The room was silent for a moment before Rumple hummed, stroking his whiskered chin. “Are you offering to take her place in my service? You are aware it is for life? And a vampire like yourself...” He smirked, eyes glinting with malice. “That is an awful long time. Pardon me, but I can’t exactly see a man as powerful as you sweating away in front of a wash basin.”
“No,” Blackthorn snarled, flashing his fangs at him. “I can’t say that I am.”
“If you aren’t here to take Mara’s place, then what are you doing here? How do you plan to repay your debt?” Rumple waved a hand around the room as if it had the answer to his questions.
“I will pay you for her,” Blackthorn stated, pulling out a large bag of coins. “Two hundred gold coins. Far more than any servant is worth.”
Rumple sniffed and stalked down from his perch, breaking the crowd up when he reached the ground floor. When he reached the space where Blackthorn and I stood, I stiffened. My hand came up to cling to Blackthorn’s arm.
Rumple reached out to take the sack of gold from Blackthorn’s hand, weighing it in his palm.
“You are quite right,” Rumple murmured, staring at the bag of gold. “Two hundred gold is far more than any servant is worth.”
I held my breath, unable to believe that Rumple would actually accept payment to release me.
“Except...” Rumple drew out, his eyes flicking up to my face. “Mara signed a contract. If I let her out of her contract for a price, then others would think they could do the same. I can’t have that, now, can I? Who would work in my factory?” He turned slightly toward the room with a broad grin.
Blackthorn’s gaze turned to me, softening slightly before turning back to Rumple. “Are you refusing my offer?”
Rumple gnashed his teeth at him. “I am saying get the fuck out of my factory before I make you greet the morning sun.”
The hand on my shoulder tightened, and I grabbed a hold of Blackthorn’s arm. “Please, just go. I absolve you of your debt. Don’t die because of me.”
“Yes, listen to her, blood sucker,” Rumple said with a contemptuous smile. “Run back to your castle. You’ve made us all lose enough precious sleep tonight.”
“I tried to do this the peaceful way, but you have left me with no choice.” Blackthorn lifted a hand, and vines came out from the earth, shoving the stone flooring out of the way. They shot toward Rumple, who laughed and dodged out of the way.
The room broke into chaos. Everyone ran from where Rumple and Blackthorn fought. Many of them rushed to the second floor, hiding behind the railing to watch the fight go on.
I didn’t know what to do. I was frozen in place. Never in all my life had I thought someone would fight for me, and here Blackthorn was, doing just that against the best-known sorcerer in all Candiopolis.
Blackthorn flew through the air, smashing into a wooden washing barrel. Water spilled onto the floor, flooding the ground around us, turning the dirt that had come out with the vines into mud.
I scurried back from the battle, unsure how I could help but not wanting to get in the way.
Rumple laughed at Blackthorn’s prone form. “It’s a good thing you brought gold, because that’s going to cost you.”
Vines shot out from the ground behind him and wrapped around Rumple’s body, binding his arms and legs, tightening around his throat until his face turned red.
Blackthorn stood from the ground eyes narrowed on the choking sorcerer. He stalked toward the smaller man, his fangs bared hissing like the monsters everyone thought him to be.
“What will happen when you die? Will all your slaves go free?” Blackthorn asked, taunting him as his face turned blue with the effort. “This whole empire you’ve built will come crashing down on you because you were too prideful to let one woman go. How will they remember you then?”
For a second, I thought Blackthorn might actually win this fight. That Rumple would be defeated, and everyone here would be free.
Metal rattled nearby. The air in my lungs stilled, and my head slowly turned toward the sound. A pair of scissors floated up in the air, moving on its own until they twisted around to point directly at Blackthorn’s back.
My heart stopped.
“Sebastian!” I cried out, running toward him. I threw myself into his arms as he turned toward me, his expression filled with confusion just as a pain unlike any other ripped through my back.
I glanced down, finding the silver end of the scissors sticking out of my sternum.
Blackthorn roared, and his hand snapped. His vines mimicked his motion, snapping Rumple’s neck before sending him crumbling to the ground. He clutched me to his front, his hands smoothing back my hair from my face.
“No, no. Why? Why would you jump in the way? Didn’t you know only a stake through the heart and the sun can kill me?”
“That would have been good to know.” I laughed, coughing up thick liquid. My head lifted, my gaze going hazy as I reached for Blackthorn’s face. “Thank you for loving me.”
