Page 112 of Tricky Princess
The vampires grabbed her hands and sped away before Ros could attack.
44
Ellea
Ellea paced the small room at the inn they were staying at. It had been two days since Ros went back to Hel with a murderous glare and fire curling in his restless shadows. Two days of anxiety, training, and scouting the small town of Portsmouth where it all started.
That day, over twenty years ago, Cerce had locked Ellea in the basement. She had been too young to realize what her parents were doing, only that she feared her manic happiness far more than the crazed, torturous teacher. That day, her mother had buzzed with excitement. Her circling conversations with herself had risen to another level of insane, and Ellea remembered shivering at the wild look in her mother’s eyes as she closed the basement door. “If you work harder, next time it can be you that I use to bring a new order to our world,” she’d said. Ellea had been found two days later when a task force came to their home.
She swallowed past the dryness in her throat and paused to take in the town outside her window.
The small city sat on the coast three hours north of Halifax. Mostly mortals inhabited the tourist spot, and it was the perfect spot for Cerce to lay down destruction once again. With its small cottage homes, the smell of the sea, and what had been bustling streets before all of this, Ellea felt comfortable, like she could live or vacation here. If only she were visiting for other reasons.
Ellea often wondered why her mother and father chose this spot to start their reign of devastation. She didn’t think this town was mostly human for any reason that went against supernaturals. But her mother was probably too evil to see past that. The council had been able to evacuate most of the town the day before; she could hear the final cars rolling out. This was it. No matter the outcome, this ended today.
Ellea had been waiting her whole life for this moment. Before her parents had escaped jail, she was barely living, barely reaching for more. Then she met Rosier and her friends, and that all changed. The friends she now called family seemed to be growing with the additions of Duhne, Florence, and even Sebastian. The vampire had been reading one of her books from a chair in the corner.
Azzy was more than a friend; he was the father she never had. He wanted to be here with them. He had grumbled about it for an hour. But Hel couldn’t be left without one of the only trustworthy rulers. Duhne and Florence had joined them instead. It was a blessing to have them. What would it have been like if they’d been there on her birthday, the day Sam had been hurt? She would find out soon. She watched Cerce stroll down the small town’s road with a group of demons and vampires spread out behind her.
Cato was in the midst of bodies, not beside his wife.
That’s odd.
He seemed to be on the edge, glaring at the wild demons beside him. Ros had told her that her father hadn’t revealed their meeting to Cerce, but she didn’t have time to think about the story he’d told. She didn’t want to; it was already chipping away at her hate for him.
“She’s here,” Billy said as she came to stand with her by the window.
“I know.” Ellea glared down with her familiar. She glanced sideways at her, grasping her clawed hand in her own. The night before, they stayed up late talking plans, Dean Winchester, and ways they would torture Cerce. When they both refused to part, Garm ended up joining them in bed. Then Sam and Devon did the same. Ros didn’t have the balls to protest, only demanded that Devon make the bed bigger than last time.
Billy brought their joined hands to her mouth, kissed it once, then went back to snarling at the evil bitch standing in the middle of the street.
“Remember the plan: it’s Ros and I against the two psychopaths. You work on the vampires and demons. Don’t let them get away; I don’t trust that the whole town was evacuated, and I want the casualties to be kept to the supernaturals.”
“Spoken like a true warrior queen,” Devon said, leaning against the doorframe. The small room was getting too crowded. Ellea returned his small smile, grateful for his light in the sea of darkness.
“Thank you for being here, Sebastian.” Ellea turned toward the vampire.
He gave her a fanged smile and a wink. “I’m only here for your books and blood.”
Devon scowled, but Ros appeared before he could make a remark. Everyone left as Ros strode into the room. She could feel all the emotions he was pouring into the hard look he was giving her. It took everything not to say what she wanted to say as his eyes—flecked with more ember than usual—shone bright. As bright as all the love she felt for him.
After.
Once this was done, once she could breathe, she would tell him.
“Let’s make this quick,” he said, grasping the back of her neck. “No games and no mercy.”
She closed her eyes, breathing out her anxiety and breathing in all that was him—his scent, his dark magic. She felt ready for anything with him beside her.
“No mercy,” she said, opening her eyes to meet his fierce stare. “We capture them and bring them to Hel.”
Azzy was ready for them; he’d put special spells on their prison cells. They weren’t going to stay in this realm; they were no longer allowed to cause destruction here. And they were not allowed to ruin her life anymore.
“I—” She almost said everything, but Cerce’s evil voice ruined the moment.
“Come out, daughter,” she called. “Or I will set my army on this filthy mortal town.”
Ellea took a moment to memorize the way Ros held her and his beautiful face.
