Page 61 of Rapunzel Unchained

I pushed on the crack, sighing when I was met with resistance.

I glanced down at the fruit with a frown.

Picking up a chunk of apple, I stepped back and threw it at the barrier. It sailed through, skidding against the floor on the other side. My lips quirked up as an idea formed.

Using my magic, I picked up the pieces of leftover fruit and hurled it at the crack in the barrier. The pieces smashed into the crack, causing it to widen and stretch.

Having figured out the trick, I moved over to the table where the tray still sat. The fact that they thought I only needed a sharp implement to cause damage should insult me. Except, in this case, the bigger the item, the better.

Lifting the tray with magic, I aimed for the growing crack in the barrier and threw it with all my strength. Unlike the fruit, the tray didn’t break apart on impact. It fractured the barrier until a tiny hole appeared, and the tray fell to the ground on my side, ready to be used again.

“Well,” a familiar voice purred with unrestrained delight, “I never dreamed the day I’d see you locked up where you belong would come true, and yet here we are.”

I lowered my hands, scowling as I turned on Healer Beatriz. “What are you doing here?”

Healer Beatriz’s robes brushed against the warehouse floor. She smiled to herself as she walked up to my prison. Unlike me, her eyes spotted the black circle surrounding me, and she kept her distance as she circled the space.

“Arch Mage Adam informed me he had taken care of the problem, and I just wanted to see it for myself.” She cocked her head to the side, peering into the barrier as if I were some intriguing creature she’d stumbled upon in the wild.

I’d never had the urge to choke someone before. It came on so viciously that I had to curl my hands into fists at my side to keep myself from launching at the barrier.

Would Adam and Gage really have let her come here? They told me this was for my protection. How exactly did that work when those who would hurt me knew where I was?

“I don’t think you’re supposed to be here,” I warned her through clenched teeth.

She sniffed and fluffed her coiffed white hair. “Well, it did take a little digging to find out where they were holding you but, as you can see, I can do as I like.” She smirked and leaned in close to the barrier. “And there’s nothing you can do about it.”

Oh, if she would only move a little closer. One step into the barrier and I could do what I should have done from the beginning. My eyes slid carefully to the hole I’d begun to make in the barrier.

Strolling along the edge, I pushed as much nonchalance into my movements as possible. “You think you are untouchable, do you?”

“Of course.” Healer Beatriz followed me as I knew she would, unable to help wanting to see my face as she gloated.

I pressed my hand to the barrier and leaned close, until my face was pressed close to the shimmering magic. “I might be stuck in here, but there are others out there that want the same thing I do. It’s only a matter of time before they take you down.”

The healer threw her head back and laughed, stepping closer to the barrier and me. “Oh, you mean that sad excuse they call rebels? We have already found them and are in the process of silencing them. Nothing will change, and you will live out your days in a cage.”

She moved even closer until our faces were only separated by the barrier. “Who knows? The Arch Mage might even give you to Jetta for his little experiments, see what makes you tick. The humans are right where they belong, under our feet, and there is nothing you can do about it.”

Without warning, my fist smashed into the hole I’d started. The barrier cracked further. My hand shot through the hole and grabbed the mage by her robes, jerking her into the space with me.

Eyes wide and chin wobbling, Healer Beatriz screamed and pulled at my wrist.

I lifted a fireball up, baring my teeth at her. “You were saying?”

Sweat streaked down her face as the fireball pressed closer to her, her hair singeing at the ends. Beatriz’s magic burned against my skin where she grabbed me, trying to force me to release her.

I laughed, the pain only making my desire to end her grow larger.

“Eva!”

My head twisted toward the sound of my name to find Gage and Adam running toward the barrier. Before they could reach me, I lowered my hand and extinguished the fire.

The look of relief was stark on their face.

I grabbed the crying mage by the face and brought my face inches from hers. “Long live the queen.”

Magic pulsed through my muscles and the quick snap of my wrist made breaking her neck easy as clicking my fingers together.

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