Cursed by Darkness (Once Upon A Curse)

42. Juniper

FORTY-TWO

Juniper

F acing the real Ombrete, knowing what it was capable of, might have been the stupidest thing Juniper had ever done. Her pulse pounded in her ears, and her feet felt like lead. She was fairly certain at least two of her brothers were yelling her name, possibly getting closer, but their voices blended into the disorder behind her.

Her fingers tingled as her Lumen magic came alive. Her hands glowed, but she didn’t know how to direct that magic like Richard had when he’d stopped the monster from attacking in the portal.

The Ombrete crept closer, keeping low to the ground. It reminded her of a wild feline hunting its prey. Except, this creature had much sharper teeth and claws, and its dark body shifted from solid to smoke as needed.

And it breathed fire.

Steam unfurled from its mouth, billowing toward the skies. She could just make out the embers in the back of its throat waiting to ignite everything.

Sliding her dagger back into its sheath, Juniper stepped forward with her hands raised in front of her. The blade wouldn’t do any good here anyway. Not when the monster could change its form to protect itself.

“Bodin?” she said in a soft tone.

The Ombrete let out a low growl.

Fear coursed through her, but a soft warmth pressed to her back. Almost like someone was encouraging her to continue. But her brothers hadn’t reached her yet.

Juniper took a deep breath. She wasn’t sure why the Ombrete wasn’t attacking right away, but it gave her hope that her husband was still in there somewhere and stopping it. “Bo,” she whispered. “Please come back to me.”

As if it understood, the Ombrete swayed its head from side to side. It raised its onyx eyes to look behind her, the rumble growing along with the glow in its throat.

She whipped her head around and found her three brothers and Laurent. “What are you doing? Go!”

“Not without you,” Hugo said, glaring at the monster. “Come with us, Juni. While it’s calm.”

In any other circumstance, she might have laughed at his foolishness. She couldn’t run. The moment she did, it would pounce. She was sure of that.

It wasn’t calm. It was waiting, drawing this out. Almost as if it were a game.

Turning back toward it, she said loud enough for everyone to hear, “I’m not leaving without Bodin.”

“Juniper, please,” Laurent begged, his voice cracking. “I love him too, he’s my brother, but we have to go. He wouldn’t want you to do this.”

She hated the pain in his voice, but it was nothing compared to the agony that would consume her if she didn’t get Bodin to return. Keeping her eyes on the Ombrete, she ignored her friend and brothers and took another step forward. “Give him back to me.”

It cocked its head to the side before extending its claws. Then, looking behind her once more, it leaped.

Juniper’s breath caught in her throat. Time seemed to slow as it jumped toward her, over her, going after the rest of those she loved.

“No!” she screamed, raising her hands above her.

She couldn’t fight the beast with any man-made weapon. It was impossible to pierce shadows with a blade. But like she’d told Rafe, she had the one thing that could fight darkness…

Light shot out of her palms. Her body burned brighter than it ever had as she imagined that light acting as a shield. It expanded just as she wanted it to, creating a wall before them.

Bodin had hinted that she had immense power, but never did she expect this .

The Ombrete hit the magic and retreated quickly, hissing in anger or pain, she wasn’t sure which. Almost like… the light harmed it.

Juniper stared at her hands as the wall faded, panting as power still thrummed through her veins. Could she actually do this?

That familiar soft breeze caressed her cheeks, blowing strands of hair out of her face. And not for the first time, she felt a connection to something beyond this world. She’d been told over and over as a child that it was her imagination, that she needed to remember what was real. The pull toward the Goddess of Unity, according to her parents and tutors, was not reality.

She’d never believed them.

And then, Bodin had given her that storybook about Ronna, Eryx, and Theran. It was kismet. There was no denying it. Somehow, it connected to their current situation. She just couldn’t figure out how the pieces fit together.

Tears blurred her vision as that warmth filled her, comforting her once again.

“Ronna,” she whispered.

Another wind drifted around her, and on it, she heard her name. A male voice, not the whispers of the goddess. This time when a solid hand braced her back, she turned to look at her father. The man who’d always been beside her, even before they knew the truth.

“Together,” he said as the Ombrete climbed to its feet and approached again.

Juniper nodded and shifted her attention to the creature that threatened her kingdom, her people, and the king she loved more than anything, more than she ever thought possible. Lifting her hands, she focused on her magic, and she used the need to protect her family to call it forth.

The Ombrete opened its wide mouth and released a growl loud enough that they both ducked on instinct, covering their ears. And then, before they could prepare, fire burst toward them.

Richard grabbed her and dove to the side. Pain seared through her arm as flames tore through her sleeve and skin, and she cried out. He quickly stopped the fire from spreading, but the damage was done, and they didn’t have time for her to heal right now. The shadow creature was moving toward them again.

Juniper got to her feet with Richard’s help. Using her good arm, she pulled her light up just as the Ombrete lunged. She pushed it off course, but it managed to swipe a claw at Richard’s leg. Her father fell to the ground, shouting in agony. She looked down in horror at the now-visible bone in his calf.

Before she could even contemplate how to help him, the monster jumped once more. The only thing she could do was raise her hands in front of her.

Her breath caught in her throat as the world around her illuminated. White light glowed from her entire body, shielding both her and her father. And it made the Ombrete retreat with a screech.

She took the opportunity to turn and look for her brothers. They all appeared to be fighting an internal war. Hugo appeared like he wanted to go to her, but he was still supporting Laurent. Her brother glanced at Laurent and visibly swallowed before starting to hand him off to Del, putting her first again. But Rafe was already rushing for her, doing what he always did and coming to her rescue, not giving anyone else the opportunity.

“Help him get out of here,” she said, turning to face the Ombrete again. It stumbled to its feet, almost like it was injured.

“No, that’s enough.” Rafe grabbed her by the arm. “We can’t win here, Juni. And if Bodin is truly trapped, it’s on you to help this kingdom. You’re the queen; you need to be alive to save your people.”

She didn’t look away from the shadowy creature prowling closer.

“Juniper,” Richard said, gasping. “Please.”

She took a second to glance down at him right as his eyes fluttered shut. He’d passed out, either from blood loss or pain, or both. Regardless, he needed to leave this place.

Chewing on her lower lip, she debated on what to do. Her brother was right. She hadn’t considered it, but if Bodin didn’t return, she would be left as the sole ruler of Mesairla. There was no heir or next of kin. It was up to her to protect her people.

Except, Bodin was her people. And if she didn’t get him to shift back into his human form, she wouldn’t just be losing him. She would be risking countless others who couldn’t defend themselves against the Ombrete. In the land of shadows, only light could protect them.

“Get Richard out of here so he can heal,” she told her brother, lifting her chin as well as her glowing hands.

“We’re not leaving you,” Rafe said with steely determination. In that moment, he was every bit the crown prince he was raised to be.

But she was the queen.

And she would be damned if she lost anyone she loved today.