Total pages in book: 119
Estimated words: 116396 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 582(@200wpm)___ 466(@250wpm)___ 388(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 116396 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 582(@200wpm)___ 466(@250wpm)___ 388(@300wpm)
Ivory stopped before we reached them.
I stopped with her, my eyes studying her face.
“I recognize him.”
“From where?” I asked.
She stared a moment longer before she looked at me. “After we were attacked by Plunderers…in the forest.”
My eyes narrowed. “Necrosis?”
She nodded.
I unsheathed my sword as I approached.
Elora noticed my movements, and she was quick to rise to her feet. “Put that away. Now.”
“That man you’re doting on—” I glanced at him past her shoulder “—is Necrosis.”
“Yes, I’m not an idiot.” She yanked the sword out of my hand and forced it back into the scabbard at my hip.
Necrosis got to his feet, a foot taller than her, standing at my height. He would be a handsome man if he weren’t cut and bruised everywhere. “Bastian.” He didn’t extend his hand to shake mine, which was smart. “We’ve all had a shitty day, so let me give you the short version of this. I’m your ally.”
“He’s more than just our ally,” Elora said. “He gave us the Ice to make all our weapons. He killed the Second King. He saved my life. It took a long time to get Ian to come around, so don’t make me start over with you.”
I watched my little sister’s face, watched her basically threaten me without actually making a threat. “Why would Necrosis betray his own kind?”
“Because I want my soul back,” he said. “And the only way to do that is to bring Haldir to the Bone Witch.”
I looked at him blankly, hardly understanding anything he said.
Elora took over. “If we get her to remove the spell, it won’t just release him, but it’ll release anyone Haldir has ever turned. They’ll get their souls back, and they’ll be able to live the lives that were taken from them.”
Now I understood why Ian had tied Haldir up rather than stabbed him through the chest.
“That was the deal you made,” I said to myself more than anyone else. “You gave us the Ice in exchange for our help.”
Bastian gave a nod. “And as you can tell, we fell in love in the process.”
I’d noticed it a mile away. That was why I still wanted to kill him.
“So, I need your help with this, Huntley,” Elora said. “I can’t marry him if he doesn’t have a soul. I can’t have his children if he doesn’t have a soul. My happiness depends on this.” She pleaded with me. “And I know you’ll do anything for me.”
The first thing I did was to turn to look at my own wife, a woman whom no one had accepted from the beginning. She was the daughter of my greatest enemy, but that hadn’t stopped me from falling to my knees. I hadn’t stopped fighting for her, and I knew Elora wouldn’t stop fighting either. I turned to look at her again. “I’ll help you.”
Her eyes immediately softened. “Thank you.”
“But if you want me to accept the man you love, you must accept the woman I love.”
Elora stiffened once she realized her request was met with a condition. A hint of guilt moved over her face, like she remembered all the horrible things she said to Ivory, things that were unwarranted.
“She is your half sister, Elora.”
Elora finally turned to look at Ivory. “Look, I know we’re related biologically, but I have no connection to my rapist father, so I’ll never see you as my half sister. No offense.”
Ivory nodded. “None taken.”
“But you’re my sister-in-law…and I’d like us to be sisters in that way.”
I hadn’t expected my sister to say something like that, and clearly, Ivory hadn’t either, judging by the look on her face.
“I’m sorry I was such a bitch,” Elora said.
Ivory couldn’t stop the laugh from escaping her lips.
Elora remained serious. “Now I know what it’s like to love someone that everyone hates…and it sucks.”
“It’s fine,” Ivory said. “You aren’t a bitch.”
“Come on. I was a total bitch, and we both know it,” Elora said with a slight laugh. “Thanks for being cool about it.”
“I have a brother, so I know what it’s like to be protective. Don’t worry about it.”
Elora looked at me again, expecting me to fulfill my end of the deal.
“I’ll help you in whatever way I can,” I said. “But I don’t have a lot of time. I need to return to the Kingdoms and keep my promise to the dragons.”
“That’s right,” Elora said. “King of Kingdoms…how could I forget?” She had a teasing smile on her lips, like she would drown me in taunts when the time was right. “Let’s wait until we know Queen Rolfe is well, then we’ll depart. We all need to rest anyway.” She looked at Ivory again. “Thank you for healing her.”
“Don’t mention it,” Ivory said.
I looked at Ivory. “Let’s wash up then head to the castle.”
She nodded. “We’ve defeated Necrosis, but I feel like we didn’t accomplish anything.”