“You don’t fear me?” I asked, half-dragging, half-pulling her thrashing form behind me. She was small and barely weighed anything at all. It was not a struggle to move her.
“I do not.” Her words were quiet. “I know what it is you seek, and it isn’t here.”
I flung the witch to the ground. A sickening crack filled the air as her leg broke at an odd angle, but the elderly female did not cry out.
“Is that so?” I sneered. “You think you know so much about me, but allow me to tell you whatIknow aboutyou.”
She shut her mouth, staring resolutely at me.
Holding up my hand, I ticked off my fingers. “You are called Elsbeth, wife of Hadwyn. You are a powerful witch, and you have seen four centuries come and go from the safety of your home. I know that you gave my brother sanctuary in the past. Not only that, but I know he was here recently.”
Elsbeth looked up at me from where she lay on the ground. “You are correct, child,” she said. “My grandson was here, but he has left. You will not find him in time.”
“Is that so?” I raised a brow. “I think you know more than you are telling me.”
The witch shook her head. “I know nothing else.”
My lips twisted into a sneer. “Let me be the judge of that.”
Drawing strands of tainted crimson magic from within me, I lurched forward and grasped the witch’s forehead. I released the ribbons, and they flooded into her mind.
Finally, she screamed. The sound was high-pitched and full of agony as it echoed through the forest.
Visions flashed before my eyes, one after the other. My brother, running through the woods on his own. Him with a red-haired elf—his mate. They were searching for something. They almost died. And then…
I saw it.
A cackle broke free of my lips as I shoved more of my magic into her. She cried out, her hands scratching at the dirt as I forced myself deep into the recesses of her mind. Ignoring her wails of pain, I pushed and pushed and pushed until I had everything I needed.
Only then did I remove my hand. The elderly witch panted and tears ran down her face as she stared at me in horror.
“You still won’t make it in time.” She shook her head. “They will succeed and restore the balance.”
An unladylike snort escaped me as I pushed myself to my feet. “Now, now, let’s not lie to ourselves, shall we? I saw the map. I know where they are.”
“They are better than you,” the witch insisted. “Pure of heart and spirit.”
“Who needs purity when you can have power?” My eyes hardened. “You were right about one thing.Now, you have told me all you know. I thank you for this information.”
Looking over my shoulder, I gestured for Ranor to step forward. His sword glimmered in the afternoon sunlight as he kneeled before me. “My queen?”
“Do it.”
Turning and meeting the witch’s eyes one last time, I dipped my head in her direction. “When I find my brother, I will tell him his dear, sweet Nonna screamed for him in her final moments.”
With a flick of my dress, I walked away. The sound of metal against flesh was like a lullaby sung to my blackened heart. And then, just as I predicted, a scream echoed through the forest. When silence fell and Ranor caught up to me, dangling a dripping canvas bag at his side, the dragon inside me smiled.
Today was turning out to be a good day, after all.
Everything is Dangerous
AILEANA
An animalistic roar yanked me out of sleep. Gasping, a wave of nausea started in my stomach, rolling through me as I left my dreams behind. Xander bolted upright, one hand clasping his chest as the other gripped the hilt of his sword. Fear pounded through the bond, and my stomach twisted. Drawing my remaining dagger, having lost the other during the trial, I drew threads of magic from my well as I crouched on our bedroll.
Xander still hadn’t moved.
“What is it? What’s wrong?” Panic laced my words as I looked around the cavern, but I couldn’t see anything amiss.