Dark Merlin: The Man Called Emrys

XXI

MERLIN'S HEAD BOBBED AND his feet were dragged along the dirt as he was carried in between a pair of muscular men. She didn't know it, but Morgana had brought him back to right where he wanted to be. Right back to where it all started.

The hands around his arms suddenly let go and his palms slapped the cold ground as he caught himself. He grimaced as his head pounded from the fifty or so fists that had slammed against his skull. Heels tapped along the ground and he slowly lifted his head, finding Morgana towering over him with a glare.

He cleared his throat as he quickly tried to come up with an excuse, but he wasn't as quick witted as Emrys was. He flashed a smile as he pushed himself back onto his heels. Looking up at her, he said, "Thank goodness it's you. Maybe now we can finally clear this up." He glared between the men at his sides. "These fools thought I was—"

He was interrupted as a hand flew across his face. Morgana knelt down and wrapped her petite hand around his throat. "You are not Emrys," she forced through gritted teeth, her grasp tightening. "Don't even try to act like him." She leaned in closer, tears glistening in her eyes as her anger burned. "You ... killed him. I could feel it." With a snort, she chuckled. "And now what? You come back expecting to kill me too?"

She squeezed a little tighter before finally throwing him to the side. Merlin gasped and coughed as he rubbed his aching neck. He should've known she'd be able to see right through him. From what he had collected, Emrys and Morgana had spent a lot of time together and had formed a bond. He should've known better than to try and fool her. He shot her a glance, and she smiled.

"You'd be a fool to think you could kill me, Merlin." She raised her head high. "Or to believe that I would think you were alone." Merlin froze. "My men tell me how willingly you came. Didn't put up a fight even though the both of us know that you could've easily taken them." She shrugged. "Maybe not have won, but definitely could've done some damage." She stalked closer. "No, I knew there had to be a reason." Bending down, she gazed into his eyes. "You wanted to be captured—even despite our history." She narrowed her eyes. "You were the distraction." Morgana gave an unexpected grin as she stood and walked away.

Merlin's heart fluttered, figuring out that she knew about Arthur. He tried standing to go after her, but one of the soldiers kicked his leg out from underneath him, a loud crack of his bones following, sending him back to the dirt on his side. Balling his hand, he said, "I don't know what you're talking about, Morgana." He rolled over to face her. "It's just me, and believe me ..." He eyed her intensely. "After everything you and Emrys made me do ... I will kill you."

Again, Morgana laughed, her wicked grin sending chills down his spine. "Oh, Merlin. Always the optimist."

With a cringe, he said, "If you're going to kill me just get on with it." He pushed himself up onto his elbow, and glared at her. "There is nothing that you can do to me anymore, Morgana." Out of the blue, he found himself smiling as an overwhelming calmness filled him. "I can die happy."

"Oh, I'm not going to kill you, Merlin," she said, speaking like he was foolish to even think such a thing. She twisted her body halfway around as she said, "He is."

As she stepped aside, the blood in Merlin's face drained at the sight of Arthur standing in-between a pair of boulders on both sides of the pathway.

Slowly, Merlin stood and this time the solider didn't interfere. He glanced from Morgana to Arthur, who stared at him coldly, his eyes glowing a deep red. "What did you do to him, Morgana?"

Morgana's smile faded. "He just killed several of my men and made me lose the only leverage I had over the Druids. Trust me, what I did is less than he deserves."