| |
Calla
The Salien Castle, Schwarzwald
“What did she say exactly?” I asked, still confused. I had thought Stella and I had grown close enough that I could trust her, but what she said made no sense. Days ago, she was adamant that we had no idea what we were doing and should train to fight the hardest fight of our lives, and now...
“She said you shouldn’t put up too much fight, just enough for Cole to think he’s gotten you of his own power, and he won’t harm anyone else. Meanwhile, she and Brant are preparing the resistance forces,” Marcus said.
His entire statement felt more like a question given the nonsensical nature, but as much as I hated to admit, if there was a plan to defeat Cole, then keeping the others safe was probably the best thing to do. We already knew Cole could destroy our kingdom with very little effort, then make it back home just in time for a little afternoon tea.
“She says Annabell speaks to her? Can we be sure it’s Annabell?” Ava asked.
After discovering Cole’s true identity, we broke into a group that didn’t include Snow. There was just something about her that bugged us—probably her condescending attitude—and we didn’t want to be near her. We had spent considerable time discussing what we might do, but in the end, all we could do was sleep. Now that morning had come, things looked even bleaker.
“She seemed pretty convinced.” Marcus moved in his chair and stared into the fire. “I don’t think she would take this lightly, so we should probably do as she said.”
“What if it’s a trap?” Julianna asked. “What if Stella, as a hunter, doesn’t care what happens to us as long as—”
“No,” I said. “No, she had every opportunity to take us all out many times over the past few days, especially once the Organization members were free of Cole’s influence. She’s not the sort to play the long game if the short game is just as efficient.”
Caleb chuckled a bit, then said, “Ah, I don’t even know who to trust anymore. Honestly, I’m down to just the people in this room.”
“Hey, we know Ely and the Vogels are still on our side. So are the Bastians and... Ugh, I’m beginning to understand what you mean,” Seline said. “Even so, I think we can trust our family.”
“Technically, Stella is family to the Vogels,” Henry reminded. “But I must say she has changed significantly since her arrival. I do trust she wants what is best for the forest.”
“Which means she might kill the Seven herself if necessary,” I admitted.
“True, but she did swear she would not until the last possible moment,” Elizabeth added.
Most of my siblings and their spouses, plus Brody and Heidi, were crammed into my personal chambers. I longed for it to be a happy moment, but none of us slept much during the night. By the time the sun peeked over the trees, everyone was in my room.
Julianna and Caleb reclined against the wall, snuggled under a heavy blanket while Henry toyed with Seline’s hair across the room. Heidi paced while Brody followed, if only to lend his support in any way he could. Ava, wishing she had not been the harbinger of gloom and doom, sat in the chair across from Marcus. Elizabeth, having a brief moment away from her new son, knitted, to ease her anxiety while Jay regularly untangled her yarn. Ely was missing, of course, since he resided in Goldene Stadt with his wife and son, but Wil made up for the absence of Ely’s brooding by being extra broody.
“I often wonder if we had never returned, might we all have fruitful lives in America?” Wil asked, narrowing his eyes.
“Then the people would suffer. We have a duty to them, even if it means we sacrifice our own happiness,” Marcus said, ever the dutiful king. “Mother wishes to see us before breakfast. I nearly forgot.”
“I saw Mother on a walk with David this morning. He came from Goldene Stadt last night,” Elizabeth said. Hayden’s father was likely distraught after Cole’s abduction of his daughter, and I realized how much suffering everyone endured daily.
“This whole thing is so screwed up. Stella is probably right. We shouldn’t put anyone else through... I mean, it’s not fair to keep exposing people who aren’t...”
“Easier to think than to say, isn’t it?” Elizabeth asked, glancing up from her work to address me. “I’ve thought the same many times, but it is so hard to walk away from my son, as I am sure you understand.”
“I do, but there are other children to think of as well. We must be sure everyone stays safe,” I said, but I no sooner finished my statement, and I heard the guard yelling outside. Something had happened, but I had a good idea I knew what it was.
Shadows flickered on the wall but not from my measly fire. My breath caught as I followed Elizabeth’s gaze. My pulse raced like it never had before, throbbing in my veins until I was sure anyone who looked at me would see them hopping under my skin. Henry ran to the balcony, gazed over the railing, then stepped back into the room... followed by Cole.
The man, who appeared far younger than he could possibly be, entered through a cloud of thick smoke. He stretched his neck and looked around the room. Were he not the vessel of doom, I might have thought he belonged with us. In many ways, he resembled our family, but his eyes were of another world. They flamed with fire before dulling into a brown so dark they may as well have been black.
“Katharine, it is time,” Cole said, his voice gravelly and cold. My throat caught as he extended his hand to me. The plan was to go without a fight. I didn’t want anyone else to get hurt, least of all my siblings or their beloved spouses, but I couldn’t make my feet move.
Wil stood between us, his hands trembling. I knew that stance. He was ready to strike, to protect me with every ounce of his being, and that brought me back to my senses.
“No, Wil!” I yelled just as my husband leaped at the monster. Cole deflected his attack with ease, tossing him aside. “Please,” I begged. “Please don’t hurt him!”
“I promised my love I would not, and so it is a promise I will keep. Though he would be wise to stay where he sits,” Cole said, his eyes focused on Wil with such intensity they pinned my husband to the wall.
Elizabeth stood, her knitting falling to the floor. Her fingers trembled as she stretched her hand out toward Cole. Jay tugged on her arm, but she only kissed his cheek and walked toward Cole, giving him her hand. My sister, braver than me in so many ways, accepted her fate to keep her family safe. And so, I had to do the same. I kissed Wil and rose to my feet, and threw a glance over my shoulder at my family, all standing huddled in position, ready to pounce.
“I love you. Protect my son, please,” I said, then Cole snatched me up.
Before I could register any movement, he had whipped through the balcony entry and leaped into the sky with Elizabeth and me in each arm. He shifted mid-air, dropping us both for a moment. Elizabeth screamed, but mine was locked in my throat. Before we came too close to the ground, Cole swooped down and caught us each in his long talons. We were caught in his grip on our way to certain death... but no one else got the memo they should not fight him.
The guards shot their arrows at him, forgetting, it seemed, that the princesses were not invincible when not in our wolf forms.
“Cease fire!” Henry screamed from the balcony. “The princesses!”
The guard stopped firing, but the witches refused to let us go so easily. My mothers, both Ravenna and Jeanine, ran into the open courtyard. Heidi and Julianna were not far, followed by the rest of my siblings and Luzia, Larkin’s sister. No one would survive if Cole was angered regardless of what promise he made to Annabell.
“Go faster!” I screamed at Cole, who obliged. The dragon ducked his head and rocketed toward Das Unbekannte. Elizabeth wiggled in his grip but soon fell limp and accepted our ride would not be comfortable, not like it was riding the Austerlitz dragons.
Behind us, I heard Henry shouting orders and remembered Ethan was still in Schwarzwald. As one of the Seven, Cole would surely return for him. I could only hope when he did, my family would allow Cole to take him without a fight, for Cole’s patience was probably too thin to measure.
Once the kingdom was far behind us, I looked ahead. Snow fell all around, dotting the roofs of the outlying villager’s homes. Their windows twinkled with candles, reminding me of the day—Christmas Eve. My eyes stung from the wind, so I closed them and let the tears fall. My son would wake to find his mother was gone... and might never return. I never even got to tell him goodbye.
Inside of the forbidden land, it was darker, as if even the trees knew they held secrets. I had not been in Das Unbekannte ever in my life, and with good reason. It was a lost place filled with monsters where only the bravest of soldiers dared to venture. Most never returned. Those that did were never the same. Some who ventured there returned with tales of darkness, and still more returned with no story at all. The land was as mysterious as any.
Cole dipped low over the trees, then settled in an open area just outside of a large stone structure. In the distance, I could see the spires of a gigantic castle, one that rivaled any in the forest. He released Elizabeth and me, then shifted. He said nothing but pointed toward the door of the stone building. Elizabeth pushed open the heavy wooden door and entered. I followed, surprised by the interior. I had, understandably, expected a dungeon of sorts—cold stone walls and floors, heavy iron doors, no comforts at all. But what I found was a small room with a roaring fireplace. In one corner was a large bed with a chaise beside it. In another corner was a wood-burning stove where the scent of porridge extended toward my nose.
“What is this?” Elizabeth asked.
“It is to be your prison until it is time,” Cole said in an even tone. He gave nothing away.
“This is a prison?” I asked, looking around again. It seemed quite cozy to me.
“You have built me to be an impossible monster, incapable of empathy or sympathy or any other human emotion. I am not,” Cole said. He crossed the room and opened a chest, then pulled several blankets from inside. I didn’t bother to mention we thought those things of him based on his actions thus far since it would not change our situation in the slightest.
“You will find the porridge is ready to eat. There is dried fruit and meat in the food locker for lunch, and I will bring you meat for dinner... assuming there is time for such things.” Cole’s tone faltered for a moment, almost regretfully, but I ignored it in favor of watching Elizabeth.
She crossed the room to the fire and stoked it, almost as if she were prepared to make herself at home. She then turned around and offered Cole a vicious stare. “How kind of you. Now, would you leave us so that my sister and I might mourn all we have lost alone rather than in the presence of a pompous, entitled, malignant dimwit such as yourself?”
Cole chuckled. “As you wish. You cannot escape. I will return soon.” He opened the door, closed it behind him, and left nothing but the scent of pine and smoke behind.
Elizabeth’s gaze fell back to the fire. For a long time, she stared into it while I stood staring at her. Finally, she relaxed her shoulders. “Promise me if I suffer, you will end it for me.”
“What?” I asked, stepping beside her.
She looked up at me. “Promise me you won’t let me suffer. I will accept death, but please do not let me...”
“Shh, Elizabeth. I promise. And I ask the same of you.” I took her hands, and we fell into a hug. “We will do this for each other,” I said.
“We cannot let him win, Calla. If we must... if we must end our own lives to prevent his win, we must.”
I rubbed her back and held her tightly. “I know. We will do it together.”
“I miss my son,” she said, bringing forth more tears. I knew her pain well, felt it deep in my own heart, and longed to change our fate if only for a moment. I wanted to hold my son and tell him that I loved him even though I could not see him grow up. He needed to know that I would never leave his side unless it meant protecting him, but I knew Wil would tell him. I knew Jay would tell their son. I knew, in my heart, we would live on in the hearts of those who loved us most.
For the first time since I arrived in the Black Forest, I felt truly defeated. I knew, with a sureness that only came with acceptance, that I would soon die.