Page 22 of Kingdom of Chaos (Creatures of Chaos #2)

Fourteen

“Where’s the motor?” I ask, tilting my head as I eye the flat-bottomed boat we’re about to launch into the swamp.

It’s a rental that Talon and Imogen secured during their supply run yesterday.

Little does the owner know that if we actually find the gate we’re looking for, there’s a good chance he’ll never see this vessel again.

“It’s right here,” Talon says, tapping the cage that houses a giant fan mounted at the back. The whole setup is welded directly onto the hull.

“I don’t get it.”

Talon chuckles at my confusion. “Swamps and marshes are too shallow for traditional boats. An airboat doesn’t use an in-water motor, it uses that propeller. It forces air behind the boat to push it forward.”

I give him a skeptical look, stepping aside as Imogen backs the Valkyrie up to position the trailer. Once the boat is in place, Talon and Titus help ease it into the murky water.

“Have you ever been on one of these?” I ask Ensley as she comes to stand beside me.

“Once,” she says. “We vacationed in the swamplands a few years ago and did a half-day fishing trip.” She chuckles.

“Becks was terrible at fishing. It was hilarious watching him fail at something for once. He got so frustrated he started lobbing fireballs at the fish. Our guide freaked out and cut the trip short. Apparently, swamps are protected areas. Fire? Big no-no.”

The guys get the boat in the water successfully, and Imogen drives the trailer to a nearby parking spot.

“I remember these being really loud,” Ensley says as Talon and Titus rejoin us.

“They are,” Talon confirms. “That’s why the rental place gave us noise-canceling earmuffs.”

We leave behind any extra baggage and supplies we don’t plan to take, including the super-secret book Imogen “borrowed” from the Arcane Society.

Talon and Imogen agree that it’s only a matter of time, maybe a day at most, before the Society tracks down the Valkyrie and reclaims it.

Bringing such a valuable artifact through the gate felt like too big a risk.

Once we’ve unloaded what we need from the SUV, we climb aboard the airboat.

Imogen, Titus, Ensley, and I take the two bench seats in the middle, while Talon settles into the raised seat at the back.

From there, he’ll be steering with what looks like nothing more than a long stick connected to the massive propeller frame behind him.

“Earmuffs on,” Talon instructs, his voice clipped.

We slip them over our ears, and the world immediately falls silent. A moment later, the propeller roars to life.

Dang, it is loud. Even through the earmuffs.

Talon eases the boat into the water, navigating smoothly through the swamp’s maze of twisting rivers and pathways. The gate is supposed to be about five miles from our launch point, and Talon handles the vessel with practiced ease.

Wildlife flanks us at every turn, signs of life thriving in the marsh’s murky calm.

A massive alligator, at least fifteen feet long, glides silently alongside the boat.

A turtle basks on a fallen tree branch ahead, and Talon gently steers us around it.

A snowy bird takes flight from a nearby cypress tree, flapping noisily.

That makes five bird species I’ve counted so far.

As the boat slows, Talon signals that we can remove our earmuffs. It’s still noisy, but not unbearable. If we talk loudly, we can be heard over the propellor.

“Okay, we’re in the area,” Talon says, reducing our speed to a near crawl. “Keep your eyes open.”

According to Talon and Imogen, the gate will look like part of the environment. It will be a ring or an arch shape, but it’ll be disguised, hidden in plain sight. If everything goes according to plan, we’ll activate the gate and get through before the monster can fully wake and reach us.

If not, we’ll have to fight.

We round a bend and the narrow waterway suddenly opens into a dense wooded area that’s too thick for the airboat to pass through.

Talon looks to Imogen, who gives a single nod. That’s our path forward.

“All right,” Talon says. “We’re going by foot from here.”

With our packs strapped to our backs, we unload one by one from the boat onto a soggy patch of grass. Cold water immediately seeps into my shoes, but I knew it was inevitable. Searching a swamp for a hidden gate to another world isn’t exactly a dry adventure.

When did my life get so weird?

We trudge through the marsh in relative silence, accompanied only by the quiet hum of wildlife and the squelching of our footsteps.

We try to stick to raised patches of ground, but more than once we’re forced into the water.

Before long, I’m soaked up to my calves.

I really hope the human world has showers, because the minute we get there, I’m going to need one.

The vegetation grows thicker until we’re completely surrounded by tangled trees and underbrush. Titus takes the lead, hacking through the dense foliage with a machete or pushing it aside with subtle waves of fae magic. I pass my necklace up to him to make his job a little easier.

We’re passing through a particularly tight spot when a sharp hiss makes me freeze. I glance to the side just in time to come face-to-face with a black snake coiled around a branch at eye level. Its belly is a vivid, angry red.

I yelp and jerk back, slamming straight into Talon, who’s bringing up the rear. His arm wraps firmly around my waist, steadying both of us and pulling me flush against his chest.

“Easy,” he says, his voice low and calm. I can feel the vibration of the words where our bodies touch. “Just a swamp snake. They’re not dangerous.”

I glance back just as the snake slithers down the tree and disappears into the murky water. A shiver runs through me. Dangerous or not, snakes seriously creep me out.

I silently renew my hope that Talon isn’t a snake shapeshifter.

“You really don’t like snakes, do you?” Talon chuckles as he lets go of me.

“That’s an understatement.”

I step forward cautiously, and as we push through a dense patch of brush, my mind drifts to everything except what it should. Snakes, Talon, Becks . . . even Imogen and my parents. I should be scanning for the gate, staying alert. Instead, I’m chewing my lip and letting my thoughts run wild.

Ensley stops abruptly, and because I’m not paying attention, I plow right into her.

“Shoot, sorry—” I begin, but the words die as I glance past her and see what made her freeze.

There’s a break in the trees ahead, and beyond lies a wide, glistening lake. Patches of grass and clusters of trees dot the surface, and thick forest surrounds the open water like a natural barrier.

The five of us step closer to the edge for a better look. The water looks deep. Maybe too deep to wade through, and there’s no obvious path across. Still, a tug in my gut tells me the gate is out there, somewhere in that clearing, waiting to be found.

“The gate’s somewhere in there,” Talon says, echoing my thoughts.

Imogen grimaces and casts a mournful look down at her already-waterlogged knee-high boots. With an exaggerated huff, she trudges forward without waiting for the rest of us. The moment she steps into the swamp, she sinks nearly up to her hip in the murky water.

“We should’ve picked a gate in the tropics,” she mutters. “I could’ve worn a bathing suit while we searched white sand beaches. But no, we had to pick the one in the nastiest, most miserable location possible.”

“Do I need to remind you that you’re the one who found and suggested this gate?” Talon calls after her.

“I don’t remember it that way,” Imogen tosses back as she reaches the first grassy patch where a few trees rise from the soggy ground but nothing else stands out.

The rest of us share a look, then start wading in ourselves, fanning out to explore different directions.

I keep my eyes locked on the dark, opaque water, scanning for the flash of scales or a ripple too wide to be harmless. The thought of snakes or lizards lurking beneath the surface makes my pulse spike, and I hurry toward the nearest patch of grass.

When I reach a patch of spongy, semi-dry land, I stop to scan the marshy expanse, but nothing stands out. No arch. No circle. No hint of anything magical. My heart sinks. I didn’t expect it to be easy, but I’d hoped we might at least catch a glimmer of something .

In the distance, I spot Titus jerk back just in time to avoid stepping on what looks like either an alligator or a crocodile. The massive reptile snaps at him before sliding into the water with a splash, a cold reminder of how dangerous these swamps really are.

One bite could kill me. I don’t have supernatural healing. Not like the others.

But now I know why. Because I’m human.

Talon sticks nearby as we search. Not so near that it draws attention, but close enough that I know he’s watching my back.

I want to be annoyed by that, but with all the creepy crawlies lurking in the swamp, I can’t bring myself to mind.

If anything, Talon seems like living swamp repellent.

Every time he approaches, even the most docile animals scatter.

I can’t help but wonder if they sense the predator in him.

I think it’s probably just my imagination, until I watch a turtle bolt with surprising speed after Talon shoots it a side-eye.

We comb through the lake area for what feels like forever, slowly making our way from one side of the circular wetland to the other. By the time we reach the far bank, the water has shallowed to knee height between the scattered patches of land.

No one says much anymore. The silence hangs heavy between us, our faces marked with fatigue and frustration.

I really thought this would be it, that the gate was here. But as doubt creeps in, the ground beneath us trembles.

We freeze.