Page 83 of Crown of Briars
“I will tell you,” he rasped. “But you must listen carefully, Varius.Listen to me.”
I nodded, my eyes intently fixed on him. My heart thrummed in anticipation, and my shadows billowed around us, forming a protective shield should anything or anyone interrupt us.
Murvo took a deep breath, then said in a rush, “Find the original script of the curse. In order to break the curse, you must… you must…”
“A human must willingly give her life for mine,” I supplied.
“Yes,but… there are terms outlining the—the—” He broke off with a grunt, then inhaled with a rattling gasp. “There is more… that you must do… to…”
Blood trickled from his nose and mouth.
Shit. The magic was killing him.
“To… end the curse?” I urged.
He nodded, more blood leaking from his nose. “F-For a spell of that magnitude, the witch h-had to… had to… include… terms…”
My mind was working furiously to fill in the gaps for him. “She had to include… certain conditions, or else the spell wouldn’t work. Is that right?”
“Yes. But… V-Varius, the most important thing… that you must do… The first condition… With her dead… there is… a…” He coughed, and blood spattered my tunic. But I didn’t care. I gripped his collar with my free hand and jerked him closer, our noses almost touching.
“Tell me.”
“There is another,” he choked out. “Someone… else…” He trailed off, his breath leaving him. Blood now leaked from his eyes, which rolled back. His body started seizing in my arms.
My eyes closed as I cradled him against my chest, trying to soothe him through it. He was too far gone now. I had seen this happen before.
Even with strangers, it was difficult to witness. But I had known Murvo for years. I had trained with him. Regardless of the secrets he had kept from me, I had once trusted him in battle. We had been brothers in arms.
Before today, I had considered him a friend.
Each strangled breath of his seemed to twist a knife deeper into my chest.
All I could do was hold him as the magic claimed him. He continued to thrash, the movements jerky and wild. His bloodoozed from every opening of his body, seeping into my clothes. He started gurgling on it, struggling to breathe.
Tears stung my eyes, but I kept them closed, holding him so tightly my hands went numb. It felt like an eternity before his body finally went still.
And as my captain lay dead in my arms, I wept bitterly for him.
The momentwe entered my chambers, I removed the diamond tiara from my head and flung it across the room. My hands shook, and as soon as the diamonds were outside my reach, the terror and nausea caught up to me. I fumbled with the balcony doors, threw them open, and vomited over the balustrade. The contents of my stomach hit the stone below with a sickening splat.
I coughed, then wiped my mouth with the back of my hand when I was certain I was done. Slowly, I turned to face Enzira, who stood at the open doors with a look of concern on her face.
“I’m sorry,” I muttered. “I took you away from the festivities.”
She shook her head. “After a scene like that, you can be certain the king canceled the revel.”
I closed my eyes, remembering Varius’s fury and the way his shadows had swarmed around me. “Do you think Varius killed that soldier?”
Enzira’s lips pressed together. “I don’t know.”
“Do you know him? Warwick, I think his name was. Do you know anything about him?”
“He’s new. I know many of the soldiers here, but I don’t recognize him. And the other maids, they compliment his good looks, but they don’t know much, either. Not his family name or where he grew up… I didn’t think it odd until now. We get soldiers from all over the Shadow Court, some who lived very quiet lives. It wasn’t out of the ordinary.”
I nodded, my brow furrowing. “But, what does he want withme? Why does he keep threatening me? Is it just because I’m human?”
Enzira gave me a pained look.
