Page 137 of Where Darkness Falls

Emyr has clutched me tightly against his body ever since we left the palace. A part of me desires to linger in his embrace, to rest my head against his strong chest. I wish to be held and adored by him, but the man continues to baffle me with his unpredictable personality. One moment he’s protecting me, and in the next he creates a barrier between us. I’ve given him the space he needs, but then he acts in a way that pulls me back—melting the ice that I unsuccessfully buildaround my heart.

I clear my throat, leaning forward to put some distance between us, even if it breaks my heart. I focus on something else—anything else—other than the shift in the air that accompanies Emyr’s temperamental mood swings. Unfortunately, all I can see is the darkness surrounding us, which does nothing to quail my thoughts from traveling back to the man steering Danté, or the warning that his father spoke into my mind.

From this deep within the woods, I no longer see the light gray sky through the thick, decaying foliage. The limbs of the tall trees twist above, making the most horrifying display as they loom over us,watching us. Even though the scent of death hangs heavily here, the life that dwells and slumbers within the plants and trees summons me. There’s something about this place that beckons for me to unleash my starlight, to allow it to travel through the earth.

However, I ignore this even as my skin continuously prickles on the back of my neck. I look around, trying to find the source of my discomfort. However, as every time before, I don’t see a beast or creature, just the silhouettes of dark brambles and gnarled roots climbing from the bases of the trees. Howls of unknown monsters fill the atmosphere, but they don’t sound close to us. There isn’t light here beyond the luminescent eyes of the Galrosans and the occasional buzzing faeries. Their glowing irises aren’t nearly as startling as they were the first time I encountered them. My mind wanders back to those moments. My life has changed so drastically in just a few months. I went from the invisible florist to the one prophesied to awaken the Na Fíréin.

You wanted an adventure beyond Aurelius,I remind myself.

I just never imagined it would’ve occurred in this manner?—

Danté’s cry breaks me out of my thoughts. He frantically paws at the ground. Then, without warning, he picks up speed at an alarming rate. The other steeds respond in kind. The quick movement throws my body into Emyr’s chest with a thump. His strong arm steadies me, while the other pulls on Danté’s reins.

“Easy,” Emyr whispers, but the horse is unsettled. The poor thing just whinnies louder, fighting Emyr’s command to slow down. The restof the Cadre have the same issues with their mounts as the horses throw their heads to the left-hand side of the path, as if trying to signal that something is amiss.

I swivel my head to face Emyr. “What is troubling them?” I ask.

“I’m not sure,” he replies.

“Something has spooked them, Emyr,” Laisren interjects.

Out of the corner of my eye, something faintly glistens on the ground to the left of our group. It isn’t necessarily glowing, but it almost looks like a reflection of something over a large mass. However, my eyes haven’t fully adjusted to the opaque woods, I can’t see as well as the Cadre. Pulling from my starlight, I summon a small, luminescent orb, sending it out toward the area. The Galrosans watch as the orb stops at the baseline of a hollowed tree.

You shouldn’t look too closely, my dear,Saoirse’s voice warns.

There’s a note of panic in her tone, which only heightens my curiosity. I squint my eyes to see what my orb has illuminated, and a shriek escapes my lips.

“Holy Celestae,” Riordan and Virgil hiss.

“Rosey, avert your gaze,” Emyr begs.

But I can’t because what I see is far worse than I could’ve imagined.

It’s the mangled bodies of multiple Malvorians, thrown into one large heap of oozing blood and gore, each one with a gaping hole in their chest and throat. However, that isn’t the most unsettling part. It’s their glassy eyes that disturb me as they gaze lifelessly in our direction.

My starlight dissolves above the gruesome scene, casting all the surroundings back into a gloomy shadow. However, the darkness doesn’t erase the horrific vision from my mind. Even in the pitch dark, I envision their corpses. My body trembles, and I force the bile down as it rises in my throat.

Tell them to run!Saoirse pleads.

“We need to run,” I order.

While I don’t notice anything sinister nearby, I sense it. The temperature has dropped several degrees as the noisy woods fall unnaturally silent.

Something’s coming, and you must go now if you wish to survive,Saoirse bellows.

I grab the reins from Emyr, but he quickly snatches them, holding me steady. “Maeva, it’s okay. They’re just bodies left behind,” Emyr says. “I don’t sense any creature here.”

I squirm against his hold, shaking my head. “Emyr, we need to gonow,” I whisper.

However, the Galrosans continue their conversation as I attempt to break free of Emyr’s hold. “The bodies are probably what spooked the horses too,” Laisren says. “However, I didn’t see them the first time I scanned the treeline.”

“It could just be an illusion of the woods trying to frighten us away,” Virgil’s voice cuts in.

All of you are dead if you remain here,Saoirse warns.

Then, there’s a rustling of movement amongst the trees around our group. The sounds linger closer by the second, and of course, the bloody men are either lying about their keen hearing, or they’re too caught up in their own thoughts to notice it. “Listen to me!” I bellow, hushing the men. “We need to run… now!”

Though they each stare at me as if I’ve lost my mind, I continue on. “Can’t you feel the shift in the atmosphere here?” I pause, pointing to the surrounding woods. “There’s something out there. It’s lurking—closing in, and if we tarry any longer, we’re going to die. Order the horses to run!”