Chapter 36
CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX
ISLA
A s we’re racing toward the basement, I try to recall every detail about the day I was killed. I want to know if Declan was there and whether he had black eyes then as well. I still can’t see the other person in my room, but I do put more pieces together.
We’re running down the stairs, but I don’t wait to share. “They used the secret passageways.”
“Who?” Dad asks, keeping pace right behind me.
“Whoever was in the room with me,” I say, my heart racing. “I was alone in my room when I walked in to call the kitchen about arranging dinner. It also explains why nobody saw me leave or be taken out. I never left the castle that day or any day after if Estee is correct.”
Asher looks over at me, a dark look in his eyes, but he doesn’t say anything.
“We better still be there,” my sister practically growls. “If we don’t break this curse, who the hell knows whom we can trust if Noen is screwing with people’s will. ”
“It wasn’t Noen,” Asher says just as I open my mouth to say the same thing.
“What?” Estee gapes. “When did you figure that out and where is he, then?”
“This morning,” I say. Then I add, “It was safer to leave him in the holding room, but maybe we can let him out after this.”
I have no idea if that’s true, but suddenly, I feel like Asher isn’t sharing something.
“What are you thinking?” I ask through our bond link.
“That I’d really like to finally fucking kill someone.” He doesn’t say anything more and because we get to the basement door, I don’t get to press him.
Asher grabs the handle, but it doesn’t budge.
“Do we need a key?” I ask, assuming he’s at least had access to this space throughout his time as king.
His growl is low and deep. “No, we need a new door.”
As I ask for clarification, he lifts his leg and slams his booted foot through the wooden door. It shakes but doesn’t even crack. That doesn’t deter my mate, though. He repeats the action two more times, and once it finally fractures, he charges forward, crashing through with his shoulder taking the brunt of the impact. Wood splinters fly around us, but that’s the least of my worries.
“Asher!” I call out, but he doesn’t seem the least bit fazed as he gets up.
“I’m fine.” He grabs my hand, ignoring the slivers from the door that protrude from his shoulders as he pulls me forward.
I expect him to let go, but the space is dark and his grip only tightens.
My wolf comes to the surface, helping me to see. There are stacks of crates, their labels covered in dust and cobwebs, as if this space has remained untouched for decades. The walls are made of brick with crumbling mortar between them, yet nothing has fallen out of place. Old, ceramic vases are stacked past the crates, along with what I can assume are paintings covered by canvases.
Estee steps next to us and points to the left. “Back there, I’m pretty sure.”
I expect to feel some sort of pull since it’s my body down here, but there’s nothing, not even a nudge or a recollection of having ever been in this part of the castle.
We move around the boxes, doing our best not to touch anything, but that’s hard when Asher won’t let go of my hand.
Dad reaches for my shoulder, causing me to glance back at him. His face is lined with tension and he’s trembling.
“What’s wrong?” I ask, forcefully removing Asher’s hold from me so I can pay attention to my father.
“This is a lot to process and…” He seems to choke on his words. “I don’t know why any of this happened and while I’m more grateful than I hope you will ever understand to have the two of you back, I wish your mother were here with us.”
Tears burn in my eyes, and I nod. Even with the gift of my memories back, so much has happened since then that I haven’t had the time to grieve what I’ve lost. I’ve only been thankful for what I’ve gotten back. There hasn’t been time for anything else.
Yet the moment my mother’s face comes to my mind, I throw my arms around my dad. “I’m so sorry you had to endure all of this alone, but selfishly, I’m glad you managed to find the strength to hang on. Without you, I don’t know that I would have opened my mind to believing I belonged here and that would have been the biggest mistake of my life.”
He sniffles against my shoulder. “I almost didn’t.”
“But you did and we’re going to get through this,” I promise him as I pull back. “And if there’s a way to bring Mom back, we’re going to find it, okay? And I know I haven’t been around for you these last couple of days, but once all this is sorted, I’m going to be in your life so much, you’ll be sick of me.”
“Oh, sweet girl. That could never happen.”
We hug again and I don’t want to let him go, but the need to know if my sister’s and my bodies are still here is too big to ignore.
When I turn back around, Asher has only moved about ten feet ahead and has his back to us. Even though I know he can still hear us, I appreciate him attempting to give us a bit of privacy.
“Over here,” Estee calls out.
This time, it’s me who holds on to Asher. The thought of seeing my corpse suddenly doesn’t sound so appealing. Yet there’s no chance of backing out now.
We come around another stack of crates and in the far recesses of the basement, there we are. Me and Estee, lying side by side as if we’re sleeping, our bodies perfectly preserved. I’m wearing the same blue dress I had on when Asher returned home on my final day and Estee has on a black skirt and white blouse. Neither of us even have a speck of dust on us, as if the dark magic from the daggers sticking out of our chests has repelled everything around us .
“That’s fucking creepy,” Estee mutters.
“Agreed,” I say and I don’t step any closer until Asher does. When he bends to pull the blade out, I stop him. “What does breaking the curse entail once that dagger comes out? This is dark magic, right? It can’t be that simple, not if we’ve been kept half alive this whole time.”
Estee kneels next to her former self, inspecting her face. “Elyn just said to remove the dagger. I didn’t ask any questions after that.”
“I can go back and find her,” Dad says, his gaze averted.
“No,” Asher chimes in. “Look at Isobella’s hands, even her face. They’re ashy. She was never that pale before.”
As much as I don’t want to, I step closer to my body. There’s no warmth coming from me, yet I can still feel Estee’s. “What’s different between us?”
“You died two days ago,” Asher says. “I think when Elyn stopped your hearts that a part of the curse was already broken. I have no idea what that would mean if you died again, but I don’t think you’re linked to these bodies any longer, not after seeing how yours is only recently deteriorating.”
“I think you’re right,” Estee says, placing a hand over her body’s chest. “I’m still warm, but if we want to be sure, we can wait to see what happens to me in another day.”
For someone who was so insistent on getting down here, I’m surprised to hear her provide that option. At least until she adds, “Might be fun to stand guard over myself and see what happens.”
She is insufferable sometimes. Still, I wouldn’t change a single thing about her.
“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Dad says, still staying behind me. “We either need to take the daggers out and trust the elder wolf knows what she’s talking about, or we need to move the bodies to a safer place.”
“We pull the daggers out.” Asher’s gaze is still locked on my corpse. “Elyn hasn’t been wrong yet and I’m not going to chance losing Isla to Earth again, where it might take years to find her again without the use of magic there. It took three centuries for the two of you to find each other again. I can’t…”
I place my hand on his shoulder and turn him toward me. “No matter what happens, I’ll always find you again. Don’t give up hope.”
“Never,” he murmurs, fear and love passing between the two of us.
“Oh, hell.” Estee groans. “Let me do the honors. If I don’t die, then we’ll know Isla is safe.”
When she says it like that, I no longer agree with taking the risk. I move to stop her, but she’s grinning at me, hand already wrapped around the hilt. “You deserve happiness, little sister.”
“No!” I shout at the same time as Grayson, but it’s too late.
She pulls the dagger out of her dead body’s chest, then sucks in a breath. I watch in horror as she stiffens, drops the dagger, and falls to the ground, next to her corpse.
“Estee,” I cry with a gasp. “No, no, no. This can’t be happening.”
I shove past Asher, going to my sister, my best friend. I roll her over, inspecting her body. When I don’t sense a heartbeat, I start shaking her shoulders. “Damn it, Estee. Why couldn’t you have been patient?”
Holding her to my chest, I weep over both her bodies. I equally hate and love her right now. I can’t believe she did this for me, yet I shouldn’t have been surprised.
Dad and Asher kneel next to us, each placing a hand on her, both shaking with grief that threatens to choke me.
Suddenly, I can’t sit here anymore. I have to stand, I need space and air and…vengeance.
No, I need blood .
First, from Elyn for telling my sister what to do without warning of what would happen, then from the asshole who started all this, whoever they are.
Pushing to my feet, I step away from the bodies and jerk my hand back when Asher tries to grab me. “Isla, stop,” he half-demands and half-pleads.
“No. I’m going to find the elder wolf and then I’m going to kill her.” My gaze narrows on my mate. “And if you try to stop me, you’re not going to like the consequences of your actions.”
“So dramatic,” Estee says with a cough from the floor. “I appreciate the willingness to avenge my death, but it’s not necessary. At least not this one.”
All the air leaves my lungs and I drop to my knees next to my sister. Once again, I’m weeping, except this time, it’s with relief. “Don’t you ever fucking do that again.”
She tries to shake a finger at me. “Language, little sister. That’s no way for a queen to speak.”
Dad helps her sit up, tears still falling down his face as well. “You’re lucky that’s all she said for what you just put us through. Consider yourself grounded for the next decade.”
She leans her head against his chest. “I think I can be cool with that, but we should probably finish the task at hand first.” She nods toward her old self, moving farther back. “I’m turning to ash and that dagger is putting off a lot of heat.”
“What happened when you pulled the blade out of yourself?” Asher asks, joining us.
She shrugs. “I don’t remember, really. It was like someone shocked me and I was shrouded in darkness for a bit until I heard Isla talking about murder.”
He looks at me, pulling me up. “I really fucking hate this, but seeing as how her body is disintegrating right now, I don’t think we have a choice.”
I glance back to find Estee’s old self beginning to crumble as if she’s been turned to stone. Cracks form on her skin, growing deeper until pieces of her turn to dust. I shudder and turn away, not needing to see that, regardless of the fact that I know the current her is fine now.
“Don’t let me go,” I tell him, then I look around at my sister. “Care to do the honors?”
She grins wickedly, a sight I hope to have around for many more centuries. “You know it.”
Asher picks me up, cradling me in his arms. “I love you, Issie.”
“I love?—”
The last thing I hear is Estee saying “oops” and then…fire.
She fucking lied, and I can’t blame her.
My entire being feels as though it’s being turned inside out, then held over coals. I can’t breathe, nor can I move or scream. I’m trapped in a cacophony of suffering that pounds within my mind, branding me with the shadow of a life I never got to live.
Bones begin to break, snapping over and over again, like I’m trying to shift, but my body’s confused, unable to find the form that matches the spirit within me.
My wolf’s howls sound in the distance, but they’re too far away.
Panic claws at my insides. I can’t feel her within my chest or my mind. There’s a hollowness that overtakes the torment, proving that things can always get worse.
I open my mouth to scream for help, but no sounds escape me.
I’m trapped and alone and…Asher.
Leaving him again isn’t right. I can’t hurt him like that. I promised him that everything would be fine. I promised myself that I wasn’t going down without a fight this time.
I won’t give up so easily. Not again.
Picturing Asher, I search for our bond, for the tether that I know exists within me. He’s here somewhere and no amount of stabbing pains are going to stop me from getting back to him.
“I’m coming, Asher.”
There’s a flicker of light and I reach for it, kicking and screaming as I attempt to swim through the depths of this hell that are relentless in their attempts to break me.
Dying isn’t an option. I focus on Asher, my dad, and Estee, knowing that if I don’t come back, Estee’s life would be the next one snuffed out because Asher would never forgive her. Worse, she could never forgive herself.
The glow of warmth comes closer and as I push forward with all my might, there’s a whisper of a voice, taunting me.
“Life was just the way it was supposed to be. You came back and ruined everything, but I can still fix this. I’m going to fix everything. ”
“I’m going to fix everything.”
Tension seeps deep within me, reaching my soul and my mind as a memory comes back to me. I’ve heard those exact words before. Except the voice wasn’t clear before, and I was so weak, but not any longer.
“The hell you are,” I reply back, having no clue if he can hear me, but it doesn’t matter.
I know who killed me now.