Page 84 of Vengeance Becomes Her

“Who will try to convince me?”

“The only way to explain it is to start from the beginning. It’s time I told you about how I came to be here.” She took a deep breath that sounded wet and ragged. “Years ago, I met Silas and I desperately wanted him to be mine. You must believe me, all I wanted was to be loved. To be adored by someone. My methods may have been questionable, but my intentions were good. Before all of this,” she gestured to her appearance, “I was an herbal witch making up tinctures and medicines for those in my village, and yes, I did tinker with a love spell. I didn’t think it would hurt anything. I had every intention of loving them back. But in my blind desire for a companion, I went further north, up into the abandoned woods in search of more powerful magic. In doing so, I summoned something I didn’t understand.”

“You see, I was in pain when I made my decision. I was desperate and perhaps even angry at the cruel ways in which men had treated me, taking and taking from me as if my body were a vessel only for their pleasure. I wanted someone who would love and protect me, but it was hopeless in a town full of drunks and travelers. So, I decided to force fate’s hand.”

“Mind you, the first time I tried to use magic to find love, it failed, only lasting a few hours before he was freed from its effects and left me. The next time around, I was determined to make it work. I was desperate to find a love spell that would give me a real partner. But my desperation attracted something I should have known better than to accept help from. It required an exchange—my body, my soul, for its power—and I was a willing vessel. I consented to playing host. I thought it was harmless. How dangerous could something be that promised to give you the love of your life? It worked, but there was a greater cost than I anticipated. Over the years, I’ve fallen in love many times, but it always took them away from me. It would insist they were the only sacrifices it would accept. If I refused, it would withhold power, slowly killing me. Eventually, I would cave. Every time. I was weak. And then Silas came along.”

“And?”

“And the entity saw something within him that was far more alluring than what I had to offer. I’d grown weary and hopeless, realizing that what I asked for and what I received were two very different things. I had given it all it demanded. I’d had no choice. I made the sacrifices, telling myself it was out of my control even as I sobbed over their corpses. But in the end, it betrayed me, as I should’ve known it would. It took Silas from me, keeping him as its own.”

“What do you mean it took him from you?” Rhiannon’s head was spinning from the unbelievable story Delphine was reciting. Then again, this should be impossible, them speaking in this void of her mind.

“It released him from my spell, offering him a deal. Silas gladly accepted, hungry for the power he never had and fueled by his anger toward me for taking away his free will. So, he paid for his power with my life—as you know.”

“Yes. But then how are you here?”

“Because we are bound by it. While my body has long since decomposed, it still has the piece of my soul I bargained away. My consciousness lives within its void. And because of all the power I harvested on its behalf, I’m still able to tap into that magic and make things like this possible. I am here, but I am not. And as you can see, the magic is dwindling. I’m being forced out. Silas is growing weak because it is done with him. It’s found a new victim.”

“Who?”

Delphine opened her mouth but only gasping came out as a black vine wrapped its way around her throat, spiraling tighter and tighter. And then it yanked her back into the blackness and she was gone.

When Rhiannon opened her eyes, the sun still hadn’t risen. All she wanted was to go back to their room and crawl into Tristain’s warm embrace, but instead she pulled the blankets over her head and allowed her thoughts to spin out around all the new information she had.

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