Page 57 of Ozma

“You’re okay,” she whispered, pressing a hand to his cheek. “Jackseith Arel Diosyll, I release you.”

“I rather preferred being a stone statue,” he rasped, slowly sitting up. Then his eyes widened as he focused on her. “Your eye!”

“It is what it is.” Ozma softly kissed his lips, then pressed her forehead to his. “The Wizard’s dead, and my magic and wings are back.”

He wrapped his hands around her and hauled her into his lap. “I’m taking the bastard’s head and feeding it to the wild fae in the forest. There’s no way he’ll ever come back from that.”

Chapter Twenty-Six

Jack

Outside the Wizard’s house, Jack took a moment to pat his hip to be sure his knife was still there. To return to the ship and get the hell out of Orkland, they would have to venture back through the swarm of rotting fae and humans. It wouldn’t be possible to outrun them this time. Not when his leg was sliced open and they would be heading straight into the horde, which was why he clutched the Wizard’s severed head in one hand. A distraction. A … snack. Still, they should’ve loaded themselves up with weapons inside. Magic was all well and good, but so was a blade.

Jack turned to tell Ozma as much and froze. She stood calmly in front of the open door with blue sparks flying from her hand. Large rips ran down the back of her dress, the frayed edges moving with a force that seemed to be coming from her body. Locks of her hair lifted and fell gently as the sparks became light that swept over her. A truequeen.

“Ozma?” he asked in a dazed whisper. Was this supposed to be happening? She had the slippers so she would have her magic, but was this right? It looked … ethereal.

Then, her light exploded outward. Jack flung his arm up against the brightness of it, squinting. A loud crack vibrated the ground as white-blue flames engulfed the Wizard’s house.

I guess we’re not getting a shit ton of weapons then…

Ozma turned toward him with a satisfied glint in her eye. The other was hidden behind a strip of fabric they had ripped from the furniture coverings. Blood was already seeping through, the sight of it tearing at his heart. She hadn’t complained, but it had to hurt like a bitch. And, more than that, Jack hated that Ozma seemed to lose something every time she regained what was rightfully hers. To regain her true body, she’d lost two years of her life to darkness. To regain her magic and her realm, an eye.

“Just in case,” she said, peering at Oz’s burning home.

Jack simply stared at her. The beauty of Ozma stole his ability to think. To speak. She was extraordinary… And too good for him. She had chosen him, though, and he wasn’t stupid enough to let his lack of self-worth ruin that.

“One more thing before we go.” Ozma stepped closer and two shadows emerged behind her. “I want you to see them.”

Jack’s jaw dropped at the sight of her elegant, feathered wings. The iridescent sheen glistened in the fading firelight as she flexed them wide. “Shit,” he breathed. Something inside of the house exploded, interrupting his fascination, and they both ducked, his ears ringing. “Shit!We need to get to the ship. Can you fly?”

“I don’t know, but it doesn’t matter. We’re sticking together.”

Ozma reached out for his hand with her own and he clasped it. Together they bolted back into the forest. His leg throbbed with each loping step. The wound on his thigh burned and stretched, but they had to get to Tik-Tok’s ship before they were trapped.

Jack took comfort in knowing that Ozma couldfeelher way back to the shore, because he still felt slightly disoriented. The spell the Wizard had cast on him was broken but the effects seemed slow to fade. With the buzz in his head and the revelation of Ozma’s power—herwings—Jack needed a minute to collect himself before putting his brain to work.

Growls reached their ears every so often—a grave reminder of the danger they were still in. After running for what felt like hours, the pain in Jack’s leg forced them to stop and he lay down in the dirt, breathing heavily. “Sorry,” he muttered to Ozma. She had to be in worse pain than he was after what she’d suffered with her eye.

“Don’t be.” She sat beside him and adjusted the stained cloth. He had stuffed extra strips in his pocket for when it needed refreshing.

I should’ve grabbed some for myself, he thought as he pushed aside the rip in his pants to see the wound. It was red and angry and far too deep. One of the brownies on board the ship would hopefully know how to stitch him up.

The snap of a twig sent both Jack and Ozma to their feet.Oh, come on! Can’t I get a moment?A nude, rotting human female stumbled toward them through the trees. Her left arm hung by a few tendons, intestines bulging from a hole in her stomach. Two more silhouettes moved behind her.

Ozma lunged forward, kicking Oz’s head where it lay on the ground. It sailed through the air, spinning as it went, and whizzed past the woman’s ear. The female whirled around and chased after it.

“Hurry,” Ozma said, and Jack obeyed.

When they finally reached the sandy shore again, Jack expected to be surrounded by enemies. He would’ve questioned the lack of monsters earlier if he realized how close they’d gotten to the water. But, instead of finding a hungry horde ready to tear them apart, dozens of bodies greeted them. They were spread across the beach, limbs twisted, with black liquid oozing from their orifices.

“What the hell?” he asked.

Ozma tugged him across the sand. “Don’t question it. Let’s just go.”

She was right—it didn’t matter, as long as they got out of there in one piece. Jack ushered Ozma into the row boat that was left for them and shoved it into the glistening silver water. Once it was far enough out to float, he jumped in beside her. Gentle waves bobbed them up and down while Jack gathered the oars, reminding him how ill he’d felt the last time they were on Tik-Tok’s ship. He squinted through the bright moonlight at the hulking shadow of a ship.Fuck.It was better than being stuck in Orkland though, so, resigned, he rowed toward the pirates.

“How’s your leg?” Ozma asked as he pulled the oars. “I can row if—”

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