, both of us still holding it together. “How can you claim vengeance?” I asked. I had to know. I had to understand.
The witch cackled, her black, glittery skirts swishing around her ankles. “My sister turned her back on me. They betrothedmeto the king, but he fell in love with her, only for him to throw her away like trash. They all got what they deserved. Everyone will get what they deserve; won’t they?”
I nodded numbly. “Yes,” I breathed. “Everyone.” My fingers tightened around the hilt. I couldn’t hesitate. Not now.
A sob escaped from Tyr’s throat, but he wouldn’t look away from me. The witch pulled away from the dagger, finally letting my fingers curl around it. I sucked in a breath and stabbed down as hard as I could, just like Tyr had taught me.
Tears blurred my vision.
But he’d taught me well.
Tyr bellowed.
I cried and sobbed.
The knife sank into the witch’s heart like butter. Her scream of betrayal echoed in the stone chamber as she fell to the ground and I fell with her, holding the knife in place and refusing to budge.Arne’s wordss tumbled from my lips.
“I bind you to me,” I gasped out, “not for my benefit, but to right the wrongs and to restore balance.”
Magick swirled around us, hot and thick enough to make me choke. Aella was screaming, Tyr was screaming, the witch was screaming. I couldn’t scream. I had to concentrate. The king roared in agony from somewhere behind me.
“No! NO NO NO!” the witch shrieked, trying to bat me away and grab at the knife. It stayed in her, melding to her flesh and refusing to budge.
