Chapter 24
Chapter Twenty-Four
Dara
My knees buckle as I stare at the destruction in front of me. What was once a solid wall is now all but a pile of rubble, with Harlan stuck behind it. Holy shit. What am I going to do? How can we get through that when all my energy feels as if it’s left my body? The thought of him trapped in there snaps me out of my trance.
“We need to get him out,” I yell desperately. The guys jump into action, quickly but methodically shifting rocks out of the way. I glance to my right; Jolie is ghost white.
I move towards her. “Jolie, are you okay?”
Just as I reach her, she starts to drop and I make it just in time to catch her.
Kneeling down, I pull her limp body into my lap, brushing her blonde hair out of her face. She is so pale—like Snow White. Oliver curses. Blair and Declan look over with panic written on their faces. I mentally tell them to keep moving the rocks.
Oliver and I will deal with Jolie.
Crouching beside us, Oliver gently slaps Jolie’s cheek, trying to wake her up.
“Jolie, wake up. Speak to me. Come on,” Oliver rushes out.
She’s so still, which causes my heart to beat faster. After a few moments, I notice the colour—a light pink—come back to her cheeks. Her eyelashes flutter before she opens her beautiful green eyes wide.
Once Oliver realises she’s all right, he joins the others.
“You okay?” I ask, looking down at her with concern.
Pulling herself up off my knees, she shakes the dirt from her body and smirks. “I'm fine. Stop being a worrywart.” She swats my arm playfully, plastering on a fake smile.
Walking off, she doesn't look back, but I know she’s definitely not okay. Why isn't she being honest with me? I feel Harlan's connection come back just as his voice booms through my head.
I’m fine, Dara.
I relax slightly at his words. Thank God, he’s okay. That's one problem solved. Now, onto the next.
Lifting myself up off the ground, I walk over to the others. Jolie avoids looking at me, but I catch Oliver's eye as he lifts up a large rock and throws it behind him. He knows as well as I do that something is wrong with Jolie.
“I just heard from Harlan,” I say. “He’s okay, but what do you guys reckon we should do?”
“Have you girls got anything left in you? Want to try the spell again?” Blair asks, rubbing the back of his head. I look towards Jolie. I know she isn't up to it, but I wait to hear what she says.
She clears her throat. “Yep, I’m good. Let's do it.” Stepping back, she closes her eyes and takes several deep breaths, but I can still see the pain written all over her face.
I yell out, “Enough.”
Her eyes cut to mine. “I'm fine, Dara,” she snaps, wobbling on her feet.
“You are not good, Jolie. What just happened proves it,” I state, placing my hand on my hip. She lowers her gaze to the ground.
She sighs, rubbing her hands over her face in frustration. “I'm sorry. I don't know what's wrong with me, but I feel so drained of power.”
Coming up beside her, I pull her into a hug and pat her on the back. “It's fine, Jolie. It’s okay not to feel a hundred per cent,” I reassure her. “I’ve got this; I’ve got us.”
Stepping back, I take in a deep breath. I know I’m not at my full power either, but we need to get through this wall. We’re so close—I can feel it. Bringing all my power up from within, I chant the spell that I’ve come to know like second nature, and when I open my eyes, my blue magic is there—waiting for me to unleash it.
Just before I do, the air changes, and the temperature in the cavern drops. Goosebumps appear all over my body, and with a loud scream, I release my magic against the debris. At the same time, I see Jolie's purple magic hit the stones. Jolie's eyes are closed tightly as she chants a different spell—one I’m not familiar with. Looking back at the wall, I hear a loud pop, then everything disappears.
The wall has completely vanished.
Suddenly, a huge gust of wind blows us all off our feet. I land hard on my arse, dust filling my vision. I can't see anything until a silhouette appears in front of me. As I lift my arm up, Blair grabs hold of me and pulls me up.
“What the hell was that?” I ask.
He doesn't say anything for several seconds. “I have no idea, but hey, at least we got through.” The corner of his mouth lifts into a small smile.
His words ring true. The dust has settled and that's when I see Jolie's unmoving form on the ground. Declan and Oliver are already there, trying to wake her, and I rush over to help. Leaning over, I put my ear to her chest. Her heartbeat thumps lightly and I relax, knowing she’s going to be okay. She took things too far today, draining herself dry, but she wouldn't listen to me or anyone for that matter.
“I got Jolie,” Blair says, lifting his sister from the ground. “You guys go and check out what’s behind the wall.”
“Okay,” I say, turning back around. I follow the guys into the cave passage where there had been a solid wall a minute ago.
As we get farther into the cave, the more I feel the topaz. I look around, but Harlan is nowhere to be seen. Declan suddenly stops and curses looking down. I follow his gaze and freeze. There’s a blood trail that disappears at the end of the cave. That's got to be his blood. My breathing picks up as I glance frantically around.
We continue making our way into the darkness, each of us on high alert—looking left, right, and ahead. At the end of the cave, we come across a hole. Looking over the edge, I peer down, only to stumble back. I trip on my feet, landing yet again on my arse. Oliver curses. He’s no doubt seen what I just saw—Harlan's still form down on the dirt next to the topaz.
His ankle looks like it’s broken, judging by its strange angle. My heart drops. I shake myself off, getting up. Lying down won't do anyone any good.
Declan and Oliver have already started working on a rope to reach him. Looking over the edge again, I take in the water surrounding the ledge that Harlan and the stone are on. It’s quite a drop, but I reckon if we use the rope and get at least halfway, we’ll be able to do it.
I take a look at the rope they’re making … out of their T-shirts. How the hell am I meant to concentrate now with Declan and Oliver shirtless? Declan is holding one end while Oliver ties on the other shirt. Looking me up and down, Oliver smirks. I don’t hesitate in pulling my T-shirt up over my head. As I throw it to him, he stares at me for a minute longer. Licking his lips, he looks back down, tying it together with the other ones.
The guys throw the rope over the edge. It comes to a stop just over halfway down. Better than nothing.
“Dara, you need to go down first,” Declan says as he firmly wraps the end of the rope around his hand. He must notice the worried look in my eyes. “Don’t worry, Princess. I won’t let you go.”
I reach out my hand.
“Slap on it?” Chuckling, he slaps my hand.
Now satisfied that he won’t let me fall, I lie down on my belly and push myself back so that my legs hang over the edge. Looking up into Declan’s eyes, I grab hold of the rope. Harlan is the toughest of my warriors, but I trust Declan and know he will be able to hold my weight. He wouldn’t put me at risk if he didn’t think he was capable. I trust him one hundred per cent.
I push my body down the wall, moving my hands slowly down the rope, careful not to go too fast or too slow. I can feel my heart beating rapidly in my chest. I’m paranoid that one slip will send me plummeting down into the waters. I have no idea how deep they are.
You’ve got this. You can do anything, my little vixen. Oliver pops into my thoughts, encouraging me.
He is leaning over the top, watching as I make my way down. He is to follow me once I have made it to the bottom. Given the state that Harlan is in, we’ll need two people to help bring him back up plus the stone.
Holding onto the rope for dear life, I move my hands one below the other. Time seems to slow with the fading strength of my body. My hands burn with each movement. Biting down hard on my lower lip, I try to forget the pain—at least for a second before it returns. Daring to look down, I see I am more than halfway and there isn't much left of the rope. It's running short. I knew this would happen—that I would have to jump the last little bit. I just hope that I have the energy left to do it.
After everything I have put my body through today, I know my stamina is slowly fading, and it won't be long until I end up like Jolie—passed out cold. I just pray it doesn't happen while I am scaling down this rope. That would end in disaster.
Distracting myself with my thoughts works in my favour as I feel the end of the rope.
“You will be fine, Dara. Just jump outwards. Push off the wall,” Declan yells from above.
Breathing in, I bring my legs up with all the strength I have left and place them against the rock wall. My hands hold the rest of my body upright. I bring my body towards my knees, then I spring back, letting go of the rope. As soon as it leaves my hands, I sigh in relief. The pain is gone, and I’m floating … floating. Closing my eyes, I enjoy the peace while it lasts.
My feet hit the water first. It’s icy cold. My eyes flash open just as the water envelopes my body.
Kicking my legs with everything I have left, I make it to the surface and swim over to the ledge where Harlan’s lying. Pulling myself up, I ignore the pain in my body, in my arms. I walk over to Harlan on wobbly legs. It feels like my whole body’s shutting down, and I collapse when I reach him. Grabbing his hand, I check his wrist for a pulse and finally feel a beat. I let go of the breath I was holding.
A splash, followed by water spraying up onto the ledge, has me looking back; Oliver's made it down safely. He’s at the ledge and out of the water in seconds, coming to my aid.
“He has a pulse,” I say, my voice breaking at the end.
Oliver nods in understanding. “I've got Harlan. You get your topaz.”
After all the worry over Harlan, I’d almost forgotten about topaz. Ignoring the pain, I crawl over to the rock where topaz sits. I pull myself up onto it. A bright blue light shines up above me, radiating its beauty. I reach out my hand, and just as I’m about to grasp my stone, James pops into my thoughts. Shaking him out of my head, I close the distance and wrap my fingers around topaz.
As soon as I connect to the stone, my body is lifted off the ground. Topaz disappears into my hand, and then my back is on fire. I know that’s where topaz has gone—to join emerald. As the pain subsides, my father's voice booms in my head.
“Dara, my darling, you did it. You’ve retrieved the second stone. These won't come easily. Lives will be lost in the process—all for the cause. Your quest is to bring James down once and for all. Topaz will bring you the strength and courage you’ll need to fulfil your destiny. Embrace it, as ruby will be the final task and the hardest of them all.”
I land heavily back onto the ground. My eyes flutter open, and I find Declan leaning over me. I sit up way too quickly, the cave spinning for a minute. When it stops, I look around to find that I’m back at the top of the drop. Somehow, I’ve made it back up here. Declan leans down, wraps his arms around my legs and back, and lifts me up. I fade in and out of consciousness as we make our way back through the cave.
I feel Declan stop, and he whispers in my ear, “Sorry, Princess. You’ll have to wake up for this last part.”
I obey his command, lifting my heavy lids. He places me down on my legs that wobble in protest as my full weight hits them. Everything around me is a blur, but I drop down onto my arse and lean forward. I feel water beneath my fingers and realise we’re at the edge. Shuffling myself forward, I plop into the waterfalls pool. It cools my burning back, and I manage to take a deep breath to dive.
I break the surface on the other side. Somehow, with Declan’s help, I make it to the edge of the pool and roll my body out of the water. Exhaustion finally takes its hold and I close my eyes, giving up.