“For someone who claims not to trust me anymore, Vega never searches me,” Bridget explained.
Despite the dagger digging into her skin, Selene cackled. “Some bonds can never be broken.” Black liquid sputtered onto Bridget’s shirt. She wanted to gag. “What are you willing to pay?”
“Whatever it takes,” Bridget vowed, ignoring the dread creeping up her spine. “We’re going to cast a curse.”
Removing her hand from Selene’s throat, Bridget slowly pulled out the pages and the crown. The Wraith’s eyes widened. They widened even more when she pulled out the third item from her cloak. The Tuathan stone. The one she’d hidden from Vega for weeks. Her planned escape from the palace when she’d originally came looking for the crown. But she’d been caught and had stubbornly refused to use it until she’d found out exactly what Vega was up to, much to Cade’s dismay. Plus, she hadn’t quite figured out how to use it yet.
Selene reached out a shaky hand. “How did you get those?”
Bridget swatted it away. “Don’t get too excited. We’re about to make one disappear.”
Keeping the dagger level, Bridget sorted through the pages. Finding the right one, she shoved the parchment in Selene’s face. “This one.”
The Wraith froze. The trepidation Bridget found in her dark eyes made her snarl. “Say the words. You can use my blood.”
Selene remained silent.
Bridget pushed the dagger harder.“Say it.”
“We can’t use an artifact without its permission,” Selene cried hoarsely. “The price will be too great. Using the Tuathan stone as an anchor will curse us both.”
“Haven’t you heard? I’m already cursed.”
Bridget sliced her palm. Blood gushed onto Selene’s palm and the crown. Like she predicted, the wraith couldn’t resist the pull of blood magic. Seconds later, Selene’s eyes darkened as she started the spell. Bridget’s blood hummed as it was pulled out of her palm. The stone and the crown began to shake. Metal vibrated around them as a gate tried to form.
Spewing darkness from her throat, Selene growled. “We need more blood.”
Doing her best to stay upright by the sheer force of magic booming around her, Bridget stabbed Selene in the stomach, the only place on her body that seemed to have any amount of blood left. The Wraith wailed and hissed, but couldn’t let go of the spell. Chanting continued to explode from her mouth. Between them, the stone dropped to the ground. A large crack resounded through the cells. The prisoners around them whooped and hollered as white light appeared like a cyclone out of the stone.
“It’s working,” Bridget whispered. Her glee soon turned to alarm as fire shot up her arm. Screaming, she dropped the crown inside the cyclone. The moment she did, an explosion shot her away from Selene.
Silence pierced Bridget’s ears. Pain sliced up her arm and through her forehead as she tried to sit up. Her chest grew heavier with every breath. Rolling over, she spotted the stone lying on the ground. Reaching out to pick it up, she gasped. The veins in her wrists had blackened. She could seeeach one snaking up her arm, traveling further growing darker with every passing second.
“I guess what you wanted most was to live through this,” Selene taunted weakly before her eyes closed. Only the soft sound of wheezing told Bridget she was still alive.
Bridget knew it was more than that. Of course she wanted to live and see Cade again. But sometimes, magic was too much for a human. She’d seen it dozens of times. She never believed she would be the exception.
Curling into a ball, Bridget lay on the hard ground. She couldn’t find the strength to get up or care if the warden had heard them. It was done. The crown was gone. Vega wouldn’t be able to use her even if she tried.
Time passed slowly. With each breath, the pain radiating up her arms worsened. Any second, someone would come grab her to take her to Vega. She wondered where she planned to kill her. And if Cade knew. She hoped he didn’t. Trying to stop Vega would be useless at this point. She was already dying. The last thing she wanted was for him to share her fate.
“What did you do?”
Bridget’s eyes flew open. The voice sounded real… not like the muted ones she’d been replaying in her head to keep her mind off the pain. A blurry figure tried to help her up.
“What are you doing here? How did you get in?” Bridget asked Stellan, even though she already knew the answer. His camouflage skills were one of the strongest abilities she’d ever seen. And he’d grown up in the palace… he knew it almost as well as Cade did. “I told Cade I needed more time. And now…”
How was she supposed to explain what she’d done? She barely comprehended it herself. It had been a spontaneous decision, one built from the fear of finally being fully controlled by Vega. Something she couldn’t let happen, especially with nearly all their futures in the balance.
Stellan tried to pull her upright again. “We don’t have much time. I’m here to get you out. We heard what she plans to do tonight.”
“These cells are spelled with blood magic. If there’s no heartbeat inside these walls, Vega and the guard will know,” Bridget said. Using Stellan’s help, she heaved herself to her feet. The world spun. She stumbled forward.
Stellan caught her. “I know.”
Even in the darkness, Bridget read in his eyes what he intended to do. “I can’t let you do that.”
He wanted to take her place.
