Page 13

Chapter

Thirteen

T error like I’ve never known races through me. Everything spins as I try to process what’s happening.

“Remy!” I shout frantically. “Answer me!”

I pull at the rocks that fill the tunnel, trying to dislodge them.

“Stop.” Thorne’s gloved hands drag me away. “You can’t touch those, or you risk it caving in even more.”

I fight his hold. “I have to help him. Please, I can’t leave him there.”

“Ivy, look at me,” he says gently and I realize it’s the first time he’s used my nickname. “If you start pulling at these, you don’t know what that could do to the rest of the tunnel. A lot of these rocks are holding up the others. You pull them out, and the rest come crashing down.”

My chest clenches at the thought of Remy being crushed. Helplessness weighs down my limbs as I squeeze my eyes shut.

“The area they were in was more stable,” Thorne continues, his voice soft. “It’s likely that section didn’t collapse, and right now, they’re going back the way they came.”

I shake my head as hope threatens to bloom inside me. “You don’t know that.”

I open my eyes to find him rolling up his sleeve and exposing his forearm. My brow pinches in confusion. “What are you?—”

The sight of his veins turning black cuts off whatever questions I was about to ask. Starting at the crook of his forearm, dark lines move underneath his skin toward his wrist. In some distant corner of my mind, I’m aware that this is the first time I’ve seen this much of him. He always keeps himself covered.

Right before my eyes, a small shadow snake appears in his hand, its red eyes gazing up at Thorne. He nods, and the snake darts toward the collapsed tunnel, disappearing as it slip in-between the cracks in the rocks.

He turns back to me. “If they’re there, my shadow will find them.”

“Thank you,” I whisper, still vaguely unsettled by the sight of the strange snake.

Minutes pass as we silently wait for news.

“Will it need to return?” I ask quietly, unsure what kind of a connection he has to his beasts. “Or are you able to see through its eyes?”

He shakes his head. “She’ll tell me what she finds.”

My gaze widens. “She?”

He nods but doesn’t elaborate.

“It’s clear,” he says finally. “There are no bodies in the tunnels, and she saw people at the other end.”

“They made it.” Air whooshes from my lungs, leaving me dizzy with relief as I fall to my knees, unbothered by the hard rocks beneath me. “Remy’s alright.”

Thorne nods, turning to check out our surroundings. “But we won’t be if we don’t keep moving.”

Knowing he’s right, I push the wave of emotions down and I force myself to stand up. The others will be alright, but right now I need to focus on getting out of this place. Stepping closer to the river, I glance upstream as I try to get a sense for where we are geographically. “I suppose the water must flow in from the ocean that way. So, if we move downstream, we’d be going west?”

“The river could bend at some point,” Thorne points out beside me. “No way to be sure.”

“I guess we’ll have to follow it and find out. Do you suppose Darby tried to swim?”

“No…” He says slowly as his gaze catches on something behind me. “No, I think I he paddled.”

“What?” I ask, turning to follow his eyeline. Squinting through the darkness, I can make out the shape of wooden canoes sitting on the rocky shore about twenty feet away.

We hurry toward them, careful not to trip on the uneven surface. Apprehension stirs within me as I notice there are three of them. That number has always been considered important to those who worship the three sisters. This morning, I thought perhaps I’d felt the interference of the Fates. How fortuitous that these boats are here waiting for us in a tunnel that isn’t even supposed to exist…

Is this a sign that I’m following the right path? A sinking sensation pulls in my gut. Given the things I’ve done, I can’t imagine they’re leading me anywhere good. Fate is never kind to someone like me.

“Do you think people used to use these tunnels often?” Thorne asks. “Before your king had them closed off?”

Cobwebs line the interior, sparking the terrifying question of how many spiders have lived in these boats over the years. I swipe my finger against the wood, leaving a dust trail behind. “Maybe, but they look like they’ve been down here for ages.”

Thorne examines the canoes closely, poking certain spots as he searches for damage. “Lucky for us, the wood’s not rotted.”

Yes, I think. How lucky.

“Do you honestly believe Darby used one of these to get out?” I ask.

“I think that’s exactly what happened.” He points to impressions left in the dirt where something was clearly pushed toward the water. “I hope you’re good with an oar.”

Working together, we manage to get one of the boats into the river, where freezing water fills the soles of my boots. Thorne holds it steady as I climb in and take the back seat. After I’m settled, he hops into the front, letting the heavy current move us forward.

My tired arms protest as I drag the oar through the water, paddling in unison with Thorne. Unfortunately, it’s much harder than the fisherman at the docks make it look. My body aches from the repeated movements, but I don’t stop. I keep my gaze on Thorne, noting how his back and shoulder muscles flex as he rows. The movement is strangely mesmerizing.

Eventually, the water calms down enough for us to carry on a conversation. I can’t stop myself from asking a question that’s been on my mind since we started rowing.

“Why don’t you just fly out?”

“And abandon you?” He tosses a grin over his shoulder.

When he turns back around, I briefly consider smacking him on the head with my oar. For a moment, I think he won’t answer me, but then he speaks again.

“Look up.” He points at the sharp rocks jutting out of the ceiling. The light from my sunstone catches the glare of beady eyes as they stare down at me. Bats. I quickly drop my gaze, hoping to avoid angering this group. I’d prefer not to be swarmed again.

“Those rocks combined with poor visibility don’t make for good flying conditions,” Thorne continues to explain. “It’s not worth the risk.”

“How do you conceal your wings?” I ask again.

“Magic.”

As I roll my eyes at his nonanswer, something below the surface catches my attention. A flickering light darts past us beneath the dark waters.

My brows shoot up as I grab the side of the boat and peer over the edge. “Did you see that?”

“What?” he asks, twisting toward me.

Bursts of color move through the water: blue, purple, and green. Dozens of them swim in playful circles around our canoe.

“Well, I definitely saw that,” he says, releasing his oar as he turns around.

Lights rise to the surface, coming close enough for us to make out their shape.

“Gormags,” I murmur, memorized by the school of tiny fish.

Gormags are one of the most beautiful creatures in the world, despite their small size. Each of them emits a bioluminescent glow, creating a sea of color around us. They’re usually only found at great depths, but somehow, a colony of them must have migrated to this underground river. I suppose it makes sense, since they avoid sunlight.

“I’ve never seen them in person before,” Thorne muses next to me. “Only in paintings.”

“Neither have I.” I reach a hand into the water, utterly enthralled by their beauty. Several of the gormags come to investigate, sliding against my fingers with their slick scales.

Thorne’s gaze flickers to me. “You and the captain seem familiar.”

I twist my head toward him, surprised by the randomness of statement.

“He’s the closest thing I’ve had to a father,” I answer honestly as I continue dragging my hand through the water and letting the fish inspect me.

Thorne’s brows pinch with confusion. “I thought Lord Pomeroy was still alive?”

I narrow my eyes at him. “Have you been checking up on me, Reaper?”

“Perhaps.” He shrugs, not sounding sorry.

“Then I’m sure you can fill in the blanks about why my father and I aren’t close,” I say, turning my attention back to the fish. I laugh as one of them wraps its mouth around my pinky, nibbling at me with its gums.

Thorne chuckles, the sound rich and throaty. “Is it trying to eat you?”

I smile as the fish releases my finger. “Pretty difficult without teeth.”

My amusement fades as the gormags suddenly scatter, disappearing back to the depths of the river and leaving us in darkness again.

“What happened?” My brows scrunch together.

“I think we should—” Thorne’s words cut off as his gaze shifts behind me, his face twisting with horror.

I don’t get a chance to ask him what’s wrong before something wraps around my torso and drags me overboard. My eyes sting as I struggle to see anything through the dark water rushing around me. I make out a pale tentacle wrapped about my waist, pinning my arms to my sides. Thrashing against its hold, I fight to free myself as it pulls me to the bottom of the river.

The rope-like limb tightens against my stomach, squeezing the air out of me as I struggle to hold my breath. With my arms trapped at my sides, I use my limited mobility to stretch my fingers toward one of the blades strapped to my thigh. I manage to pull it from its sheath and twist my wrist, jabbing the creature. For a brief moment, it loosens, allowing me to free one arm before it tightens its hold again and slams me against the riverbed.

My head smacks off a large rock, sending a flash of hot pain through my skull. Momentarily disoriented, my eyes drift to the surface where light and dark dance above me. A vibrant red glow illuminates the water as inky shadows battle pale tentacles. I briefly wonder if the gormags have returned when I’m suddenly dragged across the muddy bed of the river.

Terror fills me as I realize it’s pulling me toward a large hole about twenty feet away. Suddenly, a pale squid-like creature rises from its depths, opening its wide mouth to show me two large black teeth shaped like a bird’s beak.

My heart hammers in my chest and panic sets in. A scream tries to claw out of my throat, but there’s no air to give it voice. Thrashing around, I use my free arm to reach out, searching for anything to grab onto. My fingers cling to another large rock. I use all of my strength to curl myself around it as the long tentacle tries to pull me toward the monster’s open mouth.

The creature yanks harder, squeezing me tight enough to crack a rib. I want to cry as the stone begins to loosen from the sand. There’s no way it’s going to hold much longer. My mind races as I search for a way out, but the only solution I can think of might just kill me.

A violent scream tears from my mouth as I roar at the monster. Water fills my throat as the familiar pain rips through me. My very core is being split in two. I’m sure my head is about to explode as the eidolon materializes in front of me. Her vacant eyes stare into the distance as I silently command her to swim toward me.

Obeying my orders, she grabs one of the knives strapped to my thigh, quickly using it to slice through the thick tentacle. Dark blood leaks into the water as its detached limb floats to the floor. A horrible, high-pitched shriek fills my ears as the creature leaps from its hole, gnashing its hideous black teeth at us as several more tentacles race forward.

My lungs burn as I use what little strength I have left to wrap myself in an illusion and push toward the surface, leaving my duplicate behind to distract the squid.

Kill it!

She obeys, swinging her blade at the monster while dodging its angry tentacles. I swim faster, knowing she won’t last long on her own.

The lights above me are brighter now, but I don’t have time to question their source. The pressure in my lungs is nearly overwhelming as my body urges me to breathe. Horrible screams come from the surface as a large creature crashes into the water. Another squid. Its body is blackened, burned . It’s completely still as it sinks to the bottom.

A moment later Thorne dives into the water, his shadows following behind him. They move through the dark, searching for something. His eyes widen with fear as the water turns red around me.

A sharp pain slices through me, making my body jerk.

My eidolon.

Agony burns inside of me as I turn back, squinting through the crimson haze to find her floating in pieces. The image of my own likeness ripped apart in such a way has me gasping. The river fills my throat once more, the taste of it unlocking the secret prison within my mind. That fateful day so many years ago, I drowned in water just like this. Then, I felt as if I was being cradled in its embrace as it lulled me to sleep. This time is different. Brutal and unfair. I kick my legs harder as the strength begins to leave my body. My illusions dissolve, leaving me visible as my eidolon winks out of existence.

Thorne’s gaze lands on me, and the last thing I see before my eyes drift shut are dark shadows speeding toward me.