The Sorceress's Murderous Companion

Chapter 13: Thistle

Thistle stepped down from the caravan and offered her hand to Catherine. She hadn't seen Thorn in years, not since they'd had a falling out over a mistake. It was her mistake, but she had trouble admitting it. Even more so the deeper his hatred grew for the woman she loved.

Her stomach lurched uncomfortably as the tower's looming bulk came into view. He was in there, and he wanted to hurt Cat, and she was just playing into his trap. Not for the first time that trip, she grabbed Catherine's arm and tugged. "We shouldn't be going there. He's going to kill you."

Catherine jerked her hand back.

Thistle knew it was a mistake to say that she would definitely die if she tried to fight Thorn. Thistle hurt her pride, but this wasn't a time to be subtle, and Thistle knew it to be true.

But it wasn't just Thorn that had Thistle nervous, it was also the tower itself, and the legacy her father Cyrus had left behind. No one seemed to know its history, why it was built, or when. All Thistle had discovered while reading through the old books Catherine had collected over the years was that it was built with magic in every stone. The people who had studied it before her father's interference kept everything tightly wrapped—a secret.

But then, according to Catherine, Cyrus had entered the picture and anyone studying the stones had disappeared. He sought out Catherine, claiming that he needed help and that the stones in the tower could be very beneficial to his work. In exchange, he had magical knowledge from across the sea. He hinted that he could communicate with lost relatives, even bring them back. And Cat had fallen for it.

As a result, her father had access to the tower around the clock with no supervision.

Thistle suspected this was one of his longer trips away from the cabin when Thorn was in charge. On the one hand, Thorn had taken advantage of his absence to teach her basic foraging and it gave her opportunities to talk to Aster without being locked away. On the other, what had he been doing out there for all of that time? Some kind of deep magic he'd learned on some other continent?

The tower squicked her out. The magic seeping from it held a foulness tinging it that she could feel even from a distance. It was the reason Cat never went back there. She'd sent guards to the tower after finding Thistle, after learning of Cyrus' death, in order to prevent others from tampering with the magic. And it hadn't taken Cat long to figure out just what Thistle's deal was.

Did Thorn know that when he killed their father he'd unintentionally saved Catherine? She suspected he didn't know the first thing about her. 

Thistle saw her brother in the distance at the base of the tower. With any luck, Thistle would be able to get to him first. Perhaps she could explain it all to him and hopefully, he would choose to listen. If he didn't, well, Catherine had no real plan so they would have to improvise some sort of escape.

A woman was crouched on the ground, not too far from him, and Cat's body went rigid in front of her.

"Kali." The word barely left her mouth, coming out in a near whisper.

Thistle pulled at the collar of her shirt, suddenly having a hard time breathing. Her stomach dropped, and a wave of fear washed over her. The last conversation she'd had with Thorn had ended on a sour note. Her fault, she blamed herself. Seeing him up close only made the guilt worse.

Thistle's stomach lurched when Catherine broke into a sprint, running straight for Thorn and Kali. Her shoes kicked off into the grass around them, skirt tied into a form to keep it tucked around her legs like a pair of pants. Thistle started after her, calling for her to stop, but she knew Cat just wouldn't listen.

They both stopped a few feet back from Thorn.

Thistle saw Kali hunched onto the ground, her fingers digging into the earth beside her.

Thorn saw her.

Thistle shook her head, "Whatever this is, don't do it."

Catherine walked until something stopped her. A barrier. They were inches away with only magic between them.

An ocean of dark blue erupted in the sky like a reflection.

Thorn's hands pressed against the magic, "Thistle, you shouldn't be here."

Plants sprang to life around her, wrapping her tightly. She screamed, "What are you doing?"

Catherine's voice seemed far away, calling desperately to her sister to stop.

Rocks were the first things to pull up into the sky, sucked into the swirling ocean of blue. Then Catherine. She lost her grip quickly. Thistle grabbed onto her leg at the last possible second. "Thorn, make it stop!" she screamed.

Slowly one by one, the roots keeping her tied to the ground, the grasses, the vines, all gave way and they were swallowed up into the sky. Falling into ocean.