The magick is in you, susi.
I wish it was my mother’s voice whispering inside of my head, knowing she’s the final thread of power I need. But I remind myself of her words, anyway.
The magick is in you.
“One guard,” the dark-haired Enchantress says. “Two more in the adjacent room.”
My mouth gapes. How could she know such a thing?
A guard rounds the corner. His armor clangs and the tune he whistles comes to an abrupt stop, his eyes going wide.
“What are you?—”
Without another thought, I raise my trembling hands. There’s a weightlessness in my fingertips as I stretch them, no longer bound with iron and it brings a surge of hope in my chest.
The man’s face reddens, his cheeks puffing out as he pulls his sword from his side. In two strides, he’s halfway to me.
“Now, Enchantress!”
My body aches, my head spins, but I dig down as far as I can, reaching that well of magick I know is trapped inside of me.
Come on. I know you’re there.
The metal on the guard’s armor grates against the string instruments, the heat from his body closes in on me, and when I’m about to scurry away, something uncoils inside of me.
That tiny spark of magick, buried in me like a seed in the soil, springs to life, twisting and twining through my palms.
The guard gives no indication that he feels my magick; his sword extended, the tip of cool metal brushing under my chin. Two of the Enchantresses break the line and flee back toward the dungeon. But I don’t move. It takes less than a second to reach into his lungs and find the element I’m looking for.
Air.
His eyes bulge, the sword under my chin drops to the ground with a loud clatter, but I don’t move until every last bit of air from his lungs turns to earth. Thorny brambles break free from his chest, long vines pushing out through his eyes and nose. His body twitches as branches and thorns encompass him, and when his mouth parts, nothing but dirt falls from it.
“We need to move.” The women beside me flinch as I step around the guard, but they don't follow me. “Now.”
The dark-haired Enchantress snaps her eyes to mine, wide and silver lined. She says nothing, but she steps forward and the others follow her.
All except...
“You two.” I point to the Enchantresses that fled back toward the dungeon. “Come on, we don’t have much time.”
Their bodies are trembling, clasping onto each other. They’re not much older than I am. Both blondes. Both with eyes the color of night.
“We can’t.” The taller of the two shakes her head, cradling the shorter one against her chest.
“If you stay here, you’ll die.” I bite my tongue for how direct my words are. But we’re running out of time. They don’t budge from the doorway. I shrug. “Suit yourselves.”
I turn to leave, but the dark haired Enchantress stands in my way.
“They’re afraid,” she says. “And probably in shock to be with each other again.” She peers around me and smiles at the two women. “Sisters who have been separated for years, find it in yourself to have some empathy.”
My heart and shoulders drop, but I do not forget her lack of empathy or patience for me in the dungeons. I square my shoulders before glancing back at the sisters. They cradle each other, fingers clasped tightly together. I imagine if it were Sam I was reunited with, I wouldn’t let her go either.
But I also wouldn’t risk another moment in that cell.
“They’re going to get us caught,” I say, forcing myself to keep the cold wall I’ve crafted so well around myself. I hate it, this cold indifference I’ve tricked myself into believing was who I really am, but right now there isn’t any time to spare. “They can stay if they want, just like you said before.”
Her eyes burn through me, and I know mine are shining right back. We stand there a moment, nothing but the string instruments sounding between us, before I turn and head for the other end of the hall. It’s faint, but the scuffle of four sets of feet sound behind me.
