As well he should be. I am, after all, his fucking king.
“Silence this witch.” Lest she speak of what she sees when she peers past my flesh.
May she never whisper a word of what festers inside me.
Severing Sybil’s tongue will also ensure she’ll never cast another spell. As it should be. When I first found her and placed her in the dungeon, I offered to provide her with all the supplies she would need to weave her magic. The obstinate woman refused to use her power for my benefit. She can’t use her power against me without her tongue.
As the brute of a man advances on her, the witch scrambles across the floor, kicking up dust around her withered form as she futilely tries to scurry from him. The chain jerks her to a violent halt when it reaches its limit and I snicker at her choked gasp when she lands in a pathetic heap of flailing, skeletal limbs.
She holds up her hands, dirt caked into the chafed skin. “Wait.”
“Last words?” My question stops Giles.
Has the threat of her losing her craft finally cracked her courage?
“I’ll tell you of the tower.” Sybil draws her legs under her and wraps her arms around her shivering body and stares back at me with wild eyes.
I stay Giles with the slightest twitch of my fingers. “What tower?”
“Oh, it’s a fine tower.” Sybil glances up at the ceiling as if gazing at the sky. “You should see it. I built Rapunzel a majestic haven of gray stone. One so tall, its single spire scrapes the clouds.” She stretches her skeletal arms up high before dropping them back down. Her palms slap against the filthy floor.
I want to shake the answer free from her frail body. But I keep my distance, fearing the vermin crawling on her will jump on me. “Is that where I will find Rapunzel? Tell, me witch!”
“Is. Was. Will be.” The witch cackles as if laughing at a jest only she knows. Then she grows serious. “Listen, and I shall tell you a story, John. Once upon a time, a witch cursed a forest. Blithe in name only, this forest was doomed not just to keep intruders out but also to keep one extraordinary little girl hidden within. This girl lived her life chained inside a tower. But I’ll tell you a secret, King of Rygard. The chain wasn’t to keep her from leaving. It was to keep her from suffering the guilt ofstaying. But one day, Fate spoke to the witch. It came by an opportunity she spied skulking among the ancient trees that line the bank of the Merrie River. Fate whispered to the witch of destiny. Of endings and beginnings. Of freedoms and captivity. But most of all, it spoke of love, loss, and freedom.” She shrugs her slight shoulders. “Maybe Rapunzel is there, still tethered to her tower.” She drags a ragged nail along the length of the chain securing her to the cell. “Or perhaps she’s flown far away on the wings of a bird. Fly away, Rapunzel. Fly far, far away—”
“Enough!” My demand cuts off Sybil’s manic rambling. “Take it. Take her fucking tongue.”
Giles charges forward and grabs Sybil’s face in his meaty grip, but the witch isn’t looking at him. Her defiant gaze remains fixed on me. She doesn’t fight him. She opens her mouth wide. Willingly sticks out her tongue. And right before the jailor makes the messy hack, the mad bitch winks at me.Winks. Is this her way of warning me the damage has already been done the day I begged her to save Anne’s life? That’s the day the magic passed through my dying wife’s pregnant body and entered my unborn daughter.
The day Sybil cursed us all.
I should have torn the kingdom apart to find Rapunzel all those years ago. But I was a man distraught over the loss of his family. I believed Sybil’s lies when she told me the child died along with my wife. Secrets, however, have a way of revealing themselves. They always do, and I should have searched for Rapunzel when I discovered she survived her birth.
But I thought I had time.
Time, however, has a way of running out.
A now familiar ache pierces my back, reminding me that this is my reward for showing my child mercy. After I find her—and Iwillfind her—the magic she possesses will make me a living god, and Rygard—no, theworld—will cower at my feet.
Rapunzel owes me for saving her life when I brought in Sybil to cast that cursed spell.
I will not tolerate an ungrateful daughter.
Especially one who is to blame for killing the only person I’ve ever loved.
ChapterTwo
“Rapunzel fights like she fucks, aggressive and fearless,” I remark, watching her glide across the training ground with hard-earned skill.
Although Quinn has her on the defensive, it doesn’t last long. A few parries followed by a handful of well-timed attacks gains her the upper hand. But while Quinn, having surrendered his soul for superhuman strength, can quickly overtake her, he’s holding back to keep the mock battle honest.
With a jerk of my chin, I gesture to the lists. “He has only himself to blame for his sorry predicament.”
“But look at him. Quinn is a blissful man,” Dax remarks.
An exaggeration, but I concede our soulless friend seems happy. Which is miraculous, given that I’d begun to wonder if he even remembered how to smile. Now, here he is, grinning like a fool while Rapunzel slices him to shreds.
Determination and ruthless physical drive improved her swordsmanship from nonexistent to adequate in such a short time. She has no choice but to push herself almost to the breaking point. Still, I don’t like her plan. None of us do. But I can’t sway her. Truth be told, Rapunzel is right.
