The Endless One looked down. Wrapped his decayed fingers around the bolt protruding from his chest.

In one effortless move, he yanked it free and tossed it aside as if it was nothing more than a twig.

"Come now," he said in a mock serious tone. "Attempting to kill someone like me who's already dead? A waste of your time as well as mine."

"I wasn't trying to kill you," Charlotte replied.

She stepped back, raised her hand, fingers spread wide. A thin silver thread of magic extended from The Endless One's chest and wrapped around her fingers, her wrist, and up her arm. Then she made a fist, squeezing that thread of magic as tightly as she could.

The Endless One gave a strangled cry, one hand pressed to his chest. His mouth opened on a gasp of agony as he dropped to his knees.

"What...?" he croaked. "What have you done to me?"

"The bolt was hexed," Charlotte said. "The moment it pierced your heart, the magic lodged inside you. Pulling the bolt out will do nothing." She smiled. "Just a little trick passed down from my grandmother."

The Endless One growled and surged to his feet, the blackness that consumed him pulsing like a giant black heart.

Charlotte didn't flinch or retreat. Calmly, she snapped her fingers.

The Endless One's head flung back with a grunt of pain. He staggered as if he had been hit with a tremendous blow.

"You will not touch me," she said. "In fact, you won't be going anywhere that I don't allow you to."

"A human can't control the power of a hex for long."

"Consult Alexander's memories as you did earlier if you think I'm lying. He knows what I am. I'm hardly a normal human."

The Endless One went silent, seething, as he searched for an answer inside Alexander's mind he had taken possession of and locked away. Then he fixed Charlotte with a rigid stare.

"Witch," he spat. "Crafted from ash and bloodshed, the dark and arcane." He laughed, a rough, scratching sound that echoed off of the trees. "One of Mina's brats. You're not any better than I am."

Charlotte did her best to stifle the revulsion at such an idea. But he had, somehow, put voice to the one thought she dared not admit to herself, despite how it lingered at the back of her mind, unwelcome and sour.

It wouldn't take much to tip over the edge and spiral into decay the way this monster had. All she needed was a little nudge in the wrong direction and she could end up like him.

Long ago, when the world was tangled in wild forests and the stars were close enough to touch, Mina was the first witch to walk the earth, spooling magic from the moon with her spindle and her long, thin fingers.

But where there is moonlight, darkness was sure to follow.

Mina faced the one fate every witch dreaded—burned alive on a pyre for fear of the power she held.

From the coals at her feet, as the flames grew, she took four cinders, rippling with shades of gold and the lushest crimson. She pressed a kiss to each one. The remnants of her magic encircled the coals until they glowed silver.

The cinders wrapped in moonlight disappeared in the fire. From Mina's ashes and bones, four witches were born.

One hedge witch to wreathe the earth in a blanket of greenery.

One water witch to watch over the streams and oceans.

One spirit witch to serve as intermediary between the land of the dead and the land of the living.

One fire witch to wield the flames that had brought about Mina's demise and protect her sisters from the same fate.

Not only was the creation of life from the death of a witch an unreliable and delicate practice, it meant Charlotte always had the potential coursing through her veins to fall towards destruction.

The burden and blessing of a witch was her magic. With power at her fingertips, incomplete such as it was, she could commit atrocities no human was capable of.

Perhaps she might rip the world apart with the bare whisper of a spell.

Or she might grace everything she touched with the warm caress of a charm.

Such a tentative balance, every minute of every day.

"Thousands of years have passed since Mina was alive," Charlotte said. "And whether there is darkness in my veins or not, I have never let it rule me the way it rules you now."

I hope I never will, she thought.

Without giving The Endless One a chance to reply, she whistled a sharp trill. After a minute or two, her horse came trotting out of the forest. She pulled herself up into the saddle and twitched her finger in a come here motion.

The Endless One didn't move.

This was the beginning, Charlotte knew. A battle of wills with more magic than she had ever witnessed in her life, let alone held under her control.

The Endless One was old. Along with age came power, infused with the passage of time the longer his reign went uncontested.

Meanwhile, Charlotte was only seventeen. A witch, she might be, with ancient spells at her command. But she was far from her peak strength. There were still so many spells, incantations, and divinations she hadn't tested yet, hadn't memorized until it was second nature to summon them.

Yet Charlotte refused to be intimidated. She flung her hand to the side. Hard. Her thread of magic stretched taut with a whining hum.

The Endless One stumbled forward and skidded to a stop next to Charlotte's horse.

"I will rid myself of this bloody hex," he said in a dangerously low voice. "Then I will watch you burn when I'm free. I swear it."

"Oh, I doubt that. You see, you were right. After a fashion. Eventually, the hex won't hold you. Its energy will fade by the next reaping moon. If I fail in breaking the curse you've bound Alexander with, you will die."

"Your beloved groom will die with me," The Endless One taunted. "Instead of doing everything you can to save the man you love, you choose to kill him. I say he's better off with me than with a foul witch like you."

Charlotte leveled a cool, detached stare at him.

"I would rather bury Alexander than let him suffer at your hands."

"Did you tell him that? Before he proposed? Does he know his dear bride would be so willing and eager to abandon him to the grave?"

When Charlotte didn't respond, The Endless One chuckled.

"I thought as much," he rasped, triumphant.

The shadows swarming around The Endless One scrolled towards him and disappeared. The silence of the forest roared with emptiness. The thread of magic woven between Charlotte's fingers grew warmer and warmer until it was unbearably hot to the touch.

The Endless One was preparing to attack. Her magic could sense it and it was preparing to defend her, shield her from the dark energies coming her way. To be on guard like this would drain the energy she had at her command. But if she attacked without knowing his weaknesses, she would waste even more energy and she couldn't afford that either.

Charlotte retrieved another hexed bolt from the quiver attached to her saddle. Her palms were clammy and her heart thundered against her ribs in anticipation of the impending ambush from she knew not where. Somehow, her hands remained steady as she loaded the bolt into place.

"Charlotte?"

Her heart stuttered at the dryness of Alexander's voice, tight with pain. He knelt before her, his hand pressed to his chest where she had shot The Endless One in the heart.

Blood seeped through Alexander's fingers and pooled on the ground. His skin—already such pale English skin—had turned to a grayish hue.

Just as Charlotte was still in her wedding dress, Alexander still wore his suit, the same suit she had admired him in on her way down the aisle to stand at his side only a few hours past, what felt like a lifetime ago.

"You shot me," Alexander said, trembling with betrayal.

It took every ounce of restraint Charlotte had to not respond. Reassuring Alexander was her immediate reaction, knowing how frightened he must be, trapped with that monster scouring his mind.

But she was well aware what The Endless One was trying to do. He was toying with her in the hopes of rattling her enough that she would break and give up.

Charlotte flicked her wrist, sending a fresh ripple of magic coursing down the thread.

Alexander choked.

Slowly, The Endless One's visage returned. The curse cracked across Alexander's face all over again.

And for the second time in one day, Charlotte watched the man she loved decompose before her eyes, flesh melting from bone, the thick reek of rot rising in the air, until he was that...thing once again.

Neither demon nor spirit. But something else. Something so powerful that death obeyed his every whim.

Charlotte turned to face forward and tucked her hand in close to her body, thread pulled tight, as she guided her horse down the road.

"Play more tricks on me like that again," she said without looking at The Endless One. "And I'll riddle you so full of hexes, jinxes, spells, and all manner of enchantments, you won't be able to take a single breath without feeling as if you're being torn into a thousand tiny pieces."

The Endless One struggled along behind her, spitting obscenities at her back.

Good. Punishment for his attempts at exploiting what he perceived as a weakness, only to discover she would not be shaken. His failure was what angered him, not her.

Besides, his anger might work in her favor. Perhaps he would slip up sooner rather than later and she could finally put her finger on what it would take to remove the curse he held over Alexander.

"Where are you taking me, witch?" The Endless One demanded.

"Home."

***

Laeves Keep stood tall and proud against the stars, towers spired into the night until they disappeared. In the distance, snow-capped mountains gleamed faint and soft under the moon's delicate attention.

"Locking me away won't work," The Endless One shouted from behind Charlotte.

Ever since the forest, she had ignored him and his insults, igniting his rage further. She had also left his carriage behind, which did nothing for his foul mood. Managing those six stallions with their fiery hooves and shining red eyes wasn't a pleasant thought she wished to consider. It was the first step to crippling him, stripping away his power piece by piece. Without his protection, the carriage and horses would likely vanish once the sun rose.

As Charlotte passed through the gates of Laeves Keep, she yanked The Endless One after her.

But she faltered at the heavy oak door. To the left of the doorway, carved into the stone just above her shoulder, was the de Winter crest—a bird in mid-flight gliding over a copse of pines.

Charlotte pressed her palm to the crest and bowed her head as memories flooded in, memories she had struggled to keep at bay all night.

"It's so grim and serious," Alexander said.

Charlotte and Alexander stood together at the wrought iron gates, gazing up at the imposing spread of Laeves Keep. Alexander was born and raised in London and had never left the city in his life. He wasn't used to the untamed mountains or the rough terrain of Transylvania, much less the grand mansion that was her home.

"Inside, it's warm," Charlotte replied. "And it always smells of lavender and honeysuckle. For several generations, the women of my family have found safe harbor here. No one can touch them once they pass through this door."

"You seem terribly proud of it."

Charlotte smiled, hooked her arm through Alexander's elbow.

"I am. Thousands of years of witchcraft are contained within these walls. I can practice magic as often as I please. No one is the wiser for it. I certainly can't do that in England."

Alexander hummed in agreement. "True. Although if you didn't visit London, our paths never would have crossed."

Charlotte squeezed his arm and rested her head on his shoulder. "I didn't mean to imply that I didn't love England. I do. I just..." She sighed. "I love Laeves Keep the most. I always have."

Alexander eyed the Keep with concern.

"If I get lost in there somewhere," he said. "Can you stir up a jinx or two to find me again?"

"I won't lose you," Charlotte said, pressing a kiss to his cheek. "I promise. Now let me show you around."

Charlotte shook her head, dragging her hand away from the cold stone. She had imagined the eve of her wedding to be very different than this. Stepping over the threshold with Alexander by her side, granting him admittance to her most precious sanctuary where nothing could harm him.

Instead, she was opening her doors to a monster who held Alexander captive.

With that thought, Charlotte pushed into Laeves Keep.

Candles burned in wall sconces shaped like bird claws, sending shadows writhing and twisting across the cavernous foyer. A staircase to the left spiraled up to the second floor, vanishing into the shadows. The sweet, comforting scent of herbs greeted her, mingling with the undertones of burnt sage.

The day before her wedding, Charlotte had been here. Burning bundle after bundle of sage to purify the house in preparation for what she was about to do now. There could be no lingering malevolent spirits or energies. One wicked creature would be more than enough for unwanted company.

"This is your home," The Endless One purred, delighted at the information he gathered in the hopes of using it against her. "I'll enjoy setting fire to it in a month's time. With you trapped inside."

"Generation after generation of witches have lived here before me," Charlotte replied. "As you said, crafted from bloodshed and ashes. That leaves such a terrible propensity for incendiary accidents, don't you agree?"

The Endless One growled at Charlotte's blithe tone in the face of his threats. She pasted on her sweetest smile.

"It's rather presumptuous," she continued, "to think you would be the successful one in burning it to the ground when I can assure you, many have attempted to do so before you came along. This way, if you please."

Charlotte turned down a corridor and as she walked, the sconces sputtered to life, casting her path in light to ward off the smothering darkness of The Endless One. He trailed after her, tugged by the thread of magic she held. He made it known with more grumbling and growling that he was not pleased about his current situation.

Charlotte came to a stop outside a room. Modest and barely furnished with a feather bed, a table, and a chair. No rugs. No basin of warm water to chase away the chill of the night. Nothing that could be used as a potential weapon.

"Should you require anything else," she said, "don't ask. You won't get it."

She yanked on her thread of magic, drawing The Endless One into the room. He fought her every step of the way.

"Do you really believe I can be bound by mortal confines such as this?" The Endless One said, sneering around the room.

He moved to the window and his darkness gathered against the glass until it cracked, whimpered under the pressure. The window shattered in a burst of splinters.

Charlotte remained where she stood, watching. She didn't attempt to stop him. She didn't bother to warn him.

The Endless One threw a triumphant glance over his shoulder, proud that he had managed to form an escape route already. He prepared to pull himself out of the window, one hand braced against the outer wall...

Then he drew back into the room with a shriek. Veins of silver light streaked up his shadow-boned arm. He scratched at them, livid, desperate.

"Every inch of this house," Charlotte said. "Has been warded with spells against beings such as you."

The Endless One took a threatening step towards her.

"Witch or not, your power will wane. Mine won't. If you dare to keep me here—"

"Not to worry. It won't be forever. Just until the next reaping moon. Then your reign of terror will be broken, the cycle ended. And you will be no more."

With a short, quick gesture, Charlotte cast a small spell and slammed the door in his face.