“What is it? There’s something you’re not telling me.” Kara scooted to the edge of her seat and leaned forward.
“In order for you to even have a chance at killing the elf king, you must allow the night to progress as usual.” Dyna’s voice was filled with regret. Kara could tell the woman didn’t want Kara to have to endure Ludcarab’s defilement yet again. As usual, when Kara considered the things that the elf king had done to her while she escaped inside of her mind, bile rose in her throat.
“Why?”
“Because he doesn’t trust you.” Ember said. “Would he take food from you if you offered it to him, or a drink? Would you be able to fool him into thinking that you’ve finally accepted your fate?”
Kara couldn’t help but snort. “Hell no.”
“Exactly.” Ember tilted her head. “Then the only way to get the poison inside of him is if he gets it from you. From your body.”
“Does he kiss you?” Reena asked. Kara appreciated that she kept her voice clinical. She didn’t hear an ounce of pity, which was good. Kara didn’t want their pity.
“I don’t know,” she admitted. “I’ve never been lucid when I’m with him.”
“You’ve found a way to escape,” Coya said. “Inside of your mind. A sanctuary.”
Kara saw tortured pain in Coya’s eyes. They had the haunted look that Kara saw in her own when she looked at herself in the mirror. “Yes.”
“You will need to remain present this time,” Ember said, her voice hard as steel. “You will only get one chance at this. If he figures out what you’re doing, even the tiny sliver of freedom you have will be gone.”
Kara shoved herself from the chair and began to pace. She wanted to claw the clothes from her sensitive skin. Just the thought of mentally staying with Ludcarab when he forced himself on her made Kara want to scream.
“I’m sorry that this falls on you,” Dyna said gently. “You are the only one who is able to get close to him. Ludcarab doesn’t trust anyone. He only eats food he prepares himself. He only drinks what he pours himself. If I could take this from you, child, I would.”
Kara believed the female. She’d seen the compassion in Dyna’s eyes as she’d helped Kara for the past month. She didn’t understand what it was that Ludcarab held over them to keep them from attempting to escape, but it must have been important. They could have been cruel to her while they performed their duties on Ludcarab’s behalf, but they were kind.
She turned back to Ember and forced her feet to keep from moving. “What do I need to do?”
“You will drink the poison. It will not hurt you. It is a plant from the fae realm that has properties that affect the magic of an elf. He will be rendered powerless, unable to access his magic. His strength will be even less than that of a human male.
“The poison will saturate your cells. The mucosa in your mouth, the pores of your skin, any place where your body produces any kind of moisture.”
Kara held up a hand as she swallowed down the urge to retch. “I get the picture.”
“The hard part will be waiting for it to fully take effect,” Ember continued. “He’s powerful. You will have to remain in the moment, Kara. If you don’t stay alert, you could do something to give yourself away and not even realize it until it was too late. You cannot escape to your sanctuary, no matter how badly you want to. Do you understand?”
Kara’s hands tapped the sides of her legs, and she bit the inside of her cheek. “I do.” She had to force the words out of her mouth. It had become a habit to run away as soon as her body hit the elf king’s bed. She knew this would probably be the hardest thing she’d ever done in her life. She looked at the blade in Ember’s hand. “I assume that is the weapon I will use to kill him?”
The fae nodded. “But it is also to remove those,” she pointed at Kara’s wrists. “Once they’re gone, your forgotten memories will return. That might give you the strength to do what you need to do. You will remember what you’re fighting for.
“I am not a wolf,” Ember continued. “I do not have a true mate, but I’ve been around a long time, and those of us in the supernatural world know just how special that bond is. Many of us envy what the wolves have. A life partner who will always stand at their side. Your mate willneverstop looking for you. He will destroy the world to find you. He will kill anyone, friend or foe, in order to have you back at his side.” She paused as her eyes took on a lost quality, as if she was thinking of another place and time. “Many would give up anything to have what true mates have. When you remember that—remember who he is to you and the emotions that bind you to him—then you will be able to survive Ludcarab. I do not ask this lightly, Kara. And if there was another way, I would not ask that you allow him to touch you ever again. But this might be the only chance we have to get close enough to kill him before he, Alston, and the vampire king are once again together, combining their power.”
Kara knew Ember was right. They had a unique opportunity, and they couldn’t squander it, no matter how sick it made her feel. Kara had learned in foster care that there wouldn’t always be someone there to fight for you. No matter if you were only a child, you were your own advocate. You were the one who had to choose to fight or lay down and accept your circumstances. Kara never laid down, even if it appeared that way. She was simply biding her time. She always chose to fight. And she would fight now. “What do I need to do?” She walked over to Ember and stared at the blade.
Ember looked at the three she-elves. “You’re going to have to hold her. I could use magic to keep her still, but I don’t want to leave a magical fingerprint on her that could alert Ludcarab.” Ember looked back at Kara. “I can remove the power of the bracelets, but I will have to leave the markings on your skin so he won’t be aware they no longer hold any control over you.”
Kara hated the idea of keeping the bracelets on, but she’d deal with that later. “Do it.”
“This is going to hurt,” Ember warned.
“Physical pain is a welcome reprieve,” Kara told the fae. “Do your worst.”
Dyna stood and walked behind Kara. She wrapped her arms around Kara’s waist and pulled her tightly to her chest. Then, Coya and Reena each took one of Kara’s arms and held them tight. They were much stronger than they looked.
Ember took Kara’s left hand and wrapped her fingers around it until Kara’s fingers were scrunched tightly together. Kara attempted a slight tug to test the fae’s strength. The woman’s hand didn’t even flex, and her arm didn’t budge.
The fae took the flat of the blade and laid it on Kara’s wrist. Then Ember closed her eyes. Instead of speaking softly, the fae’s voice came out strong as she spoke in her language. There was a lyrical quality to her words, and Kara felt her heart picking up the rhythm of it. Several minutes passed. Kara was beginning to think the spell wasn’t going to work; she hadn’t felt the slightest discomfort. All of a sudden, her mouth clamped shut on its own as pain seared her skin. It felt like the blade was burning through every layer of her dermis, through her blood vessels, and straight into her bones. The heat radiated up her arm, through her shoulder and into her neck, and then up into her skull. She was sure Ember was attempting to cook her brain. The heat intensified, and Kara wanted to tell the fae to stop, but she couldn’t. Even though the urge to roar from the torture boiled up inside her, no sound could escape her vocal cords. Perhaps Ember had melted them.
