Sapphire Spells

Chapter 46

Alaric holds my hand, leading me through the never-ending underground halls. Each step brings us closer to something heavy and dark. It is something I do not want to face, but must. I know in my bones that the life I once wanted is not something I can have. My head is no longer buried in the sand. I see the lies and danger surrounding me with painful clarity. Never will I hide again. I will face the monsters head on.

Phiona wanted me to join the Sapphire Coven. To control me and when I became out of reach, beyond her control, she tried to remove me. She underestimated me.

Alaric slows, hand squeezing mine. "We are almost there, and the last to arrive," he says to me in warning. If we are the last, that means Phiona is already there. This will be my first time seeing her since I left the fairies' control.

"I am ready," I say, sucking in a steadying deep breath. We turn down a hall and the distance between us and the open double doors that I know we head for is shrinking quickly.

"I am expected to remain out of the conversation having to do with coven business. But I'll be with you the entire time," Alaric's low voice promises of violence if anyone tries to separate us. Honey eyes cut to me and I nod, letting him know I hear him. That I trust him.

We enter the room. It is a massive space, and to my surprise, it is round with a glass ceiling that rises above the ground, open to the sky. Surrounding the glass dome are trees, thickly circling the room, but in the center, the sky is bright and brilliantly blue high above. The dome is made up of geometric shapes and I wish I could stare at it longer, but the people in the room draw my gaze to them.

Two strangers snag my attention. They stand side by side, backs straight as arrows, shoulders back, chins lifted high. The essence of them is a strange meld of waspy proper mixed with ancientness. Not that they are old, but the power leaking out of them and into the room feels archaic. The man has blond hair, the woman brunette, both of them with piercing dark eyes. So dark they seem almost obsidian, which is fitting for the heads of the obsidian coven.

Drew is here, and I breathe a sigh of relief at his presence, even though his face remains in a scowl that seems to have become permanent. My gaze finds Phiona next, whose expression is completely unreadable. The other witches all stand around her. Alaric finally releases my hand and moves a step ahead, placing himself between us, allowing only Drew to go past him and come to stand at my other side. My heart swells at their unyielding show of support.

"It's nice to finally meet you, Emma," the woman says, her voice clear and cold. As if never touched by emotion. "My name is Alegra, and this is my husband." She gestures to the man beside her. "Amoryn." She does not need to add that they are the heads of the Obsidian coven, for it is literally felt in their presence and that strange old magic wrapping around them.

"We are pleased to see you could get away from the fairies," Amoryn speaks, and his voice has the masculine shade of that same clear, emotionless tone that matches his wife's.

"Thank you for allowing us to come here," I say with a small dip of my chin that I hope portrays gratitude. I view them with caution, for in a way, I am at their mercy. If I stand against Phiona, will they back her? I know so little of their ways and interactions.

"Our home is yours for as long as you wish." Amoryn doesn't wait for a response before shifting his dark gaze to Phiona. "How did you manage to remove the collar?"

I tense.

"She didn't," Alaric speaks. It is as if he wants to get this information out before Phiona can say more. Would she pretend she released me? Did she expect me to support that lie? "The fairy prince ended up freeing her."