Prisoner of Darkness (Whims of Fae Book 2)(41)

The word struck Scarlett right in the heart. Surely, Poppy meant to insult her, but it wasn’t an insult to Scarlett. It was a reminder of what she no longer was—what was gone forever.

Scarlett darted to another hiding spot, this time behind a fountain made of ice. But to Scarlett’s surprise, running water poured down its front. Scarlett closed her eyes and felt for Poppy. Her aura drew closer.

When Poppy was near enough, Scarlett stepped out and lunged, knocking Poppy to the ground with her staff.

Scarlett thrust the spearhead at Poppy’s face. She missed, but hit the top of her shoulder. Better than a complete miss.

Poppy screamed—in pain or fury, Scarlett wasn’t sure—and pushed herself up, daggers in front of her.

“You’ll pay for that.”

Scarlett contemplated hiding again, but what good would it have done? She was better off facing Poppy now and praying for a miracle or that Poppy would just get it over with. With a deep breath, Scarlett tried to remember everything Jaser had taught her.

Poppy jabbed a dagger at Scarlett’s throat. As she blocked it with her staff, Poppy kicked her in the stomach. Scarlet flew back into the fountain.

The water was warm as it spilled over Scarlett, but surprisingly not wet. When she pushed herself up, she remained perfectly dry.

“Scared yet?” Poppy asked as she spun the daggers in her hand.

Show off.

Scarlett lifted her shoulder in indifference. “It doesn’t matter how well you fight, Cade would still rather have me.”

A high-pitched shriek exploded from Poppy’s mouth as she attacked Scarlett.

You bitch.

The words played in Scarlett’s mind, but they weren’t her own.

Somehow, she’d heard Poppy’s thoughts.

Scarlett fought off the first three strikes. She tried to break into Poppy’s mind again, but to no avail.

Poppy’s fourth blow sliced across Scarlett’s cheek. Scarlett winced as she felt the icy air hit the open wound.

Happiness struck her, sending a giggle to her lungs. She felt human again.

Her laughter didn’t last long. Poppy, face full of frenzy, plunged the daggers into Scarlett’s gut.

Pain shattered through her insides, a million needles poking into her at once. The air in her lungs had vanished. She coughed, desperate for breath. Blood sputtered out of her mouth, joining the pool of red dripping from her stomach.

This was what death would feel like.

“Do you surrender?” Scarlett heard the announcer’s voice from far away, as if it were a whisper lost in the wind.

She nodded, or tried to, and everything around her faded into blackness.

“You’ll be okay,” a familiar voice said, soft and distant.

Someone lifted her into his arms as she drifted to sleep.





Chapter Twenty





A fuzzy memory sat on the top of Scarlett’s mind as her consciousness resurfaced. She blinked as her eyes adjusted to the moonlight shining through the window.

Kaelem lounged in a chair at the foot of her bed, fast asleep.

As Scarlett tried to sit up, pain attacked her from the inside out. “Ow.”

Kaelem’s eyes popped open. “You’re awake.” He rushed to her side.

Scarlett carefully felt her stomach. “Is it bad?”

“I would lie and say no, but I’m pretty sure it hurts like hell so you’d see through it.”

“I wanted to win so bad.” Anything to wipe that smug look off of Poppy’s face.

When Scarlett tried to sit up again, Kaelem reached over and gently lifted her, then placed a pillow behind her back.

“You gave it a good effort.” Kaelem tucked her hair behind her ear. “I don’t think anyone thought you’d draw blood.”

“Glad to have had the vote of confidence.” Scarlett touched her cheek and felt the scab from the dagger’s slice.

“It makes you look tough.”

“And what does this make me look like?” She gestured to her abdomen wound.

“Also tough. Just not a good fighter.”

After Kaelem left the room for a moment, Scarlett remembered at the end of the battle, when she heard thoughts that weren’t her own, like Kaelem could. Should she tell him?

No. She couldn’t trust him. He blew any chance of that when he took Ashleigh. It was a new skill she’d have to master on her own. It wasn’t like she’d accidentally kill a man by reading his thoughts, and that was the only reason she needed him to begin with. If it wasn’t life or death, she could figure it out on her own. And maybe it hadn’t even really happened. She may have just thought she heard the words, nothing more than a trick of the imagination.

Kaelem returned with a silver mug, steam rising from the top. “This should help with the pain.”

“Fae drugs. Yay.” Scarlett sipped it. She was expecting it to be bitter, but it was sweet, delightfully so. A tingle spread through her, coating the pain with whatever she’d just ingested.

“How long have I been out?”

“A few hours.”

Scarlett finished the drink.

“That kiss really pissed Cade off, didn’t it?” Scarlett tried to fill the awkward silence, but her choice of topic only made it worse.

“We can do it more often, if you’d like.” Kaelem grinned, but his offer sounded empty.