Page 36 of Queen Takes Camelot: Gwen
Morgan smiled apologetically. “They’ve missed you, sister.”
The butterfly’s wings fluttered harder as the creature fed on me. I could feel it sucking, pulling my blood from the small puncture. I still couldn’t believe such a small thing hurt so badly, but I endured it.
Lines of red began to flow across the delicate white wings, connecting the seemingly random droplets that had looked like blood.
When the pattern came together, I gasped. “A dragon.”
Morgan lifted her eyebrows, a quizzical smile on her lips. “You didn’t know? They were once your, I mean Guinevere’s, favorite creature on the isle.”
The fanged butterfly abruptly darted away. I raised my thumb, not surprised to see it was red and throbbing. Maybe it had injected me with some kind of anticoagulant or something.
Lance lifted my sore thumb to his mouth and lightly kissed it and then the back of my knuckles. “And you, my queen. How will you approach Arthur to get close to him?”
I sighed. “I’m going to give him exactly what he wants.”
16
Gwen
Icouldn’t see Bors’ body, but his fingers stretched up through the water splashing around the fountain. Thankfully, his bond was calm. He’d jumped through the water quickly and hadn’t drowned or experienced any lingering discomfit passing through the veil.
I took his hand and allowed him to pull me below the surface. The water was warm and thick, sparkling with energy against my skin. In a matter of seconds, my head broke the surface and the world spun crazily a moment as my senses flipped upside down and around.
He grabbed me beneath my arms and hauled me up out of the water, lightly setting me beside the nested circular pools of the Chalice Well.
As soon as my feet touched the ground, a brilliant flash seared my eyeballs and a gut-wrenching shriek made my eardrums ache. Elaine’s alarm.
“Sorry.” He grimaced, reaching down through the well to bring Lance through next. “Didn’t think about what would trigger it.”
“It’s alright. They knew we were coming. That’s why he brought Mordred here.”
Lance dropped down beside me, immediately gathering me closely against him. Bors hovered on my other side. My beloved knights, shielding me with their bodies when they had no armor. Mordred’s bond already flickered like a weak candle, almost extinguished.
If they died…
I pushed that overwhelming, soul-sucking dread aside. I couldn’t contemplate failure. Not this time.
Guinevere’s curse ends. Now.
Merlin’s shadow peeled away from the well like a shiny black oil slick. Head falling back, arms spread wide, he breathed deeply, nostrils flaring, mouth gaping open to taste the air itself. “Ahhhh.” He licked his lips as he lowered his head. “It’s good to be back among the sheep. I will need to feed before I can change back to my less intimidating form.”
“I didn’t think you fed like us,” I said slowly.
His teeth weren’t for puncturing and drinking blood. All those jagged saw-like blades were more suited for tearing.
“I don’t.” He shrugged. “I’m dark fae.”
I didn’t really care what he needed to do to sustain himself, but I was thankful he didn’t provide any gruesome details. “Hopefully before the sun rises, I’ll provide you with a feast.”
His large, circular eyes gleamed in the moonlight. “Guinevere forbade me the pleasure of dining on her king, or I would have eliminated him long before he gained so much power.”
“When I’m finished with him, you have my full permission to dine on any part of him that interests you.”
He inclined his head reverently. “My queen, I live to serve.”
I started to incline my head too, but a weight shifted on top of my head, surprising me. Maybe one of the butterflies was tangled in my hair. Wary of their teeth, I reached up gingerly, but my fingers settled on something cold and hard.
I leaned over the well, trying to see my reflection. A three-pronged crown sat on my head with large wing-like pieces that swept back over my ears. It was hard to tell for sure, but it looked like it was made from dark, shiny crystal rather than metal.
