Page 104 of An Enchanted Spring

Emma’s mouth dropped open. The man was certifiably insane; she was certain of it.

“There was a large deposit placed into your account a few weeks ago. But the account has a lot of security on it now, which is unfortunate. It doesn’t matter, though, because I have you now and we can use that money to create a new life for ourselves. If we can get to whenever we are right now, we can go anywhere. Any time. I could be a king with the kind of money you have.”

She glanced at the gun in his hand, but didn’t answer him. Instead, she asked, “How do you think we’re going to go back?”

“The same way I got here, I thought. But now we’ll wait for your new husband to find you. I’ll give him the choice of sending us back through this grass ring here, or I’ll just kill us all.”

Emma felt ill and covered her face.

The barrel of the gun slammed into the base of Emma’s neck, making her gasp.

“You’re not paying attention to me, Emmaline. You know how I hate it when you don’t pay attention.”

“Step away from her, MacDermott,” Aidan commanded, emerging from behind a tree. Cian, Nioclas, and Reilly followed suit, each holding their swords.

They all froze when they saw the gun. Ben leveled it at Aidan’s chest.

“Glad you could join us. Emma and I need to go somewhere a bit more futuristic, if you know what I mean. You’re going to help us get there.”

“What is that he holds?”Nioclas asked in a hushed tone.

“The deadliest, fastest weapon you were never meant to see,” Aidan muttered. He raised his voice. “What do you want?”

“The money,” Ben replied steadily. “But you’ve always known that, haven’t you?”

Aidan stepped forward and Ben tightened his grip on the gun. “One more step and I’ll shoot you. Then her.” He looked at the rest of them. “Then everyone else.”

“I can take you back,” Aidan bluffed. “I’ll give you all the money you want. Just let her go.” Aidan’s eyes met Emma’s, and hers filled with tears with his next words. “I love her, MacDermott. I’ll do whatever you want to keep her safe.”

Ben’s hand started to shake with anger. “Love her! She’s mine!” He turned to Emma, keeping the gun on Aidan. “Tell him you’re mine, Emmaline. Or I swear to God I’ll kill him for trying to steal you.”

“I’m yo—”

“No, Emma. It will never end if you tell him that,” Aidan said solemnly. “You’re not his. You belong only to you.”

“Lies. She belongs to me, and she knows it. She was mine long before you ever showed your face.”

“I’m not yours,” she whispered.

He swung his gaze to hers. “What?”

“I’m my own. But I love Aidan, not you,” she said, her voice strong. “I’ll never love you, Ben. I don’t think I ever did, not truly.”

Calmly, Ben swung the gun at her and pulled the trigger.

“No!” Aidan shouted, rushing forward as Emma crumpled to the ground.

Another shot sounded, but Aidan couldn’t look away from Emma, soaked in her own blood. “Emmaline!”

She didn’t respond, and Aidan felt for her heart. “No healer here can help this wound,” he said, his voice raw. He looked over at Ben, lifeless on the ground, then searched out Reilly, who placed his own weapon back under his léine. “You’ve got to take her, O’Malley. Take her to James.” His voice broke on a sob. “Please.”

Reilly didn’t hesitate. He knelt and slid his left arm under Emma, then held out his right hand, fingers splayed, and murmured something in a language Aidan couldn’t understand. He quickly twisted his outstretched fingers into a tight ball, curling in from his smallest finger to his thumb, and an almost feral sound burst from his lips. The air shimmered, and Reilly swept Emma’s lifeless body from Aidan’s arms before rushing into the fairy ring. It swallowed them both.

Aidan looked first at MacDermott’s lifeless body, then at the spot where his love had disappeared. All that was left was a puddle of blood, and his own broken heart.

Chapter 21

Beep. Beep. Beep.

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