Even in the air, her magic was a savage force that I could not control. All I wanted to do was hold her away from me and keep her from smashing my head against something else. Even with my magic holding her aloft she still managed to shove me ferociously against the wall, my feet sliding across the floor as if they would slow me down. I hit the stone wall hard, losing my breath and my concentration and dropping her to the floor.

She landed on her feet, taking the length of the room in a second and lifting me off the ground with her hands tightly wrapped around my neck. I struggled for breath and clawed at her clenched fingers. I started to panic as her hands pressed together, threatening to snap my neck in two.

In a moment of pure self-defense, I lashed out with my magic, sending her across the room and away from my delicate throat. I caught her, generously, before she hit anything substantial and held her in the air again, this time creating more of a magical force field than I had the first time.

I felt some pity for her, since I stole her day and her crown.... again. But, most of all I hated the thought of ruining her gorgeous gown. As much as I despised Seraphina and as frustrated as I was that this was the second time she was trying to kill me, I had to admit that she really did have impeccable taste.

“Eden, put her down!” Kiran shouted at me, and when I moved to fulfill the request, he held up his hand and yelled louder, “Gently!”

I obeyed, regretfully. I could not risk losing the chance to see Avalon and for the moment, if that meant a marriage to Kiran was the ultimate revenge for a concussion and broken nose, I would swallow the disgust and behave.

I sent magic to the back of my head and then to my nose, repairing the damage. Kiran pulled Seraphina aside and talked to her quietly in soothing, careful tones. Even as angry as she was, she was stunning. With a train at least ten yards long, her silk gown flowed around her as if she were coated in liquid. Her waist was cinched impossibly small and her bust the perfection of bridal elegance. Her face was flawless; even scrunched in rage and animosity she was still the most beautiful girl I had ever seen.

“Clean her up and take her to her brother,” Kiran snapped, turning on his Guard with frustration. “Wait for me to move them.”

The Guards walked me into the hallway and down a long corridor. Someone jogged up from behind after a minute and handed me a wet towel that I used to wipe at my face and neck. I followed the Guards up a staircase, wrapping around one of the castle towers.

At the top of the tower stood a heavy, wooden door that led into an almost empty room, with only a bed off to one side. Avalon sat on the bed, moving his foot idly across the floor in silent meditation. He looked up reluctantly at the opening of the door, obviously waiting to be taken to his death.

When I walked into the room, something like hope vanished from his expression. Our eyes met and it was as if they murdered me in front of him. His shoulders sagged and his face became a canvas of despair.

“Eden, what are you doing here?” he groaned, standing up, alarmed by my presence.

“I had to.... I couldn't let them....” And then I burst into tears, breaking through the Guards and running to him. I sobbed against his chest, knowing this was goodbye and not knowing how to explain to him how to get his magic back without voicing it in front of the Guards.

“You shouldn't have come, you shouldn't have done this,” he whispered, crying unashamed tears and holding me close to him.

“It's time for him to go,” Kiran's crisp voice, ordered from the doorway.

I pulled away from Avalon, nodding my consent and then slipped my hand into his and pulled him along with me. He was reluctant to go, he stood firm, refusing to let me sacrifice myself.

“No, you will have to kill me instead.” His eyes searched mine for understanding and silently accused me of betraying him.

“You don't mean anything to us,” Kiran snarled, gesturing at the Guards to use force.

“Please, Avalon, please go,” I begged, trying to convey through furtive, emotional glances that I had a plan.

Still he refused until the Guards surrounded us, pushing us through the door and down the staircase. Eventually, Avalon moved on his own, holding my hand in his and whispering his disapproval whenever he had the chance.

Kiran walked in front of us, leading the way through the castle that had grown deathly quiet and through the seemingly empty Citadel. The courtyard in front of the castle was set up for a wedding. Decorated chairs sat in neat rows, separated by a long aisle and extravagant floral arrangements hung from posts and adorned every open space. A stage was set up to the side of the venue for a band, stringed instruments abandoned, music scattering across the cobblestone plaza with the movement of the soft wind.

My hand began to tremble inside Avalon's and I was fighting a fear that threatened to overcome me. I couldn't be without him; I didn't want to let him go again, even to safety.

There were times in the past when I felt lonely, when my task, my position, even fate asked me to stand apart from everyone else. But, on the other side of the gates I would say goodbye to Avalon and then truly be alone for the rest of my life. I would be isolated from everyone I loved indefinitely and depending on Kiran's whims or wishes, I could be separated from even those that I hated, too, which, unless I figured out a way to explain to Avalon how to get his magic back, might be for the rest of eternity.

A Titan opened the wide, heavy gate to the outside and I turned to Avalon to say goodbye. I wrapped my arms around his neck and felt the Immortal presence over the hill, watching us silently. By now, my parents had reached Jericho, by now they stood waiting for whatever outcome I decided for them.

I hugged Avalon, knowing I wasn't just saying goodbye to him, I was saying goodbye to whatever happiness, whatever life I had imagined, and whatever hope remained on the outside of these walls.

“I love you,” Avalon whispered fiercely in my ear.

“I love you too,” I whispered back, not willing ever to let go of him. “Jericho is waiting for you, just over the hill.”

A Guard started to pull Avalon away, to force him through the gate and I clung to him as if he were my last lifeline.

“Eden, it's time,” Kiran reprimanded callously, reminding me that I was a prisoner now, devoid of any will.

“Avalon,” I said louder, grasping at a way to convey instructions to him. “Find your first team, find them immediately and they will tell you what to do!”

He stared after me in confusion, but the Guard kept pushing him out of the city. He eventually turned around and walked forward, taking deliberate but painful steps away from me.

Jericho appeared then, on the hillside, a lone figure against the backdrop of the Romanian mountains. He stared at me with an intensity that was more than human, watching me as if I had betrayed even him. He looked to Avalon and the look in his eyes was a struggle against understanding. He loved Avalon like a brother, but my choice was so obviously incomprehensible to him that it felt like treason.

It was better this way, better that Jericho looked at me as if I betrayed him, as if I abandoned him for selfish gain. His life would be better if he could move on, if he could think of me as a traitor and enemy.

I looked at him for a moment longer, meeting his eyes and saying my own eternal goodbye. I sent a thousand, silent thoughts to him, reminding him that I loved him, and that only hours ago I dreamed of a time when we would wake up next to each other every day for the rest of our lives. He couldn't hear my thoughts, or read my mind, but the desperate look in his eyes turned from confusion to acceptance and I decided I could live with acceptance.

A Guard tapped me on the shoulder and I reluctantly turned around and let the Citadel gates close behind me. My heart jumped with the finalized click of the lock and I breathed in the painful loneliness of captivity.

I followed Kiran back into the castle. He didn't verbalize instructions, but I didn't need any. I was his prisoner, his father made that clear and I would obey completely until Avalon had his magic back and then I would willingly let them kill me.

Kiran took the stairs up a different castle tower. This one was larger, with different levels of what seemed to be residences. At the top of the turret, was a single door that opened into his room. He held the door for me, allowing me to walk through first.

“Thank you, I won't be needing you any longer,” Kiran addressed his Guards before closing the door behind him.

It was the first time we were completely alone today and it felt strange and threatening. Our magics stayed respectively far away from each other; there was no more attraction between them, no more feral desire to find each other.

“You are to stay here, with me,” Kiran instructed, his words harshly reserved. “My father insists that you are my prisoner and therefore my responsibility.”

“What are you going to do with me?” I asked with a small voice, suddenly afraid of what his words meant.

“I'm not going to rape and pillage you if that's what you're worried about,” he mumbled, tugging at his bow tie and the buttons of his high tuxedo collar.

“I wasn't worried, I-” I started, but he cut me off.

“Eden, this is nothing more than a business transaction. You get to save your precious family and I get to have access to your magic. Whatever happened.... before. Whatever there was between us is over,” his steely eyes held my gaze and I felt the sincerity of his words. “Obviously, we have both moved on and you would be a fool to assume otherwise. Now, I have business to attend to elsewhere, there will be Guards posted outside the door so please do not try anything ridiculous.”

“No, I wouldn't.... I gave you my word,” I gushed, finding some relief in his words.

He looked at me one more time and the expression on his face was indecipherable, except that whatever it meant was hard and full of hatred. I gulped silently and then bravely turned away towards the picture windows that took up most of one wall. I heard the door close behind him and then I couldn't take it anymore.

I fell to the stone floor in a mess of emotions, covering my face with my hands and trying my hardest to sob quietly. I cried for what felt like hours, until the sun dipped beyond the horizon and the room grew dark and cold. Then I slipped into a dreamless sleep, exhausted from the events of the day and the oppressive loneliness that would, from here on out, be my constant companion.

Chapter Forty-One

I awoke well into the night. Something was nagging at me, an irritation that pulled at my senses and shook my blood roughly. I sat up in the darkness, flaring my magic and finding myself defensive.

It took a moment for my eyes to adjust. I rubbed at them, feeling as though I could have slept for days straight. I stood up, and found a comfortable chair near the window.

I sat down in it and let my eyes focus on the darkness. The clear, unclouded moonlight flooded the room with soft light through the large picture windows and when my eyes decided to obey I could see the room clearly.

Kiran's bedroom was more modern than the rest of the castle. His windows, glassed instead of open, faced the back of the castle, towards the Carpathian Mountains and the unending Romanian wilderness.

He had all of the gadgets one would never expect to find in a medieval castle, like a huge flat-screen TV, gaming systems and computer. His bathroom was ginormous, housing a massive stone-walled shower, an equally large ivory bathtub and a double set of sinks.