Flesh Wounds, page 25
part #1 of The Vampire Elite Series
“…Change my mind?” The Dark One retorted, seemingly offended by whatever was said. He ignored their presence in favor of glaring at a redheaded woman, his ire extremely palpable. “I’m afraid it’s too late for that, dearie!”
However, they weren’t overlooked for long, as that was when Akasha locked eyes with her exiled stepdaughter.
“Maragret !” The vampire growled, shifting all the attention in their direction. “Come to finally surrender?” Akasha hissed as she stumbled toward them, disregarding multiple protests that she should stay off her feet.
“I had considered it.” The princess confessed, shocking David. “But that would only benefit you, not the kingdom.”
Akasha laughed at her stepdaughter’s predictable response. “Is that so?” She mocked, purple smoke swirling at her feet. “How selfish of me.”
Then, before anyone could react, the two remaining members of the monarchy vanished into thin air.
“Akasha, wait!” Maragret pleaded as the pair materialized in the secluded southern courtyard. “There is still a chance for compromise. This doesn’t have to end in violence!”
Having waited entirely too long for this moment, the queen found her stepdaughter’s request laughable. “There will be no compromise.” The raven-haired monarch stated as she hurled a massive fireball at Maragret ’s head. “You will pay for ruining my life!”
“Ruining your life?” Maragret shouted, narrowly escaping incineration. “I’m not the one that turned you into a vampire!”
“It might as well have been you!” Akasha hissed as she blindly lunged for the girl, fangs bared. “I wasn’t a monster until you went and cried to your insufferable father!”
Maragret dove under a bench to avoid being bitten, aware that she was prolonging her own demise. “I was scared! You were literally drinking someone’s blood, Akasha!” The princess exclaimed as she was dragged out from underneath her sanctuary. “What was I supposed to do?”
“Kept it to yourself, like I had asked!” The queen growled, pinning Maragret to the ground with her superior strength. “I lost Daniel because of you!”
As she struggled to free herself, the princess couldn’t help but feel sympathy for her stepmother. Whoever this Daniel was, he clearly meant a great deal to the queen. “I’m sorry Akasha, truly! But no amount of grief can excuse what you’ve done.”
Infuriated that Maragret had the nerve to judge her instead of beg her for mercy, Akasha tightened her grip around the girl’s neck. “I don’t want your pity!” She snarled, hovering her free hand over her stepdaughter’s chest. “I want your life!”
Before the princess could protest, Akasha had the beating organ secured in her icy clutches. With one last smirk, reveling in her revenge, the queen applied a crushing amount of pressure to the glowing heart still pulsing in her palm.
Draculastiltskin was so close to having everything he ever wanted. Not only did Maragret trust him completely, she practically guaranteed him control of the kingdom after she took the throne. He was nearly shaking with glee when they discovered that Akasha could no longer effectively hold her own in a fight, and prepared for a swift and easy victory. But then his former protégée had to go and ruin his plans.
In an unexpected turn of events, Akasha summoned enough magic to transport herself and the princess away from prying eyes. Anyone else would have given up, but he was the Dark One. Admitting defeat was not in his nature.
“…I don’t want your pity!” He heard the queen yell as she prepared to take Maragret ’s heart. “I want your life!”
Sensing that it was now or never, Draculastiltskin stepped out of the shadows before the one true heir to the throne was no more.
“Pardon me, dearie, but I can’t let you do that!” He reprimanded, removing the fragile organ from Akasha’s possession. “She and I have a deal.”
With Maragret ’s heart intact, Draculastiltskin activated Maleficent’s curse- a particularly nasty bit of magic that trapped the unfortunate victim in a virtual holding cell.
As Akasha fought against her invisible bonds, cursing his name, he smugly informed her that she would be put on trial for her crimes.
“If I were you, Your Majesty,” the Dark One warned as he towered over his former apprentice, “I’d choose abdication over death!”
The queen’s subsequent murderous glare suggested that his recommendation was the furthest thing from her mind.
Michael Darkone, Flesh Wounds
