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Archers continue to fire from the roof, the silver arrows reflecting the low light. The vampires can see fine, and thankfully, my new magic-induced sight lends me aid. I can see far into the forest, though details aren’t sharp.
Red and green dusting catches my eye, and I whip toward it, fear piercing my heart. Airalin floats across the field on a cloud of embers, whipping a rope of fire in front of her. The vampires in her path scatter as the rope singes the grass. She heads straight toward Raúl.
“Raúl,” I say, the fear in my voice palpable.
He sees her, but is caught up with three rebel vampires and cannot move.
Urgency motivates me, and I move forward, raising my hand. I hold my magic, spell her fire rope temperature to lower.
She continues to whip her fire rope back and forth, but it no longer burns anything in its path. With a yell, she hops off her ride, and the cloud disappears into red ash. Her voice amplified by magic, she says, “Rapunzel. Where are you?”
Hands twitching, I step forward, abandoning the safety of the castle. The grass crunches under my shoes as I approach her. “I am right here.”
She snarls at me, her hair lifting. I see the red dust surrounding her, mixing with the green. It is more muted than the other day at the tower, but still there.
“Go home, Airalin.”
The battle around us rages as vampire fang meets vampire nail, steel swords clanging against armor. It fades away as I glare at the woman I called mother, now standing close enough for me to see the triumph in her eyes, as if she’s already won.
“I’ve thought about it,” she says, the dust pooling toward her hands. I tug on my own magic, readying it to form a shield the moment she releases. “I decided you owe me for all the years I looked after you, fed you, provided for you.”
A laugh escapes me before I can stop it. “I owe you for it?”
“Yes. And I am here to collect my dues. Your magic will be mine, willingly or not.” She raises her hands, releasing a rope of vines.
Before they can hit me, I lift my arms, and a shield of moonlight forms. The vines crash into it, breaking it into pieces that turn to dust. “Are those your only moves, Airalin?” I say. I know I should not taunt her, not with my magic stores so small. Her words drown me in anger, and I will not tie my tongue.
She screams, and a fire rope whips through the air. I chant the spell again to cool the temperature, but it still wraps around me, squeezing my waist. I grasp the rope. Airalin tightens it, yanking me forward.
I grit my teeth as my knees hit the ground. “Are those your only moves, daughter?” she says, venom dripping from her words.
The anger and panic warring within me dissipate, and I’m left with only determination. I will not let her win. Reaching out, I grasp the colorful dusting flowing around her, tugging it as she drags me through the dirt.
She screams, desperately wrapping her vines around my entire body. Thorns grow from them, tearing my skin, opening my arm wound. Tears stream from my eyes as pain clouds my mind, but I continue to drain her life force.
I seethe, spitting out my words between gasps of breath. “I… will… never… go… back…”
Airalin screams, her face ashen. The thorns lengthen, digging deeper into my skin, and my screams join hers.
I collapse to my knees, the thorns ripping through me as I fall. I feel around in the dirt and my hand grasps the handle of the short sword. Panting, I crawl forward. One hand out, still draining Airalin’s essence. She. Can’t. Win.
I swing the sword forward. It catches Airalin’s leg. She cries out. Suddenly, a rebel vampire is there, covered in blood. The blond who took Niles and Carmen. He grabs Airalin, dragging her away to the forest. My breath comes out all at once and I collapse fully to the ground, drained.
Too weak to cry out, I roll to my side, thorns scraping my dress and skin. The sounds of battle wind down while the stars wink at me.
“Penny?” says Raúl. He is too far away, and I don’t have enough in me to yell.
“Thorns.” My voice comes out barely above a whisper, throat raw.
All at once, Raúl is by my side, slicing at the vines. He reaches a hand down, and I grasp it, depending on his strength to stand straight.
I rub the blood out of my eyes, glancing around the battlefield. Vampire bodies litter the ground, some ours, some theirs. I watch as some of the vampire rebels retreat, dragging off those who are still alive and unable to walk, chased down by Raúl’s army.
I look up at Raúl. “We’ve won, then?”
He holds me close, his cold armor numbing my pain. “For now. I’m afraid they’ll be back.”
My fists shake from rage. I know Airalin will be back for me, too, until she gets what she wants.
