“No,” Anna agreed. “I would have done the same.”
Peri stepped closer to Ludcarab’s body. Though she didn’t want to touch it, she needed to remove any magic that might linger. She had plans for his remains.
“Beloved?” Lucian stood beside her.
“We’re going to send a message,” she told him and shared her thoughts through the bond.
Peri touched the elf king’s torso, using her power to disintegrate any magic left inside. She did the same to each severed body part. Once it was done, she turned to Thalion. “I think he will make a fitting gift for any who want to side with the Order,” she said. “Send pieces of him to every dark hovel where the supernatural scum attempt to hide. News of this will get back to Cain and Alston wherever they’ve taken refuge. They will know that we are aware that they did not die in the cold fire. And after seeing Ludcarab’s fate, they will wish that they had.”
Jareth, the djinn, stepped forward. “I will take care of it. I can finish what the little healer started so that he fits nicely in smaller packages.”
“Thank you. I know it is a distasteful task.” Peri stepped away from the bloody bed.
“But you are correct,” Jareth responded. “It will send a message. It will make them nervous. And nervous prey make mistakes.”
Peri turned to the elf prince. “When he’s done, Thalion, do we have your leave to burn this prison to the ground?”
Thalion nodded. “We need to cleanse my realm of his evil. Taking down this castle will be a start.”
“Will Nick be okay?” Anna asked Drayden, her eyes glassy and red. The Canadian pack alpha stood just inside the door, his eyes focused on the bed. He was a strong alpha, but it was apparent to Peri that this incident had shaken him.
He took his eyes from the bed and looked at Anna. “They will both have a long road ahead of them,” he told her. “But we are all here if they need us.”
Anna wiped the tears from her cheeks. “After everything we faced with Volcan, she shouldn’t have had to bear this.”
“No one should, sweet Anna.” Gustavo pulled her into the shelter of his arms. “Drayden is right. We will ensure that Kara and Nick heal. But it will take time.”
“If you will allow it, Thalion”—Andora, the sprite queen, spoke for the first time since they’d arrived—“I can send some of the luminous sprites to come and help cleanse the land around this place.”
Thalion nodded. “That would be much appreciated.”
“Peri.” Elle’s voice came from the hallway just before she stepped into the room with three elf females in toe. “Kara wasn’t Ludcarab’s only prisoner.”
“Dyna?” Thalion said, his voice unusually soft. “Reena, Coya. We thought you’d left, that you’d gone to serve my father.”
The one he’d called Dyna shook her head. “We tried to leave, but not with him.” Her voice shook as she wrung her hands. “He captured my sister and my son. Reena and Coya were with us when we attempted to flee the castle, your castle, when he first returned. He—” She swallowed and shook her head as if she couldn’t say the words.
Reena, the elf standing next to her, took over. “He used her sister and son for dark spells. And made us watch as he took them apart piece by piece.”
“Bloody hell.” Peri breathed out. Lucian’s hand wrapped around hers, and she felt his strength flow through their bond into her.
“He and Alston fashioned bracelets that bound our magic and also made us relive every moment of what we’d seen anytime we even thought to escape. We’d been ready to try, regardless of our fear, but then he showed up with Kara. We couldn’t leave her here with him. He charged us to take care of her, to prepare her to be his queen.”
“We hated every minute of it,” Coya said, grabbing Reena’s hand and then Dyna’s. “But we were working on a plan. It took longer than we hoped, but we were finally able to get a message to a friend, an ally who’d promised to help us in our time of need.”
“Who is this friend?” Peri asked.
“Ember,” Coya answered. “She came while Ludcarab was away. She broke the spell on Kara’s bracelets,” she held out her arm, and Peri saw the markings on the elf’s wrists. “Kara’s memories, her bond, and her magic were no longer blocked. Kara was the only one who could get close enough to kill him.”
“Why didn’t Ember remove your binds?” Fane stepped out of the shadows from where he’d stood. He’d been hidden, in case there’d been any surprise threats within the castle.
“Because we didn’t want Ludcarab to sense that his magic no longer resided in us. If we happened to be around him before tonight, we couldn’t risk him knowing.” Coya covered her mouth as a sob broke through. “We didn’t want this for her. But we didn’t know what else to do. She had to get away. Every day, we saw more light fade from her eyes. Every day, he took a little more of her soul. She’s so young, with so much life left to live.”
Dyna, who’d seemed to have composed herself, said, “We knew we might die, that he might have figured it out. But it was a chance we were willing to take. Our priorities shifted once she showed up. We have lived long lives, but Kara, she’s just a child compared to us.”
“Thank you.” Drayden bowed his head to the three elves. “For taking care of one of mine. She is the mate to my beta.”
“Has Ember returned?” Peri asked.
