Page 10 of Rapunzel Unchained
“No.” I pulled my hand away from his talking to the queen, not Adam’s question.
“Eva?” He reached for me again.
“No.” I shook my head, my breath coming in rapid pants. I had to get out of here. Now. Before the queen could get her hands on Adam. Once more my magic swelled around me, wrapping me in purple smoke.
Adam’s shocked face was the last thing I saw as I managed to get out, “I don’t want to hurt you.”
I found myself back in Rebecca’s garden a moment later. Sinking down on the cobblestone by the fountain, I leaned against the rim, my chest heaving as tears burned my eyes.
I had to get a handle on the queen, or everything I care about would be destroyed.
Chapter 6
Say what you wanted about a man’s house, but no one knew how to take baths like women.
I sank into the large tub. The scented oils Rebecca had in the bathroom filled the air with a subtle flowery scent. The hot water soothed my aching muscles.
Magic might not take a lot of lifting, but it still took a toll on my body. Spiriting away from one place to the other felt like I had been throwing barrels of wine all day. A thousand years ago, the toll might not have been as high.
Rubbing a hand over my face, I leaned my elbow against the side of the tub, my face pressed into it. I had to get a hold of my magic. I wasn’t any use to anyone if I didn’t.
The queen had been quiet, too quiet, since my exchange with Adam. For some reason, the queen did not like him. She didn’t have such a visceral reaction to the others. Why him?
The queen hated the mages, of that I was certain. However, she hadn’t made a move the entire time I was with Zane. It was only when Adam was coming toward me, asking me if I wanted to hurt them, that she had deemed to rear her rage.
Was it because he was threatening her? Or something else?
I was still mad at Adam for his engagement to Rebecca even if I knew the logic behind it. He wanted to be Arch Mage, to stop Master Tuck from getting it, and that required certain sacrifices. Even if I didn’t like it or agree with it, I understood.
Still, something in my heart ached.
The mages who rescued me were not bound to me. I did not own them. Yet, there was a part of me that saw them as mine. My heart claimed them and, while I had not asked them, I felt as if they might say the same.
I sank beneath the surface of the water, letting the liquid surround me until I could only hear the pounding of my heart in my ears. It did not quiet my thoughts but, for a moment, it gave me peace.
Deep beneath the surface, I laid there, the bubbles slipping to the surface as I stared up through the watery hazy to the ceiling. There I called to the woman inside.
What do you want? How can we make peace so we can save those we care for?
I’d asked these questions before. Every time, I only received silence in return. I suspected this time would be no different.
It felt like hours as I waited for a response, and none came. Only when my lungs burned did I finally give up and lifted to rise above the surface.
My eyes widened. I couldn’t move. I pushed and fought against the pressure keeping me down, my lungs screaming at me for air. It was only when my sight started to darken that I heard a voice.
Kill the mages.
No. I won’t. I struggled against the hold on me, knowing it was the queen inside pushing us down.
Kill the mages or die.
My jaw tightened and my eyes narrowed, glaring at the voice inside of me. Then I will die.
The laughter inside of me had a haughty quality to it that rankled my whole body. I didn’t know why it made me angry. That the queen would laugh at my desire to save them.
She did what she did to avenge her mother, but her mother was dead. Everyone who had hurt her was dead. There was only the here and now.
You would rather die than get justice?
