Once Upon A Time In Brooklyn

Chapter Twenty-One: Who Could Ever Love A Beast?

"You... Why did you do this to me? It can't have been pure anger at being turned away from a party!" Magnus demanded. The door had slammed behind him like a death knell and he couldn't open it. His magic had stopped working again.

Doona reached down, picking up the curse book hand handing it to Magnus casually. He stared at it for a moment before slapping it out of nir hands. Doona looked sad.

"No. I was... employed, I suppose you could say. The person who wanted this curse cast took something from me. I will get him back upon your death," ne explained. Magnus couldn't help but hear the longing in nir words when ne said that, and he realised that other than nir face, he knew nothing of Doona at all.

"'Him'?" Magnus questioned.

"My husband, John. He was taken and held hostage for a year while this curse ran it's course. Insurance to make sure it is done," Doona explained.

Understanding dawned on Magnus. This wasn't a warlock that had gone loopy and decided to break the Accords, this was someone being blackmailed into killing him, their own precious person being kept from them until the deed was done.

If it had been Alec... He wasn't sure that he would have taken a moral high ground and not cursed another warlock...

"Your husband... They have your husband..." he repeated, suddenly feeling lost.

His survival... could it possibly mean someone else's death? If it did, could he accept it?

He realised, with a revolted shiver down his spine, that it was something he was prepared to live with.

It seemed Doona knew that too, because nir look was strangely knowing.

"Yes. I hope that he is still alive, though I have no way of knowing if he came to any harm," ne replied, and ne walked over to the rose, taking it from the case and twirling it carefully between long fingers. Magnus swallowed, watching the final petal on the head flutter in the slight draft.

"Who took him?" he asked. Doona turned to him and for the first time, he saw that ne was near tears.

"I think you know, deep down, where my husband is, who he is. And therefore, who my employer must be."

And Magnus realised he did know.

"Camille."

"Yes."

Magnus leaned back against the closed door, trying to regulate his breathing. The betrayal still hurt, even after all these years, even though he didn't love her any longer, even though he had long since decided to give up on anything Camille could ever offer him... That she would do this...

"And so now I'm to die because I could not find true love? Why this curse? Out of any that you could have chosen?" Magnus yelled, pushing away from the door and fixing Doona with a stare.

"I didn't choose it. Camille came to me with it already designed. I think she wanted you to love her again, in some twisted way. Love or death, she didn't mind the outcome as you would be hers in either eventuality," Doona replied and ne took a step towards him too. Magnus stalked forward, grabbing Doona's wrist and holding the rose up between them.

"There wasn't enough time-" he began but Doona silenced him.

"Are you so sure? Look again at the book. Look again at the stories. Let's look again at your life Magnus, in these final minutes," ne said, and the whole world erupted into light and illusion.

*

"There's a warlock outside the wards. She's half-crazed trying to get in," Raj reported. Alec looked up from where he was half-heartedly decorating Christmas cookies to see Isabelle was stood next to him, her chest heaving. He quirked an eyebrow at her but she shook her head.