Page 100 of When the Wicked Sing
“In fact,” Halia added, “once I have it, I will let you all go to do what you wish. Crawl back to that underwater city of yours or stay here, I don’t care. Just give it to me.”
Invisible tendrils of air found a tiny seam in the magic, and Mariana gave Halia a small smile.
“No, I think I’ll keep it.”
With a flick of her wrist, her magic speared through that crack.
Halia shouted as Astra collapsed to the ground, and Aurora grabbed her bone daggers from her waist.
“I warned you what would happen if you touched my sisters again,” Aurora sneered, a wicked grin on her face.
“Restrain her!” Halia ordered.
The guards sprang into action, releasing Mariana. Aurora’s daggers whirled, slicing through the air with lethal precision. Two guards fell instantly, clutching their throats. The remaining three hesitated, casting nervous glances at each other.
Mariana took the opportunity to sprint toward Astra, her heart pounding with desperation. She knelt beside her unconscious sister, her hands trembling as she checked for a pulse. It was faint, barely there. Mariana’s breath hitched.
“Go!” Aurora shouted at her just as she flung one of her daggers into a guard’s stomach before yanking it back out to swipe at another.
While her sister kept the guards distracted, Mariana lifted Astra’s frail body into her arms. She wasn’t sure how Halia had magically lifted both her sisters into the air so easily, but Mariana worried she’d drop Astra, injuring her further, if she tried. Instead, she gritted her teeth against her straining muscles as she ran into the fog.
“Stop!” she heard Halia scream behind her, but she kept going, ignoring the grunts of pain and clash of metal against bone. Aurora was a superior warrior to those guards; she could handle them.
Mariana’s arms and legs barked at her to release Astra. Panting, she set her sister down, leaning her back against a boulder.
“Astra, please wake up,” she said in a pleading whisper, gently shaking her shoulder and patting her cheeks. They were freezing to her touch.
Astra groaned, her eyes fluttering. “The amulet,” she murmured, pressing a shaky finger to the blue stone that glowed gently at her touch.
Mariana’s eyes blurred with tears as she watched her sister’s heavy eyes lift to her face.
“Get out of here. Protect it,” she whispered.
Mariana shook her head, her heart clenching at the thought. “I’m not leaving you here—”
“Step away from her,” a cold voice sounded above her, and Mariana glanced up toward the point of the blade Halia was holding.
Slowly, Mariana stood from where she’d crouched and took a small step back.
“Why are you doing this, Halia?”
Where is Aurora?Mariana glanced past the princess toward the fog.
The princess rolled her eyes. “You know why. The fate of my kingdom depends on who possesses the amulet. I will not allow my brother to be resurrected and ruin all I’ve done. Now, drop your dagger and hand over the amulet.”
Mariana swallowed. “Astra has done nothing wrong. Please, just let her go, and we can work out an agreement. I don’t want to see Helios return either.”
“Nonsense! I know the dealshemade with my father! The moment she gets her hands on it, she will fulfill their agreement. And I can’t let that happen.”
“So what’s your plan, then? Destroy the amulet? It’s powerless in your hands.”
“Exactly. Although, I do not wish to destroy it. Instead, I will deprive all of you of the chance of ever using it against me. It’s safest with me. Hand it over, or your sister dies.”
Halia stepped toward Astra and pointed the blade at her. Mariana glanced down at her sister, who was growing paler and paler with each breath. Her limbs were shaking with the effort to stay upright.
“Don’t let her take it,” Astra forced out with an effort that made her close her eyes and release a heavy breath.
Mariana took a step back. She needed to redirect Halia’s attention away from Astra.
