Ink & Dagger (Sins of Eden #1)

42. Chapter XLII

Chapter XLII

Jaxon

“ S weet Witch,” I whispered, wincing at the pain radiating up my side.

I wanted to remove the enchanted dagger, pull it from my flesh, and damn these Witches to Hell, but I could barely find the strength to hold myself up, let alone fight.

At least I was coherent.

Adrian hung like dead weight beside me by his chains. He’d lost too much blood. Those fucking Lycans had been relentless in their torture when they’d captured us and although we thought we had the upper hand going into this fucking mess, we were taken by surprise.

Adrian went full berserker the moment we entered the cellar and he got the worst of it with an enchanted blade to his spine, but I was still in no shape to do more than brace my weight and watch in defeat.

Emily’s head raised slightly as she tried to fight off the toxin they’d once again injected her with, but it dropped back down to her chest. Fuck.

“Emily, baby. You’ve got to get out of here,” I called desperately, trying to bring her out of the haze.

Charlie stirred from beside her with a groan. Her long fiery hair in disarray as she sluggishly lifted her head and looked up at me. She held my stare for a moment before her eyes flicked to Adrian and I pondered the emotion that crossed her face. Longing.

Charlie’s movements were slow at first, but as she awoke, she seemed to find her strength. Pushing herself up off the floor with a grimace, she ran her palm along Emily’s face, caressing it gently, before pausing to look around the room.

“Get her blade, Belladonna,” Killian rumbled from his cage with a painful cough.

Her eyes snapped up to his and she breathed out a sigh of relief as she nodded in silent understanding, before slowly bending down to swipe Emily’s pocket knife off the ground. She cut her free from her bindings, closed the pocket knife, and stumbled to Killian, searching for a way to get him out.

We should have fucking realized it sooner, especially after finding out what I knew about my Sweet Witch. The way Killian and Charlie looked at one another, and the way he’d tried to protect her from the Witch, Killian had found his Maritus.

There was no doubt in my mind as to why he didn’t come home, but between her lingering look at Adrian, and the way Adrian had acted when he’d first seen Charlie, I was willing to bet that Kill and I weren’t the only ones.

Grabbing the stun rod from the floor, Charlie propped it under the cage door and tried to pry it open, grunting in frustration at the force.

“Stop. Find the keys, Bella,” Killian told her softly.

She paused and limped over to the bench, pocketing a dagger for herself and searched under the mess on top, rifling through tools and papers.

Footsteps from the other side of the door had her head whipping to the side nervously. She glanced back at him with a pained expression before quickly laying down on the floor where the Witch had dropped her.

The door swung open and Agatha strode into the room, Brigid a few footsteps behind her, as they made their way back over to Emily and Charlie. Agatha squatted down, reaching her hand out to lift Emily’s chin.

“Wake up, child,” she said, coaxing Emily out of her slumber.

Emily groaned as she fought to open her eyes and her eyebrows knit together in confusion.

“There she is. I need you awake for our guest,” she told my Sweet Witch, slapping her cheek lightly before rising to her full height.

“Why are you doing this?” Emily asked, leaning forward slightly.

Her eyes flickered in surprise, realizing that she was free from her bindings, but she kept her arms secured behind her as if she were still trapped.

Good girl, I thought with a smirk. Save your strength, keep her talking, and catch them by surprise.

She found my eyes and I glanced down at Charlie with a sharp nod of my head to let my Little Witch know that she wasn’t alone now.

“You’re special my dear. You and Charlie are destined for glorious things. It’s in your blood,” Agatha gloated.

“I’m just an ordinary Witch, there’s nothing special about me -,” she started.

Agatha tsked again, the noise grating on my nerves as she cut her off. “You don’t truly believe that. Your mother never told you, did she? You weren’t the daughter of some weak mortal man. Your mother fell in love with an Archangel,” she scoffed.

“When she gave birth to you and Charlie, I was visited by the Archangel Gabriel. He made it clear that the two of you were to be separated until the right time, but when your mother was murdered, I had no other choice but to raise you both myself.”

Her face paled and she gasped as she looked down at Charlie.

“You liar,” Emily shouted, glaring up at Agatha.

Agatha backhanded her hard and Emily’s face flew to the side. She let out a harsh breath before flaring her nostrils and looking back up at her.

“I’m many things, child, but I am not a liar,” Agatha said sternly, shaking out her hand.

Emily swallowed hard before looking back down at Charlie. The prophecy and their connection all made sense now. They were twins, but had Emily really never known?

“What the fuck do you mean, murdered?” She asked, an edge of hysteria making her voice tremble.

Dread filled my stomach and a knot tightened in my throat.

“There’s so much you don’t yet understand. Why don’t you ask your Demon how your mother died?”

Her eyes quickly flit back to mine, searching for the truth, and my heart sunk in my chest. I couldn’t hide the ache in my chest as a single tear slid down her cheek. I may not have started the inferno that took her mother, but if it hadn’t been for the prophecy and the war between Heaven and Hell, she would still be alive.

“Enough, Witch,” Killian barked from the corner of the room.

I wondered if his own Maritus knew the truth, if he’d told her why she was forced to grow up as an orphan. Did she know the secret of the prophecy or that she even had a sister?

“Your sire was none other than the Archangel Uriel, the greatest prophet known to this world,” Agatha revealed, ignoring Killian.

“You think you got your magic from your mother? She was nothing but a mortal compared to you.” Agatha scoffed. “You and Charlie were given extraordinary power from the Heavens and now that you’ve reached your thirtieth cycle around the sun, everything will be set into motion.”

“What do you get out of this?” Emily asked, shaking her head as she sat up straighter in her chair.

Agatha let out a snide chuckle. “Once we dispose of these Demons and give you both to Gabriel, this coven will be the strongest to ever exist. No more begging the Mother Goddess for Her blessing. We’ll have the power to do as we please and no mortal or God will stand in our way.”

As if on cue, Brigid picked up a long knife from the bench and sauntered over to me, a malicious smile spread across her face as she approached. Emily bolted from her chair, swaying slightly, and lifted her hands.