The Gates - By Rachael Wade Page 0,60
and the daughter who returned to me years later, no longer human, only to leave my side once again, this time of her free will.”
The same strange empathy that invaded my thoughts when Vivienne had told me of Samira’s past with Arianna began creeping up on me again at the sound of her desolate voice. Seeing the remnants of loss on her face in person was a sight to behold. I fought to push the image away when Gavin and Vivienne’s warnings came back to scold me, but I then lifted my gaze to look at her, once again involuntarily captivated.
She spoke again. “No, Mr. Devereaux. You can tell me no such thing that will ever erase that level of loss or betrayal.”
“No, but I can give you closure.” Gavin’s voice had regained some of its strength. “Why is it you think I know so much about her—after she was taken from you? Do you have any idea what happened to her?” He attempted to stand again, fighting against knees that were surely wobbly, weak. “You don’t think I’ve experienced the same kind of betrayal?”
Her eyes darted to his as if he’d revealed something to her, then they narrowed in anger. “Betrayal from an enemy is to be expected. Nothing can compare to the kind of betrayal that is dealt from a loved one. Nothing.”
She gripped the footless doll in her hand and positioned a pin between her thumb and index finger. I wasn’t sure what had just passed between them, but at this point I wasn’t sure I wanted to know. She glided down the stairs to stand in front of him, her lips pressed into a thin, cold line, her shoulders stiff with rage. “Before I make you watch me kill every one of your friends, let’s have some fun first, shall we?”
“I beg you, Samira. I beg you, I beg you. Don’t.” His voice was weak again and his eyes bounced between the weapons in her hands and my face. My teeth began to jitter and tremors wracked my body. “Camille, it’s going to be okay. Cam, look at me.”
Scarlet’s laughter echoed through the room as she remained near the entryway, watching. The tremors worsened, and I couldn’t bring myself to keep my eyes on him, only able to carry my gaze to the ground. Samira began chanting in tongues I didn’t understand, each word rolling off her lips with chilling annunciation, each syllable seductive and distinct as she gripped the doll tighter, and tighter still. Her eyelids opened and closed every few seconds, the whites of her eyeballs rolling backward as her chants became heavier, more strangled. I felt my legs stiffen, being anchored to the ground. I grimaced at the restraint and began to panic, fighting to pull my feet and take a step forward, to no avail. Her hand shot forward and hovered over the doll before she drove the pin into its groin.
I barely recognized my own voice when the scream burst from my lips. The top of my body buckled over and I was desperate to drop to the floor, only my feet were firmly planted and the luxury of falling wasn’t possible. Her eyes blazed as she watched me, maneuvering the pin and turning it, achingly slow, before withdrawing it and driving it in again, harder this time. I clutched my stomach and writhed with each attack, Gavin’s cries distant and muffled behind me. The front of my ivory dress dampened, blood soaking through it. Gavin dashed forward and reached for me, but Samira’s magic stopped him in midstride.
“No!” he cried out and she swirled one hand in the air, flinging him up and across the room. I heard his body smack the wall, heard the thud when it landed. Samira stopped chanting and turned to retrieve a long, thin knife. She pinned the doll’s shoulder and mine jerked backward, another cry of agony escaping my throat. She moved from limb to limb and repeated the torture, then resumed her chant. I began to grow faint from the crippling pain and loss of blood, my airflow constricting as she worked the doll with her magic. My torso was half bent over, hanging lifeless on the weight of my hips, and I worked to glide my hands up to my neck, desperate for breath. I clawed at my throat, felt it contract beneath my fingers as I choked. And I knew she was strangling me from the inside out.
“She’s dying, Mr. Devereaux.”