Page 56 of Fire & Ice

Our eyes connected and I froze with fear and panic. What had I done? I could see the desire in her eyes, not for me, but her desire for revenge. "Please," I begged, my voice barely a whisper as her fire swirled around us.

Chapter 43

Tempest

"Charlie, you said that we were meant to be together--You'll be with me always." I promised. Diving toward him, my rage manifested into wings of fire that beat a furious tempo as they carried me across the stone floor of the tower. I knew that my eyes were sparkling with flames of hatred as I summoned every ounce of dark energy siphoned from Charlie's veins. I directed it at him in a single, devastating blast. He stood no chance against my fury and soon he was pinned beneath my claws.

My fangs itched in excitement before they sank deep into his jugular. I drank deeply, savoring the rich taste of his blood as it seeped slowly into my body. Without any of the illusions, I relished the dull sweetness of cinnamon that his blood contained as it coated my tongue. I gripped him tightly in an embrace of death that was without mercy. I drank until his life force was completely drained and he lay lifeless in my arms, a petrified version of the halfling he had been. I dropped his now almost weightless body and Charlie's husk fell at my feet, crumbling in on itself until all that remained of him was a soft cloud of dust that still carried the faint aroma of pungent spice.

I stood over the spot where Charlie had just been, motionless as memories of all that had transpired suddenly crashed upon me.

“That fucking bitch!” I snarled connecting the dots, recalling how Beau hadn’t even remembered who I was.

The fallen amulet from earlier glinted in the fire that was emanating off my body and the stone jogged my memory further. There was a similar stone on the ring gracing Sara’s finger earlier.

It was all a ploy. Sara wanted Beau for herself, and she was going to use anything at her disposal to get him, just like Charlie had tried with me. Anger and rage burned in my soul.

"How dare that Halfling bitch try to take what's mine!" I growled as I remembered the smirk on Sara's face when I had walked in the room to find them and how Charlie had so cleverly led me straight there.

It didn't matter. I was willing to do whatever it took to get Beau back. Snatching the amulet off of the floor, I held it tightly within my palm, calming the fires of my anger so that I didn't melt the metal. My fire propelling me, pulled by that invisible string that tied me to Beau for eternity.

Chapter 44

Beau

As we meandered through the garden, my unease mounted until it threatened to overwhelm me. Sara chattered away, oblivious to my inner turmoil. Her words seemed to take on a sinister quality as she spoke of her plans for our future and how she couldn't wait to become queen and start a family—but all I heard was an icy threat.

I tried to push the nagging feeling to the back of my mind and focus on Sara's words. I knew that she was trying to charm me with her sweet words and gentle touch, especially after our run in with that overpowered halfling earlier, but I couldn't shake off the feeling that something was off.

Finally, we arrived at one of the small cottages that dotted Fernet River. It was a cozy little place, with a thatched roof and a small garden out front. Sara led me inside, and I couldn't help but admire the way the moonlight spilled in through the windows, casting a cool glow over everything.

As soon as I stepped inside, an invisible vice gripped my heart and dropped me to my knees. Every nerve in my body was screaming, urging me to flee before it was too late.

The halfling from earlier appeared in my mind's eye, mocking me for being so naive and trusting. I felt her fiery gaze upon me as if she had always been there lurking in the shadows of my memories. Ice flowed through my veins and froze me in place as my memories unlocked themselves.

Everything that I'd felt in my study, everything I'd done, rushed back to me in that moment. Now there was no pretense, no illusion, nothing clouding my vision or emotions. My heart was unshackled from Sara's magical chokehold. Looking up at Sara as she stared at me on my knees, I saw that she was beautiful. But it was a hollow, sinister, selfish beauty--capable of inspiring nothing but mistrust and unease.

Sara's lips curled into a malicious smirk as a wave of energy rushed from her fingertips and slithered down my body. My fangs descended with a guttural snarl. I could feel the pull towards her, but I was determined to defy it.

Her eyes darkened and the vines around her seemed to come alive, thrashing about in hunger for my submission.

"Beau!" she barked, and for one fleeting second, I faltered—until all of a sudden, something inside me clicked. Like a fleeing dragon, I tore away from her grasp towards freedom.

Sara stomped her feet, before lashing out with her vines, wrapping them around my wrist.

"No!" I roared, my nails clawing through the vines shredding them, I was done being a pawn in whatever schemes she had up her sleeve. "What do you want?"

"What do I want?" Sara laughed hysterically as her gift surged, vines wrestled across the floor, but I shot out my own gift, freezing them--turning them cold and worthless.

"Fine! Prince Beau wants to know what I want. You... what is rightfully mine," Sara purred before she propelled herself forward moving faster than I anticipated, plunging a cold silver blade into my upper stomach with an unholy force. Pain blazed through my body like wildfire. Stunned I look down at the protruding silver and soon dark blood began dripping onto the floor beneath me.

Chapter 45

Tempest

A fierce gust of wind and fire swept me up and carried me across the landscape, setting my course for Beau like a beacon held high in my mind's eye. As I skidded to a stop in front of the candlelit cottage, my heart pounding in my chest, I felt as if I could see a heatwave radiating off its walls. I charged forward - Beau - the need to be with him reverberated inside my mind, body, and soul with each beat of my heart.

A trail of crimson-stained wilted vines beckoned me onward, and I ran towards the kitchen, not knowing what I would find. When I stepped into the room, my stomach dropped like a stone. Beau laid on the floor, his shirt ripped through with the blade of a knife and drenched in blood. His gaze met mine and I both felt a rush of emotion - betrayal, despair, and desperation all at once. And then I saw her - Sara - lurking in the shadows.

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