For a time it did nothing but swirl about her. Pretty enough, but not exactly what she was hoping for. It was only when she was completely cloaked in the strange green flame that it stopped its swirling and thickened. Thickened enough that the agonizing attack was brought to an end.

Sucking in a deep breath, Anna leaned wearily against the column and studied the green glow. Through the flaming haze she could see Morgana, her arms outstretched as if she were still using her powers, but nothing passed through the fire.

In fact…narrowing her gaze, she reached out with her senses.

It was more than deflecting the powerful blows, she realized, although she didn’t know how. It was absorbing them.

Okay. This was a good thing. A really, really good thing.

Unfortunately, she didn’t really know how to use the weapon beyond protecting herself.

Straightening from the column, she took a cautious step forward. The glow followed her, keeping her protected even as Morgana screamed in fury and hurled what looked to be a fireball directly at her.

She took another step and another, ignoring Morgana’s shrieks and even the distant knowledge that the palace was beginning to shake with the force of the queen’s power. Overhead the glass dome shattered, littering the room with deadly shards, but neither woman took her eyes off the other as the lethal battle of wills persisted without pause.

Lost in her anger, it took Morgana some time to at last realize that her desperate strikes weren’t harming Anna. It wasn’t until Anna was standing almost directly in front of her that she dropped her hands and took a step backward.

Or at least she attempted to take a step backward.

The green eyes widened as she was snapped forward, presumably by the force of the emerald.

“What are you doing?” the queen demanded, an unmistakable fear threaded through her voice. “Stop this.”

Anna managed a wry smile through her lingering pain. “You want me to stop so you can kill me?”

“I will kill you either way, but it’s up to you whether it’s fast or painfully slow.”

The brave words echoed through the crumbling chamber, but they rang empty as Morgana was jerked closer to the pulsing emerald glow.

Anna’s eyes widened as she realized that the emerald had gone from absorbing Morgana’s power to actually trying to absorb the woman behind the powers.

Was that possible?

Even in the wacky world of demons it seemed…bizarre.

Not at all sure what was coming next, Anna took a step back, needing a moment to consider the implications. It was a moment that was to be denied her as Morgana gave a low cry and tried to grab a nearby column as she skidded across the marble floor in Anna’s wake.

Holy crap.

Anna glanced down at the emerald that had started to pulse in her hand, the green glow darkening and spreading as if it scented its prey.

And that prey was Morgana le Fay.

Coming to a sharp halt, Anna could do nothing but watch as Morgana was hauled ever closer to the strange flames that surrounded her.

“No,” Morgana rasped, arching her back as if she could somehow avoid the encroaching shimmer. “What do you want? Gold? Power? To sit at my side and rule?”

Now she wanted to bargain?

Anna gave a sad shake of her head. She didn’t know what the hell was going on with the emerald, but whatever it was, it was now out of her control.

“I told you what I wanted, but you refused to listen,” she muttered, her stomach twisting with a strange sense of resignation. “You just had to keep pushing me until it came to this.”

“Fine, I’ll push you no more,” the woman promised with more desperation than sincerity. “You set me free and I will never trouble you again.”

Anna rolled her eyes. For God’s sake, did the woman think she was completely brain-dead? Even assuming she could set Morgana free, she knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that her homicidal aunt would strike without blinking an eye.

A promise from the Queen of Fairies wasn’t actually something she could take to the bank.

Gritting her teeth, she tried to ignore the steady pulse of the gem. Ugh. It felt as if…as if Morgana’s very essence was being absorbed into the stone.

Damn.

Her grandfather had promised the stone would help direct her powers. He hadn’t said anything about sucking Morgana into it.

Obviously the emerald’s power came something as a surprise to Morgana as well. Her expression was contorted as she wrapped her arms around herself, once again calling on her powers as if they might save her from the inevitable.

“Damn you, Anna Randal,” she screeched, her eyes glittering with a feral hatred. “You can’t best me. It isn’t possible. I’m your queen.”

“You’re not my queen,” Anna muttered, resisting the urge to close her eyes. If she had to be the one responsible for killing Morgana le Fay, then by God, she would have to be the one to witness the tragedy. “Never my queen.”

“You’re wrong,” Morgana hissed. “I’m destined to rule the world.”

Anna grimaced as the green glow crawled relentlessly up Morgana’s arms and the overly proud woman fell to her knees. Around her the room continued to shake beneath Morgana’s power, pieces of marble and gold flying through the air.

“Yeah, not so much,” she breathed.

A disturbing cry was wrenched from Morgana’s lips as she became consumed in the green fire.

“Modron. Where is my seer?” Morgana wailed, giving a confused shake of her head. “I need her. I need…”

A wave of regret crashed through Anna as Morgana was completely swallowed by the power of the emerald. It wasn’t that she didn’t accept that this was the only possible choice. Morgana le Fay was not only determined to kill her, but she was a megalomaniac who wouldn’t be satisfied until she had the entire world bowing at her feet. But, that didn’t mean Anna could take pleasure in her horrid punishment.

The flickering flames were beginning to thicken, obscuring the kneeling woman in a thick cloak of green.

For a moment the awful wailing continued, then there was an explosion of green fire and Anna screamed as she was thrown across the vast room and crashed into the golden throne.

The various demons and others who crowded into the cramped kitchen froze in wary unease as Cezar hauled Troy against the wall. No doubt they expected him to rip out the throat of the imp who had, after all, taken him hostage. Cezar, however, was not nearly as furious with Troy as he was with himself.

How the hell had he forgotten for even a moment that he had given his ring to Anna for her to wear around her throat? Dios, he must be losing his mind. The ancient ring might not claim the same magic as her emerald, but it possessed the one thing he needed to find her.

He ignored their questioning glances as he glared into the imp’s wide eyes. “You’re going to take me to Anna,” he growled.

Troy swallowed the lump in his throat. “I told you it’s not possible.”

“Can you make a portal or not?”

“Of course I can make a portal. I am fey.”

“Then do it.”

Troy rolled his eyes. “I have to know where I’m going and no one, no one, knows where Avalon is located. Only Morgana can create a portal there.”

Cezar couldn’t allow the thought of Anna alone on the isle with Morgana to enter his mind. He was too close to the edge. Suddenly Styx was at his side, his hand landing on Cezar’s shoulder to keep him steady.

“You can use a person to anchor your portal,” he said to Troy, his voice edged with his barely contained fury.

“I may be the Prince of Imps, but I don’t have the sort of power to latch on to a woman I’ve met on two occasions, through the protective mists that surround the isle,” Troy retorted, his expression hardening with impatience. “It’s like randomly dialing numbers on the telephone in the hope you hit the person you want to talk to. I don’t have enough of her essence to call her to my mind.”

“You won’t have to. You can dial my number.”

Troy blinked, and then blinked again. “Forgive me, Conde, but I don’t think it’s going to be a lot of help if I make a portal leading to you.”

“No.” Cezar gave the imp a small shake. It was that or choke him. “Anna is not only my mate, but she was wearing my ring. A ring that has been an intimate part of me for the past five centuries. You search for an echo of me and you will find her.”

A silence filled the room as Troy considered his words. “I suppose it might work,” he at last conceded.

“It will work,” Cezar said grimly, not willing to allow any doubt that he would soon have Anna in his arms. “Now do it.”

Troy frowned, a hint of reluctance flashing through his eyes. “Before I do this, I want your promise that you will protect me from the queen. Morgana’s not particularly happy with me right now and…”

Cezar growled low in his throat. “Troy, you test my patience.”

“Fine,” Troy huffed. “Release me and I’ll make your damn portal.”

Stepping back, Cezar kept a close watch on the imp as he smoothed his long mane of crimson hair before moving to the small clearing in the center of the kitchen. At Cezar’s side, Styx snorted in disgust as Troy held out his slender hands, waving them in a fluttering motion, as if searching for the best location for his portal. Like one spot on the cracked, filthy linoleum was better than another.