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Boris froze. Checkmate.
“Stop!” I screamed. “Everyone stop.”
There were only two guys standing but a couple others looked as though they were getting ready for another round. At my words, they hesitated but didn’t surrender their arms.
My breathing came in shallow breaths and my trembling hands itched to kill Boris. I sca
“Cease fighting and throw down your weapons,” I ordered, my knife bearing down on Boris’s neck.
A new stream of crimson decorated the edge of the blade.
“Boris is no longer your leader,” I a
A moment later, they dropped their arms.
“On your knees,” I told them. “Hayden, gather their weapons.”
Chait wiped blood from his nose and gri
Someone like Boris would never stop until he got what he wanted. I couldn’t allow him to live so that my grandmother and everyone I loved would be in constant danger.
Kill or be killed.
But the thought of going through with the act of murder made my stomach churn. I didn’t have a choice though. This was the moment. The blade steady against his throat pressed him harder against the floor. “Goodbye, Boris.” I shifted my weight and prepared myself.
“Tessa, wait.”
Grandma.
I couldn’t let her distract me. No way could Boris have the chance to gain the upper hand again. I kept my shield up, knife against his flesh, my eyes trained on him.
“Hear me out.” Her even voice, closer now, held a hard edge. “And whatever you decide I’ll back you one hundred percent. But you need to know... When you kill him, you’ll be killing your grandfather.”
So, that’s how Grandma rose in Boris’s group — she’d married him. Now it made sense that she knew so much about his organization. That explained how Boris knew my family was slightly different.
I inwardly scorned the new hope in Boris’s eyes. He couldn’t think I’d get all warm and fuzzy. Not after he’d tried to murder his own granddaughter. Me. Could I go through with it now though, knowing who he was?
Not if I didn’t absolutely have to.
As though sensing my hesitation, he exhaled, looking immeasurably relieved.
“Grandma, can you get Bree out of here?” I asked, bearing down on the blade so Boris wouldn’t think I’d let him go. Every cell in my body stood at attention, waiting for him to fight again.
Painfully aware of the silence in the room, I held off until one of her men took Bree away. They were all waiting for me — my grandmother, Hayden, Chait and everyone else. Whether Boris lived or died was my call. Though I would’ve preferred not to be a party to the death of anyone — and even though it seriously grossed me out — if Boris didn’t die, I knew I would. He’d eventually see to it.
My eyes found my grandmother’s. She nodded her approval for whatever I decided.
“Hayden, would you like the honor?” I handed him my dagger and Boris’s eyes widened as he tried to squirm free. “Make it so he can’t hurt anyone.”
“I’d rather not stop there.” In a flash, Hayden was by my side, relieving me of the knife. “Not after seeing what he’s capable of.”
I knew what Hayden wanted, what needed to be done. But I couldn’t bring myself to give the order. “It’s your call,” I told Hayden.
“Maybe you shouldn’t watch.”
I averted my gaze and Boris twisted in my grasp until my knees lost their grip on his hip. My hand shot out to seize his wrist and slid over his blood.
Boris roared and writhed to free himself. Unable to grasp his flailing arm, I showered his face with another stream of fire. He screamed and I regained control of his limbs. Hayden’s knife descended to Boris’s neck like a guillotine.
While holding Boris, my hands weren’t free to cover my ears. The razor sharp edge of Hayden’s weapon cut through the flesh and bone. Crunch. Squish. I was fully aware of the exact moment the last bit of life in Boris died.
Trembling, I kept my head down and sucked in a shaky breath.
It was over.
I surveyed the room to find all eyes on me. My breakdown would have to wait. Rising, I took the bloody knife from Hayden, raised it and turned to the small crowd that had formed. “Long live Queen Jane!”
Chapter Thirty-eight
Tessa
Hayden and Chait stuck close to me as the bodies were removed and Boris’s men taken away. With the adrenal rush gone, my emotions were raw and exhaustion ravaged every muscle in my body. I wanted to sit and rest my wobbly legs. More, I wanted a bubble bath. In the dark where I could weep in relief and not have to see my splotchy face.
Just before I claimed a chair, a man bowed before me and held out a tray of food. I recognized him as one of the guards at the cemetery, one of Grandma’s most trusted. “Your Highness.”
My head whipped over my shoulder. He must have been talking to someone else.
The corner of his mouth twitched. “Yes, you. Queen Jane’s granddaughter, correct?”
“I am.” I elbowed Hayden and Chait as they snickered. “Joshua, right?”
“Yes, Your Highness. I’m instructed to remind you that you have someone waiting to see you. But your grandmother has ordered that you replenish yourself first.” Joshua thrust the tray at me. “The sooner you eat, the sooner you can reunite with your sister.”
Zoe. My stomach jolted in anticipation. I couldn’t wait to see her. “Thank you.” I nodded and relieved him of the food, then sat to eat, with Chait and Hayden forever shadowing me. “Are you guys my bodyguards now or what?” I asked, sampling the entrée.
Chait kneeled in front of me. “That’s a serious question?”
I frowned and took another bite of some of the best Mexican food I’d ever eaten.
“You bumped off the enemy — an extremely powerful man,” Chait said. “That makes you a target. From now on, anyone thinking of taking over knows they’ll have to contend with you.” He exchanged looks with Hayden. “Not to mention, if anything happens to Queen Jane, barring a successful hostile takeover, the throne probably falls to Zoe or you.”
“Thanks for that, Chait. Imagine me as ruler.” I shuddered.
“I can totally imagine it,” Hayden said.
My head snapped to him. He didn’t look like he was being sarcastic. “Well, I can’t. Besides, being a witch isn’t normally hereditary, so the throne wouldn’t be passed on that way. Kings or Queens in the sorcerer world rule by force.”
“Other than Jane, who’s more powerful than you?” Hayden asked.
I choked, dropping the fork on the tray. Just because I’d be a legal adult in a matter of weeks didn’t mean I felt like an adult. Maybe I could handle the job, maybe not. But what if I screwed up? I could barely raise Bree, much less keep thousands of witches in line. “Here, you guys finish it off. I’m far too queasy now.”
Chait chuckled. “C’mon, let’s go meet your sister.”
* * * *
My clever grandmother had checked into a hotel. I didn’t know how she snuck an unconscious girl into the room but she’d found a way.
“Who would’ve thought to look for the missing queen here?” Chait asked with a grin.
“Although renting out the most expensive suite isn’t exactly lying low.” Hayden pressed the Up button at the elevator and the doors opened.
Grandma smiled as she stepped inside and pushed the penthouse button. “Exactly. They’d never look for me here. Too obvious.”
I laid my hand over my chest. I was anxious to see my sister, but worried she wouldn’t remember everything. Would she be damaged? Would she still love me?