Envious (37 page)

The massive warrior narrowed his eyes and pressed the sword tip gently against her neck. “Your trickery does not affect me, witch, and I will show no mercy on a soulless creature. Do not tempt my sword, or your blood will spill.”

Aurora’s calmness was broken. Drawing in a shaky breath, she backed a step from Heodred. “My lord… do not be so quick to kill,” she pleaded. “I wish only to serve the grandest of all the King’s men. I am a simple woman, in need of the strength of a man’s protection.” She stepped back another step. Heodred’s horse reared up and shifted away from her. “Dear Heodred, my hero. You are strong and I am weak. I beg you not act rashly. I beg you.”

Heodred lowered his sword slightly. With his free hand, he rubbed at his eyes. As he did, Aurora smirked and slowly began to untie the laces that held her dress. Heodred noticed and brought his blade to her neck once again.

Raising her chin, she spoke, “Heodred…you wouldn’t kill a woman. Especially not a woman you desire. You want me. You need me.” She slipped her dress from her shoulders. It fell down around her ankles. She stood, her body bare before Heodred. He flinched slightly and she smiled. Her bare white skin seemed to glow in the sunlight. She stepped out of her dress and fingered Heodred’s sword again. She stepped around the blade and ran her hands over his shoulders. Leaning against his back, she placed her face against his neck.

Heodred’s face was expressionless. What was he doin
g? Why wasn’t he attacking her?

CHAPTER 28

A NEW REALIZATION

I felt myself snap out of my vision. I looked around the room and saw that Bailey was sitting next to me on my bed. Her hand covered mine and she was saying my name.

“Sandy, are you alright?”

“Yes,” I responded.

“You were just staring at the wall. Must have been
some daydream
. You couldn’t even hear me,” she said, her piercing green eyes filled with concern.

“Sorry,” I mumbled. “I’m fine. I’m going to…get a soda,” I told her, easing myself up from my mattress and out the door. I headed down the stairs but stopped halfway, holding onto the railing, vision swimming. I gripped the rail harder, leaning into it to keep my balance.

Eric was dead. He had
died
. I had been there. He had hung on for so long. He had survived so much. He was a beaten servant who built himself up to being respected and honored. He fought valiantly until that day in the cart, when he looked like death. But he survived. He held to his life. She tried to help, but even the witch could not save him. I wanted to die so that I could be with him.

But of course, that couldn’t be, because he was alive now. In this time, he was still alive. He wasn’t in a fatal battle. He wasn’t a warrior. He was a student in a college, learning and living…as much as
she
would let him live.

And Heodred, poor Heodred. He had taught Eric to fight, win, and survive. He had come to my aid. He had brought me to the castle. He had let me stay with Eric when he needed me. Heodred saved me from the fire. He saved me from capture, and now he was at Aurora’s evil command. He was becoming her puppet. I could see it in his eyes. That strong man, descended from a long line of warriors. He himself was a great warrior. I knew that. It was his greatest pride.

Aurora was dangerous. Aurora was evil. She had brought death in around me, setting me up for burning. And she had watched as the flames grew up around me. She had smiled.

I knew her. I knew how relentless she could be. And that was why I knew to be careful. There was no use trusting in her. Just as Heodred said, she had no soul.

I paced in my room. Back and forth, back and forth. Bailey had watched me curiously at first, but now I could feel her annoyance was growing. She finally voiced it by saying, “Sandy, I can’t read with you pacing like that. If they make us pay for the carpet, it’s going on your bill.”

I ignored her. I didn’t mean to, but I couldn’t help myself. I was just so worried, nervous. As I paced, Tom was trying to get Eric drunk. They decided it was too risky to bring alcohol into the dorms after the abrupt ending to the third floor’s last party. Truth was, two people had been expelled, and ten were on “probation” with the school.

The plan was for Tom to sneak Eric into a bar, then get him drunk. I didn’t see how Elijah and Tom had managed to convince him, or how Elijah got Tom to help. All I knew was to wait until Elijah came to my door. Then, I would sneak into their room before Eric could enter. Lucky me, I got to hide under the bed. Elijah didn’t want Eric to see me during his test. He was afraid that it would compromise the “credibility of the evidence.” However, he wanted to be sure Tom was there, just in case Eric wanted to strangle him again.

The only reason I had a part in the setup was because I promised to keep quiet. And I would. But I wanted to see Eric. I wanted to read his expression when he brought down Aurora.

The knock finally came and I sprung to the door. Elijah stood there, looking tired. “I don’t know how well it could work,” he told me. “He can’t even put together a coherent sentence.”

“What?” I blurted out, tripping over my tongue.

“Tom got him plastered. He can’t walk, focus, nothing.”

“But we have to do it
tonight
. Aurora’s away. We won’t get this chance again. And he’ll tell her, you know he will.”

“He’s
faced
, Sandy,” he explained again.

I thought for a second.
Why didn’t anything ever work the way I wanted?
This was horrible. But it had to happen. “We’ll try anyway. Maybe he’ll get better?”

I didn’t need to hide under Elijah’s bed. He thought Eric wouldn’t even see me if I was quiet enough. I still had to “hide,” though. I sat on the floor at the end of Elijah’s bed, mostly hidden from Eric’s side of the room. I pulled the end of his comforter over my legs. Then the door flung open and Tom dragged Eric inside with his arm draped over Tom’s shoulder. “I don’t know what happened,” Tom explained in his deep voice. “He holds his beer so well, I couldn’t tell if he was drunk until he fell on his face.”

Eric laughed a little and said something through slurred speech. I couldn’t even make out one word. It sounded like baby babble.

“Eric? Do you have to vomit or anything?” Elijah asked. Eric rolled his head over to face Elijah. He pulled from Tom’s grip and stumbled toward his bed. Tom grabbed him by the arm and sort of shoved Eric in the right direction. Eric fell onto his mattress, lying on his side, looking sick. He looked horrible.

“He puked in the bathroom a minute ago,” Tom told us.

“I’mmah. I’mmah fine, Tony,” Eric replied. “Ah’m fine.” Then he laughed again. “Nevar bettar. Widdle draunk dough.” He grinned through slitted eyes.

“Okay, uh…Eric? Why won’t Aurora let you drink?” Elijah questioned him.

“Cuz she says,” Eric answered plainly.

“Why do you even stay with her?”

Eric sighed loudly as he rolled onto his back. Staring at the ceiling,
he answered, “She wans it.” He closed his eyes sleepily.

“Stay awake, buddy,” Tom told him, nudging Eric’s foot and prompting him to open his eyes again.

“What does she want?”

“Wan…wants me, Ton-eee.”

“Why?” Elijah added. Eric shrugged helplessly. “Umm, what does she want from you?”

“Sex,” Eric answered. A one word reply. The obvious answer if you ask me. Elijah was not good at asking questions. He asked all the wrong things.

Elijah began to ask, “Why does-” before I cut him off.

I whispered to him, “Ask if
he
wants it.”

Elijah shot me a look, warning me of my place in the masquerade, but continued on, “Eric? Do you want it? With Aurora?”

Tom muttered, “That’s a no brainer.”

“No,” Eric replied.

Tom stepped back. “No? What’s wrong with you, kid?!” he exclaimed. Exactly what I’d expect from him, and most guys.

“I hate her,” Eric said, seeming a little more empowered now. A little less drunk, too. But he was, there was no doubt about that. “Sometimes, I really hate ‘er.” Eric began to talk on his own, no longer in need of prompting. He had something to say and he was going to say it. “She says I n
eed her. I don’t need her.” He closed his eyes, looking so tired.

“What d
o you need?” Elijah prompted. He didn’t answer. “Eric?”

Eric sighed, opening his eyes slightly. He stared up at the ceiling. “Death.”

Elijah unconsciously shifted backward. So did Tom. But I began to make my way out of hiding.

“Death?” Elijah breathed, shaking his head nervously. I crawled out from behind the bed. Elijah made no move to stop me. His mind was busy working. His gears were turning, trying to decipher if Eric actually meant to kill himself. But I knew he would not. He would never kill himself. Aurora wouldn’t allow it.

I knelt down beside Eric’s bed and took his sweaty palm in my hand. He didn’t notice. I looked to Elijah. He slowly nodded and asked, “What do you think of…” I stared at him, a silent reminder. “What do you think of Cassandra?”

Eric blinked sleepily. “Cassandra…my…”

Elijah looked desperately at me, then Eric’s hand closed tight around mine, and I felt myself slip into a vision.

1805

The rain still fell, but I was certain of what I saw. Tears…real tears rolled down his face. They fell in drops to the soaked earth. He sobbed.

“Kill her now, Eric!!” she screamed. “Do as I say! You are mine, listen to
my
words! Kill her!”

“Eric, please,” I begged. I saw how his hands shook, I saw how his face twisted in sadness and hurt. “Please…please, don’t.”

“Cassandra…” he choked. “I don’t want to…” his voice quavered. He was trying. He was trying so hard to stop himself…to stop her, but he couldn’t. She was too strong. I could see his strength failing. But he tried…he truly did try.

“I’m sor-rry. So sorry, Cassandra. I can’t-”

He screamed out, yelling, and his blade fell across my neck.

I felt nothing. But I saw everything. I saw the rain, the mud, my blood.

I stared straight down at Cassandra’s lifeless body, her head detached and lying near my feet. I saw the sword in my bloodstained hands. The rain was washing away the blood that dripped from the sharp blade. I looked down at the damage I had inflicted, the horror I had made. My sword slipped from my hand to the mud-soaked earth. The sword of a murderer. The cursed sword of a man who could kill his own pregnant wife. Of a man who
did
kill his wife.
She was with child.
And I had
killed
her.

I looked through my tears, past my dripping wet hair and through the piercing rain, and felt my life draining away. My aching muscles lost what strength
she
had let them have. I saw Aurora. The jealous fiend. She was making her way through the heavy sheets of rain. Her lips twisted into a smirk as she stepped up to me. She was proud of herself. Her hand ran down my mud-and blood-soaked shirt. She touched my face and smeared some of the filth away. Then she spoke, “Well done, Eric. Now we can be together, at long last.”

I wanted to pull away. I wanted to turn my sword on her. I wanted to gouge her eyes out with my bloodied hands. But I could not. I could not even speak against her. The will of the witch was stronger than I could ever have imagined. I was her dog. She commanded and I would act, with no will of my own.

Her sneering lips covered mine in a greed-soaked passion. Aurora pressed up against my chest, rubbing territorially against the splattered blood of my beloved. She wanted me, and so she would have me. I was a helpless child in her hands. A rage grew within me, but I knew it would never surface. I had no power.

She lay over me on the grass, our bodies moving together. She had b
een waiting for this moment and would not wait for anything now. This had been her goal since she first laid her cold eyes on me. Her skin touched mine, but I didn’t feel it. I felt nothing but the horror I had committed. My eyes focused on the severed head that lay beside us. Cassandra’s dark hair was spread back from her face. Her eyes were open, but her expression was almost peaceful. I wanted to hold her. I wanted to reach out and take her in my arms. Tears of love and sorrow still streamed down my face. I tried to reach for her. I tried to hold my love, but my body acted only in the way that would please Aurora. I cried, wept bitterly. I cursed myself and my weakness.

One year ago, I had met Cassandra. One year ago, I had first felt love take control of my actions. It was not long before we were married, expecting, and perfectly happy. Elated. There was no word to describe how wonderful we felt.

One year ago, I had met Aurora. I never trusted her. I never fell for her kindness the way Cassandra had. I tried to keep her from us. I tried to protect my family from the danger that lurked whenever Aurora was near. I tried, but tonight I failed. Tonight, I had felt all at once what kind of power Aurora had. I had refused her, so she took me. She took control and made me kill the person she was most envious of. The person I loved more than life. Cassandra.