“She used spells to hurt the others, she doesn’t have the skills.” Poppy laughed then, but there was nothing cruel about it, just weariness. She had been running for so long. She had to be exhausted.
And he was tired of it already.
“You should just go,” Poppy said. “I won’t hurt you. I’ll never come back to the realm. But I’m done. I’m done running.”
“And I’m done listening to you.” The queen turned to one of her sisters. “Marci, use your magic.”
Marci grinned, and there was pure darkness in her eyes. She began to whisper something, but Poppy threw herself in front of Jonah before she could finish.
“Stop doing that,” he growled.
“Let me fix this,” she muttered, but then there was a commotion. Madeleine pushed Mina out of the way and threw herself on top of Marci.
The queen looked stunned, just like Poppy and Jonah did, and he was confused at what the hell had just happened.
“What do you think you’re doing?” Mina asked.
“No, no more magic. It was eating your soul, can’t you see that?” Madeleine asked. She scrambled to her feet, and Marci stood up with her, shaking.
“Stop it. Just because you’re too weak to do anything, doesn’t mean you have the right to hurt us.”
“I am not weak,” Madeleine said, her voice shaking. And then she let the glamour fall, and Poppy cursed.
“Close your eyes, Jonah,” she whispered.
He did so, confused. He trusted her, though, so he didn’t even hesitate. “What the hell is going on?” he asked.
“Madeleine, she’s a Medusa,” Poppy whispered.
“No!” Mina growled out.
“I’m done hiding. You killed our father. And you’re going to kill Poppy. I’m done.” And then Madeleine screamed.
Chapter 6
Poppy staggered back, the revelations far too much for her to even breathe just then. Madeleine was a Medusa?
How did she not know? How had nobody known?
Of course, Mina and Marci had always made sure to push Madeleine down, to hide her as the youngest sister, the one that didn’t matter. They had been just as cruel to her as they had been with Poppy her entire life.
She had missed the fact that Madeleine was in pain just like she was. That she had to hide just like Poppy did.
“You think you can hurt us?” Queen Mina screamed. “You’ve always been nothing. So what, you think you’re a Medusa? I’m sure you just used magic like Marci did. Is that how you did it? Because it can’t be true. You couldn’t have been a Medusa all this time.”
“She has, though,” Poppy said, not knowing if it was actually the truth or not. Although, it seemed like it had to be.
The queen raised her chin, her eyes narrowed to slits. “What do you know?”
“I know that if there was a magical way to create a Medusa, you would have done it long before this. You would’ve found a way and killed anybody in your quest to do so. That’s why you’re here, isn’t it?”
“Enough of this,” Jonah growled, his eyes were still closed, but his claws were out. He was one second away from shifting to end this, and Poppy didn’t blame him. She could sense the others outside, but she wasn’t sure that any of the gorgons and the other Medusa in the room could.
In fact, she was pretty sure that these three women were oblivious to the fact that the lions were prowling around, ready to come inside the house at any moment to help.
But Poppy didn’t want anyone else to get hurt. Between Marci’s magic, Mina’s tenacity and cruelty, and Madeleine’s Medusa powers, she didn’t know if she could keep everyone alive if anyone else joined them.
“You’ll die, just like your little friends,” Mina spat.
Poppy cursed again, her powers fluctuating as she figured out what to do. Madeleine had her snakes out, her eyes wide, they were a darker silver, almost gray and matte, but they still had some of the Medusa power in them. How had Madeleine hidden that for so long?
Poppy didn’t know, and this wasn’t the time to find out.
Instead, she let her snakes hiss and shouted, “Stop now, and you can live. I don’t want to kill you.”
“You’re going to die anyway,” Mina growled.
“Stay back,” Jonah ordered, and Poppy knew that was directed at the lions. With two Medusas in play, they would die just by being in the wrong place, and she didn’t want that. She couldn’t stand by and let Madeleine die, nor would she let Jonah do all the work for her.
Marci had her arms out, muttering some incantation, but then Jonah was on top of her, his claws slashing. Marci ducked, screamed, and threw a curse at Poppy. Poppy ducked out of the way, the death curse that would’ve killed her missing her by a bare inch. Marci must have had a warlock or someone teach her that curse. Someone had infiltrated the realm like everyone had once feared, but it was Marci who had succumbed to the temptation and hurled death magic.
Jonah growled so loudly the windows shook, and then Marci was done screaming. He snapped her neck in one quick movement, and she fell to the floor, a pile of dusted bones in a long dress.
Poppy’s eyes widened.
“You use a curse that takes a life, you’re going to lose your own,” Jonah spat. He wasn’t looking up, just down towards where Marci’s bones were.
So, using magic required a sacrifice, and since Poppy hadn’t died, Marci was the one who paid. Jonah just helped that along. But he had to keep his eyes closed, because Madeleine’s eyes were still open.
“You’re going to hurt someone,” Poppy called out, needing Madeleine to stop, to pull her glamour back.
“I can do this,” Madeleine rasped, her whole body shaking.
Poppy didn’t think she could. Madeleine might be a Medusa, but she was even more untrained than Poppy was. Even more powerless.
“You were always nothing, just like little Poppy. You’ll deserve the death that comes for you.” Queen Mina held out her hands and grinned.
“You might have bested the witch, but you can’t best me. I’m the queen.”
“And you have no power. No power over me, and no power over the realm.” Poppy let her snakes hiss again, and her eyes widened. She felt her power wash over her.
Mina’s mouth gaped as Poppy let the full force of her Medusa out.
Jonah growled, and she knew he was right beside her, she could feel his hands on her hips as if he were trying to help her by giving her some of his own power and strength. She leaned into him. She didn’t have to do this alone, even if he couldn’t help with this one thing. Because the lions, if able to, would walk right in. They would help even if she was a stranger. Because they were good, and they did what was right. They were not Medusas, they were not what Mina had made their realm. Treacherous.
Mina reached out, her hands outstretched, but under the combined Medusa powers of Madeleine and Poppy, she wasn’t enough. The stone slid up her dress, rose to her hips, wound around her chest and her arms, and eventually reached her neck. Mina tried to let out one last final scream, but it wasn’t enough. The stone slid around her body, her snakes, everywhere.
The queen of the gorgons was gone.