Witch Queen Read Free

get him
back.
    Passing the threshold, I bolted down the
stairs and into the blackness of the prison tunnel. The hot, acrid
air and the smell of rot hit me like a slap in the face, but I kept
going. I felt the air move behind me, and I knew Will and Leo were
right with me. Perhaps this wasn’t a trap. Perhaps Jon wasn’t even
here. I couldn’t let myself get carried away with my fears.
    He is alive and I will find
him.
    As I hit the last step, my boots splashed
through puddles of piss and human feces. I tore down through the
tight chamber doing my best to breathe through my mouth and not
vomit. The only sounds were those of our heavy treads. There were
no echoes of the moans I’d remembered from before.
    The prison was empty, deserted, except for
us. I passed several cells, all of them empty. Where were all the
prisoners? I skidded to a stop and faced a wall of cells. The metal
bars were rusted with age and stained with unidentifiable grime.
Gasping for breath, I stumbled a few steps, trembling from head to
toe as I blinked through my tears and stared at the empty
cells.
    I knew the signs of a panic attack.
    “Jon? JON!” I screamed.
    My voice echoed loudly in desperation. I ran
into a cell and kicked a piece of shredded cloth. And then I ran
into the one across from it. I ran into all the cells nearest me,
fighting the bile that rose in my throat whenever I found a cell
that was vacant. I didn’t care that Will and Leo were witnessing my
moment of weakness. I was desperate. My knees shook, and I knew I
was about to fall. I tried to control my breathing, but it was no
use. The cell’s corridor was already spinning.
    I should never have left him behind. I
should have made him come with me.
    “There’s no one here.” Leo’s voice was
tinged with regret and sorrow. “I’m sorry, Elena,” he soothed.
“We’re too late—”
    “I’m here.”
    The voice was faint and reverberated within
the shadows from the opposite end of the chamber. But there was no
doubt in my mind that it belonged to Jon.
    “Jon!”
    Frantic, I shot towards the voice, never
wavering until I came to the exact location where I had heard him.
I barreled into the last cell, searching through the semi-darkness
for the man I loved.
    And there he was. Even in the darkness, I
could recognize his silhouette: the straight line of his shoulders,
the slight wave in his hair, the hard line of his jaw, even the way
he angled his head a little to the side. It was all him. My
Jon.
    “Finally,” he said. He stood up, and it took
all of my self-control not to rush over and throw myself into his
arms.
    “I was about to give up on you.” He stepped
forward into the light, and I gasped.
    His face was gaunt and haggard. Scabs
crusted and flaked over his skin like he’d been burned. And his
once handsome face was covered in black veins.
    Jon was infected with black magic.
     

CHAPTER 2

     
     
     
    I CHOKED ON A sob and stepped back,
shaking. “No, no, no. It can’t be.”
    “Yes, it’s me, Elena.” Jon took another step
towards me.
    His smile widened, but his eyes were as
black as tar, and they shone with something I couldn’t
understand.
    “I told them you would come. I told them
about our… connection , that you’d never leave me behind.”
    I was unable to form any words. It was him, my Jon, and yet he was very different. A chill spiraled
through me, and I fought against the tears that welled in my eyes.
The air moved behind me as Will and Leo came up to stand at my
side. Their swords glimmered in the soft light, but they made no
attempt to go after Jon. It was as though they were waiting for me
to decide what to do. But all I could do was stare, praying and
hoping that this was a bad dream, and yet I knew it wasn’t.
    Jon raised his arms.
    “Ah, perfect. My two loyal subjects. This
indeed is a blessing. The high priest will be pleased.”
    His black eyes met mine again and my heart
gave a painful jolt, as though something inside was squeezing