Page 125 of When the Wicked Sing
“Lies? You mean truth.” The witch stared at her in disbelief. “I am more powerful than I’ve ever been. I am more awake than I ever was before the Scourge opened my eyes. Don’t you see? You’ll be thanking me for what I did.”
Mariana turned away, wiping her face.
“We’ll start anew, you and me. Together, we’ll rebuild what was lost in Sirenia. And you’ll see, little one, that this is the only way,” the Siren Witch said with so much hope, it made Mariana release a harsh laugh.
She stood on shaky legs. “No,” she muttered. Tears she couldn’t stop streamed down her face, but her voice was steady and filled with resolve. “I’ll never follow you. I’d rather die.”
The silence, followed by a dark, grim sigh from behind her, made fear coat her insides. She slowly glanced over her shoulder. The look in the witch’s eyes sent chills down her spine.
Chapter 68
Aurora’sbodywastaut,waiting for the next attack as they rounded the corner. Glancing down the long hallway, she gripped the knife in one hand and Luna’s hand in the other.
She had to get her niece out alive. Find Cybele and the others. Get to Mariana.
Simple, she assured herself. Then she scowled when doubt in the back of her mind whispered darkly,Liar.
Killing Jocasta had done something to her, made her feel things she hadn’t felt since before the Banishment.
Fear. Dread. Hatred.
As her anxiety continued to spike, she struggled to keep herself calm, gripping Luna’s hand so hard, she heard her gasp. Releasing the hand, Aurora gave her an apologetic glance before focusing on how to get into the throne room without being caught.
Strapped to her waist were several knives from the kitchen. If all went according to plan, she could get inside, disable the guards, and arm the rest of her sisters. Together, they could fight their way out.
If only she could get her hands to stop trembling.
Cora, their healer, explained that when she felt this way, it meant she was suffering from an anxiety disorder caused by traumatic events. The very idea that she was inducing self-punishment after all she did as the Scarlet Serpent made her want to laugh. She’d never felt regret for what she’d done. She’d followed her queen’s orders, killed the target, then went on her way. That wasn’t the cause for whatever was happening to her. It was ridiculous.
Calm down, she coaxed herself silently, as though that would help in some way. When that didn’t work, she chose the only available route: she ignored it.
“Luna, I want you to take this,” she said as she handed her a knife, doing her best to keep it from trembling.
Luna’s eyes went wide, and she pulled her hand away. “No, no way.”
“Luna,” Aurora warned, and she watched her niece shake her head vehemently.
Fine.
Strapping the knife back to her waist, she gripped Luna’s arm and stared her dead in the eyes. “You have to have my back, do you understand that? If someone comes up from behind, I need you to warn me.”
Luna gulped, looking like a frightened youngling despite them being nearly the same age. They just lived very different lives. Astra had never believed in war, only peace, and refused to make her daughter a fighter. Aurora doubted Luna had ever held a weapon with the intention to use it, especially against fellow sirens, cursed or not.
“Okay,” Luna whispered.
The deafening sound of Aurora’s heartbeat made it difficult to hear her reply, but she had to trust her only ally. Without another word, they both swam as silently as possible through the darkened corridor that would lead them to the throne room.
As the stained glass double doors came into view, she heard two familiar, slithering, snake-like voices.
Aurora and Luna paused as they spotted the two serpents guarding the doors. Their beady red eyes had excellent vision, and their whirling, black and silver-scaled bodies were coated in an oily substance that made them extremely difficult to fight.
Originally deemed pests for eating the bioluminescent flora in their gardens, the serpents had proved a challenge for the sirens, who had tried in vain to repel the invasive creatures. However, a turning point arrived when the Siren Witch utilized her dark magic to communicate with the serpents. She’d discovered their true preference for bloody flesh, akin to the cursed sirens afflicted by the Scourge, who supposedly ate the mortals they stole souls from during the culling. This understanding formed an unlikely alliance between the beasts and the witch. She used that alliance to save the gardens and gained formidable companions, whom she called her pets.
As Aurora pushed past Luna to peer out a window overlooking the gardens, her heart sank at the sight of engulfing darkness, confirming her suspicions. The witch was indifferent to preserving the luminescent flora; her only interest lay in manipulating the serpents to fulfill her demands.
Cursing softly, Aurora tried thinking of a way to lure the serpents away from the doors without the glowing flora.
Her stomach churned as an idea came to her.
