Page 24 of Witch Queen

The dead witch’s gratitude washed through her as her soul vanished from the world of the living with a last, bright flicker. A hush descended inside the autopsy lab.

Vlad broke it. “What was that about?”

Instead of replying, Mae frowned at Nikolai. “Did you know?”

Nikolai swallowed. “I heard rumors when I was a child. But I was never certain of their accuracy.” He hesitated before meeting her stare squarely. “My father has never had a familiar for as long as I can remember.”

Mae finally answered the question burning in Vlad and Roman’s eyes. “That was the soul of Vedran’s wolf familiar. He killed him so he could use him as a weapon.”

Vlad cursed. Roman paled, his fingers automatically finding Filomena.

“He was a very dignified creature, my witch,” Brimstone observed sadly.

Mae fisted her hands. “Yes, he was.”

What a pity that his bond was that wretched man,Na Ri murmured.

“Did you manage to see something that might help us find that bastard?” Vlad said in a hard voice.

“No.” Mae observed Nikolai with a frown. “But one thing is for certain. Your father’s familiar wants no part of this.”

A muscle jumped in Nikolai’s jawline.

Mae knew he loathed that the man responsible for his mother’s death was related to him by blood.

“Did you meet him before?” Roman said. “That familiar. You and Brimstone didn’t seem surprised when you saw him.”

“He was there the night we fought Vedran.”

“We caught a glimpse of him in the black sword the Sorcerer King manifested,” Brimstone explained somberly at their shocked expressions.“The one that destroyed Hellreaver.”

Resolve tightened Roman’s face. “Is that a weakness we can exploit?”

A wave of lassitude washed over Mae. “I hope so.”

She sighed and rubbed her forehead.

After a couple of quiet weeks, events were moving at breakneck speed once more. The dark truths the Sorcerer King and Barquiel had long hidden were coming to light one by one. She could feel her final battle with them looming in their imminent future.

If I lose, a lot of people will be in danger.

The prophecy Bryony had mentioned when they first met rose in her mind for the first time in a while.

On the day the world becomes shrouded in shadows, a woman with white and dark magic will bring about an age of justice and the fall of a false God.

A wry grimace twisted her lips.No pressure then.

She unleashedDevourand destroyed the witch’s physical remains.

“Come on, let’s get out of here.”

They were halfway to the exit when corruption saturated the air with a suddenness that made them freeze. A brutal pressure bore down on them, rooting their feet to the ground. Brimstone snarled and shifted back into his nine-tailed form.

The stench of black magic imbued the room a second before a dark portal whooshed to life near the ceiling.

Mae’s pulse spiked when she sensed Vedran’s presence on the other side of the rift. “Soul Guard!Augment!”

The spells she and Na Ri had refined to defend all those who fell under their protection fortifiedSoul Shieldinside the men framing her.

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