“Tell me what you intend to do.”
Clara crooked a mocking finger. “Why don’t you come down and we can discuss the situation like two reasonable adults?”
Levet snorted. “It’s a trick.”
“You think?” Anna said dryly, leaning over the edge of the loft. “Thanks, but I’m comfortable where I am. Just tell me what you want.”
The perfect features twisted with a perverse fury. “What I want is to watch you die.”
“Nice,” Anna muttered with a shiver.
“But first I intend to make Morgana pay dearly to have you turned over to her.”
“Ha.” Levet moved to stand at Anna’s side. “You intend to bargain with the Queen of Bitches? Why don’t you just start digging your own grave now?”
“Oh, she will negotiate. She’s desperate to get her hands on Anna Randal.”
“Why?” Anna abruptly demanded. “Why does she want me dead?”
“You don’t know?” Clara laughed. “How perfect. You should go to your death still wondering why you’re dying. Just as Sybil did.”
“She doesn’t know, Anna.” Levet leaned forward and directed a raspberry in Clara’s direction. “She’s nothing but a peon. Dirt beneath Morgana’s feet.”
The pale features flushed with fury as she lifted a slender hand in Levet’s direction.
“You slimy little reptile…”
Anna felt a tingle of power before Levet was launched backward and his tiny body lay unnervingly still against the floorboards of the loft.
“Levet.” Crawling toward his unmoving form, Anna desperately attempted to waken her friend. “Levet. Oh my God.”
There was no response, and a combination of fear and absolute fury pounded through her. Spinning on her knees she moved back to the edge of the loft, launching herself over the side to land on the dirt floor. She was beyond caring about her own danger. This woman had hurt one of her friends. One of the first friends she’d had in nearly two centuries. The evil fairy was going to be very, very sorry she had messed with Anna Randal.
“You…hideous, horrible…demon. You want a fight, you got it.”
Something that might have been fear replaced the smug assurance in Clara’s dark eyes. Holding up her hands, she took a step backward.
“I only stunned the beast,” she rasped. “Stay back or I’ll kill you.”
“No you won’t,” Anna mocked, unconsciously gripping the priceless emerald in her clenched fist. “You want to barter me, remember? You have dreams of riches dancing through your head.”
“I’m not Sybil, I won’t sacrifice my life for wealth.”
The air heated as Anna’s fury spilled from her tense body. “Tell me why Morgana wants me dead.”
With suddenly wide eyes the fairy took another few steps backward. “I…don’t…”
“Tell me,” Anna snapped, her hair beginning to dance in the rising wind.
“All I know is that Modron had a vision of you,” Clara squeaked.
“Modron?”
“Morgana’s seer.”
Seer? What the hell was that?
“What was the vision?” she asked instead, not in the mood to be distracted.
Clara licked her lips. “That an heir of Arthur would rise from the darkness and condemn Morgana to hell.”
“A lovely thought, but why does she think I’m the heir destined to send her to hell?”
“You possess the blood of the ancients.”
“And?”
The dark gaze briefly flicked toward the nearby door before returning to Anna’s grim face.
“And she has devoted her life to killing off Arthur’s line. It doesn’t matter if you’re truly the Destined One or not, she can’t let you live.”
Anna’s heart clenched with a sharp, poignant pain. So much death. So much loneliness because of a stupid vision.
“She slaughtered my entire family,” Anna muttered, unable to conceive that anyone, queen or not, could be so evil.
“Yes, if I were you I would…” Without warning, Clara launched herself forward, clearly sensing Anna’s distraction. Anna barely had time to gasp before the woman had plunged a knife into her stomach, sending her flying backwards.
Scrambling back to her feet, Anna ignored the blood flowing down her body and swiftly ducked as Clara threw another punch.
“Damn you,” Anna muttered.
“You are the one who will be damned if you don’t get on your knees and do exactly as I say.”
Wrenching the knife from her gut, Anna gritted her teeth as a strange buzzing rushed through her body.
“Are you mental?” she rasped, forcing herself to concentrate on remaining upright. Damn, the blood still flowed from her deep wound, defying her usual ability to heal herself.
“No, I’m very, very clever,” Clara warned. “That knife was hexed, and unless you allow me to remove the curse you will die.”
Well…crap.
She didn’t know anything about hexed knives or curses, but she did know if she allowed this woman to gain the upper hand she would soon be Morgana’s plaything.
She’d rather die in this barn than allow that to happen.
Sensing another attack, Anna threw out her hand, as much to shove the woman away as to harm her. Her powers, however, had other ideas. As her palm connected with Clara’s arm the woman shrieked and the stench of burning flesh filled the barn.
Anna grimaced, but there was no time to feel guilt as Clara hit her with an unseen force that felt like a sledgehammer to her chest. She grunted in pain, fairly certain that the damn fairy had just broken her rib. Another blow hit her forehead and more blood began to flow.
She struck out, blinded by the blood and only managing to skim the woman’s cheek as the fairy jerked backward.
“Stop this or you’ll die,” the woman hissed. “Only I can break the curse.”
“I’ll risk it,” Anna managed to mutter before being launched backward by an unseen strike to her chest.
“Allow me to bind you and I promise I won’t hurt you anymore.”
Riiiight.
Anna pushed herself upright. “You’ll just hand me over for Morgana to kill.”
“If you’re the Destined One then you’ll kill her,” Clara taunted, her powerful fist connecting with Anna’s chin.
Dammit, she was being pummeled like a punching bag. If she didn’t start fighting back she’d soon be dead.