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The tunnel was smooth, dark, lightning fast.

It burned my skin as I rode down and through, but only on my bare arms and my upper back. Pretty much every other part of me was covered by the long dress, although that was slowly hiking up my body as I plummeted down.

It might not have burned my arms either, but I held them out for the first few seconds, trying instinctively to slow myself down, I suppose. I’d been traveling down for a few seconds when I realized it was no use and pulled my arms in, resting my hands on my body in front of me.

I rode the rest of the way down that steep angle on my back, sliding up and down the pipe walls as I rounded curves.

It was definitely a lot less painful that way.

I expected to land on Jax at the bottom.

Well, I told myself I would probably land on Jax.

I tried to convince myself I would land on Jax.

I told myself we’d laugh about it.

Or maybe Black would be down there, staring up at the chute’s opposite opening, waiting to catch me, or to scold me for taking so long… or both.

I tried not to think about the fact that I had absolutely no idea what waited for me at the bottom. I tried not to think about the fact that I had no idea ifanyof them––Black, Jax, Kiko, or Dexter––were even still alive.

I might land straight into a tub of acid.

I might fall forever into a pit of hellfire or something, some portal of supernatural darkness opened up by Brick’s psychotic mother.

For the same reason, when I popped out the other side, I let out a shriek.

I soared through the air in a curved arc…

…and landed unceremoniously in a thick, inflatable cushion that gently broke my fall.

It didn’t hurt at all.

It was shocking how utterlynotpainful it was.

I lay there for maybe three seconds, gasping, staring up at a high wooden ceiling, in a large-feeling room that smelled like freshly dug earth, chalk, and moldering plants. Then I sat up with an effort, struggling my way across the inflated cushion until I reached the edge. I climbed unceremoniously off and landed on a cement floor with my stockinged feet.

Only then did I look around.

Black, Jax, Kiko, and Dex were all looking at me, frowning.

I returned their gazes, frowning back.

I was relieved to see them alive.

I was really, really relieved.

But something was wrong.

Not least because they were all holding up their hands, almost as if––

“Well now… hello there, Dr. Fox.” The vampire tilted his head, his colorless eyes regarding me without emotion. “Or is it Dr. Black? Some hyphenated combination? It drives me mad that I still don’t know that, after all this time…”

He grinned at me, his white teeth flashing in the dark.

“I think you left me off your list of official correspondence, regarding any formal name change, Miriam. And all I can say to that istsk, tsk.Although I suppose it’s fairly egregious on my part that I have not found some other way to discern the truth of this, given how long it’s been now, since you and Quentin have been seer and wife.”

I stared at him.