Summer of Frost (Forever Fae #3)(46)
He snarled. “I would rather see her dead than in your arms. If that means I have to hide behind walls to have her, then I will. She’s mine!” The knife touched her skin again, making her grimace in pain. Only one slight jab and that iron would flow through her veins and kill her. I had to do something.
“Why don’t we fight for her then?” I asked, ready and determined to end it quickly. “Whoever wins gets her. Unless you’re too much of a chicken shit to fight me.”
“Are you kidding me?!” Sorcha shouted in disbelief.
Alston ignored her and narrowed his eyes at me, contemplating my offer. “How do I know Oren won’t try to steal Sorcha away if I win? How do I know you’ll keep up the bargain?”
“You have my promise, you worthless traitor.”
Alston chuckled, and thankfully dropped the knife from the Sorcha’s throat, although he still held her in a vice-like grip against his chest. “You really are an arrogant dick, you know that. I need you to also promise that no one will come searching for me and Sorcha after all of this is over.”
Oren grabbed my arm, and hissed in my ear, “Are you crazy? Either you are very arrogant and stupid, or you’re extremely confident. If you fail, we lose her. Think carefully, Your Highness, because if you lose I will not let him take her. You condemn us both to death with your promise.”
Promises were sacred with our people, and once you made one you had to uphold it. If you didn’t there would be consequences, mostly resulting in death. Keeping my eyes on Alston and Sorcha, I leaned over to Oren and whispered, “Trust me.”
Oren scoffed in outrage, and forced himself to back away. Sarette was nowhere to be seen, and we had planned it that way. We didn’t want her appearing until the time was right. Impatiently, I announced, “Do you accept the challenge, or are you going to hide? What better way is there to prove how much you want her by fighting me? We both know her very well, Alston. She doesn’t like weak men. You’ll never get her love if you cower behind your fear.”
Sorcha’s lethal gaze could’ve killed me where I stood, and in that moment I was glad she didn’t have her powers. She obviously didn’t approve of my methods, but I had to do something to get that knife away from her throat.
Alston glared at me for a few hard minutes, and then finally relented. “I accept,” he answered, slowly releasing Sorcha from his grip.
Although, what happened next was definitely a Sorcha move and one I should’ve expected. She punched Alston square in the nose, causing blood to spray out and splatter across the ground. “I don’t accept!” she snapped angrily, glaring at both me and her blood-drenched captor. “How dare you both negotiate my freedom in front of me? I can fight my own battles with or without my magic. Never have I ever needed a man to fight for me, and it sure as hell isn’t going to start today.” Directing her venom to Alston, she said, “If you want me, you’re going to have to fight me, not Drake.”
“No!” I ordered forcefully.
“And …” she began, holding up a hand to cut me off. “If I lose, I will willingly stay in the mortal realm with Alston.”
Alston gleamed at the new proposition, and immediately set his hungry eyes on her. “Sorry, Prince Drake, but I believe the princess has offered me a better deal.”
I hit the wall in protest. “Dammit, Sorcha! For once why can’t you swallow your pride?”
She tore her eyes away from Alston and smirked at me. “If you know me as well as you say you do then you should be used to it by now.”
“Sorcha!” Oren demanded. “Don’t do this!”
Sorcha’s face softened with a hint of a smile. She didn’t say anything, but mouthed the words ‘trust me’ to him. Oren threw his hands up in the air and punched the wall again. “You both are going to drive me crazy! What the hell is she going to do?”
Shaking my head, I replied, “I don’t know, but I’m dying to find out. She’s always been one of surprises.”
Sorcha picked up her spear and advanced on Alston. “Let’s get this done,” she spat at him.
“With pleasure, baby.” Alston licked his lips and advanced, looking like a wolf searching for its prey. Hearing him speak to her in that voice made my blood boil and the dragon inside me tense. The thought of him touching her made me want to kill him. How I was going to be able to watch the fight, I didn’t know. Alston deserved a slow and painful death.
Sorcha looked fierce and focused as she circled Alston. Her concentration was perfect when we would train together, and I knew in that moment that nothing could break her. Clenching my fists, I knew the attack was about to start, and I dreaded it. Alston struck out first and dove for Sorcha’s legs, determined to get her to the ground. If he pinned her with his weight it’d be all over for her. His size was his only advantage whereas Sorcha was agile and light on her feet, and deadly with her spear.
Sorcha landed some good blows to his face, but Alston kept going strong. The prize was right in front of him, and he wasn’t going to stop until he had her. He was relentless, and I was helpless having to watch. All Sorcha needed to do was stab him with her spear and it would end him; however, things took a turn for the worse when Alston threw Sorcha to the ground and grabbed her spear. Sorcha landed hard on her knees and turned around in time to watch Alston snap her spear in half, and throw the pieces to the ground as if it were trash. His evil laugh penetrated the air, knowing he hit her with a low blow.