Chapter 25
The Enchanted Mines
DELILAH
We hiked up a small hill, and the entrance to the enchanted mine revealed itself.
I had expected a grand entrance, or at least a sign but it was so inconspicuous.
If you weren’t looking for it, you would’ve missed it.
It was nothing more than a narrow opening at the base of a mountain, half hidden by lanky trees.
I’d enjoyed the lush green landscape in this kingdom; it was a pleasant change from the volcanic, rocky scenery I had become accustomed to.
The moment we stepped inside, I stumbled awkwardly, nearly falling. My legs had shortened back to normal. My skin was no longer covered in gems. I touched my ears; they were rounded and smooth again. I looked at Titus, and his glamour was gone too. He was back to his normal fiery form.
I gave him a confused look.
“I can’t feel any of my magic in here. The Enchanted Mines must be blocking my power somehow.” He looked up at the vastness of our surroundings. “In here, we’re both mortals,” he explained.
Titus was without his power, so of course the glamour magic was gone. All of his power was gone. As if this place wasn’t unsettling enough, now we were both powerless. I hadn’t realized how much comfort I had placed in the High Lord’s power—how safe I felt with him…
When he wasn’t murdering people of course.
Safety is comforting, but it’s often just something we whisper to ourselves. The world doesn’t care. It can be cruel and breathtaking all at once.
I knew the Enchanted Mines would be beautiful. I just didn’t expect them to leave me speechless.
It wasn’t dark inside. The tunnels were lit by torches and veins of luminescent, pulsing blue-and-green minerals embedded in the rock.
It felt as though I’d stepped inside the beating heart of a mountain.
The chill of the mountain air vanished, replaced by a warm, humid glow that seemed to emanate from the veined walls.
The air carried the scent of damp stone and sweet earth, dense and warm in my lungs. A faint hum pulsed through the cavern, as if something unseen was quietly stirring. The entirety of the mines felt otherworldly, as if there was no feasible way it had been made by hand.
In awe, I asked, “The Fae did all of this?”
Titus grinned and shook his head. “No. This has been here long before the Fae. Legend says the mines are the result of a Lithovore nesting ground.”
“Litho-what?” I asked.
“Lithovore,” he said. “A vicious, giant subterranean dragon made entirely of solid rock. But it’s probably just folklore, bedtime stories for unruly Faelings. Nobody has ever seen one.”
We passed alcoves where crystalline formations jutted out like
the teeth of some great beast, casting kaleidoscopic light across the cavernous space. The sound of running water echoed from all around, but I couldn’t see a stream; the dampness in the air was the only evidence of its presence.
I reached out and touched a seam of what looked like pure silver.
The light from the minerals intensified, and the hum in the air rose to a soft thrum.
The mine felt less like a resource to be exploited and more like a living, breathing entity, one that observed my every move.
It was a place of impossible beauty and silent mystery.
A mine that required no labor to reveal its secrets, only a willingness to walk deeper into its eerie, glowing depths.
Titus took a torch from the wall and led the way. We descended
deeper, and the rock formations on each level looked different. Crystals of all colors stuck out from the rock on the walls and overhead. They illuminated as I passed by. I had seen some of them before. I recognized them as the same crystals Gleeda had hanging by her window.
Then, in another chamber, there were deposits of peculiar stones
clustered in the wall, with loose ones scattered on the ground. I bent down to pick one up and held it to the torchlight to study it.
They were perfectly shaped into glowing purple disks, smooth
rounded edges.
Titus turned around to see why I'd stopped following him.
His eyes lit up, and a menacing grin took shape.
“So,” he said, “tell me, Delilah—how many times have you pleasured yourself with the toy I gave you?”
“Six,” I blurted.
I immediately covered my mouth with my hands, dropping the rock in panic. Shock and embarrassment flooded my face, and my heart began to thump.
Why did I say that!? That was not what I had wanted to say!
It was as if I had no control over my own words.
He chuckled, glowingly proud, and bent down to pick up the stone. He presented it to me.
“This is a truth stone,” he explained. “When holding it, you cannot tell a lie.”
My face burned.
“You asshole!” I shouted.
“Dirty girl,” he said in that sexy, deep voice that made my body react. “Now I know the real reason you don’t sleep at night.”
I sighed and walked right past him, ignoring his stupid fucking face.
He caught up and tossed me the stone. “Keep it. It might come in handy someday.”
I shoved the truth stone deep into my pocket.
Further and further down we descended into the belly of the mine, and my legs started to ache. Today had been more walking than I was used to.
“What are we even looking for? And how much further is it?” I asked.
“Aww. Is the mortal getting tired?” he taunted, dripping condescension.
He looked around and dropped his pack to the ground. “This looks like a decent spot to take a break.”
He sat and pulled food from his pack.
Grateful, I did the same sitting with my back against the wall beside him, but with excessive space between us. After what the truth stone had forced me to reveal, I could hardly look at him. I wanted to be as far away from him as possible.
I unfastened my pack and pulled out the sandwich Calpurnia had packed me when I heard him speak.
“Multiplication crystals,” he said. “Pale blue. Perfectly spherical. About the size of a melon. They can only be found on the lowest level. We’re halfway there.”
I huffed in frustration, realizing we still had a long way to go… and then a long way back up… and then, an even longer way back to the lake.
I finished my sandwich and threw on my pack.
“Well, let’s get going then,” I said plainly, and we resumed our descent.
It got darker the lower we went. The torches were farther apart. Sometimes we were in complete darkness for several minutes before we found another.
I started to feel a bit more… uneasy.
I hated Titus right now, but he was my only distraction. My only company. And the silence between us was unbearable.
Fidgeting with the truth stone in my pocket, I got an idea. “Want to play a game?” I asked. “Truth or dare, it’s a game in the mortal realm. We take turns revealing a truth or doing a dare. And, to make it more interesting if you pick truth you have to hold the truth stone.”
He side-eyed me, contemplative. “Fine.”
He must’ve been extremely bored to agree, but I was excited, maybe I could finally get answers to the questions heaviest on my mind.
“And to make it even,” I added, “since I already revealed one major truth—against my will—you must start with truth.”
I tossed him the stone. He smirked and caught it.
Once I made sure he was holding it, I asked, “Why won’t you kiss me?”
He immediately tossed it back. “Skip.” He said, quick and cold.
“What? No. The game is truth or dare, not truth, dare, or skip,” I whined.
He rolled his eyes dramatically. “Fine,” he said reluctantly. “But ask a different question.”
He took the stone again.
“Okay,” I said... “Do you miss Prisca?”
“No,” he answered plainly, faster than I suspected. “Your turn. Truth or dare?”
“Dare,” I said bravely.
“I dare you to get on your knees and suck me off in this cave,” he said, like it was nothing.
Heat flooded my core so fast I felt sweaty.
“What?! No. I change my mind—I pick truth,” I protested. “Fine. Have it your way.” He handed me the stone with a smirk. “Where did you learn to alter your clothing like that?”
I dropped my head as the pain of my childhood pinched at my insides.
“I grew up poor,” I said quietly. “When my clothes no longer fit… I had to get creative.”
It surprised me to see his expression tighten, like my answer hurt him too.
“Truth or dare?” I asked, changing the painful subject. “Dare,” he said.
“I dare you to tell me why you almost killed Cercies that day,” I stated.
“That’s basically the same as truth,” he said, displeased. “Still counts,” I shot back.
“Very well.” He exhaled deeply and tipped his head, cracking his neck.
“We were in an important meeting, and he’d been distracted.
I scented him extremely aroused, so I followed him.
And when I saw your door broken down…” He shuddered.
“Because of his past, I assumed the worst. I thought he was forcing himself on you.”
My heart skipped.
He thought Cercies was raping me? And he cared enough to kill his best friend to protect me?
What exactly was Cercies’ past? “Truth or dare,” he asked quickly.
“Truth,” I replied, mischievous, and held the stone. “Do you have feelings for Aurelius?” he asked.
I raised a brow. Why did he want to know?
“Not initially,” I admitted. “But then, I think I was just so lonely, and he was so nice to me that I possibly felt... something, but then… I realized he’s not what I thought.”
Titus nodded, face unreadable, that annoying Fae face hiding every emotion.
“Okay,” he said. “I’ll pick truth this time.” He took the stone from my hand.
“Why did you kill your sister?” I asked.
He stopped and looked at me with a harsh glare.
A muscle in his jaw flicked.
Then he cleared his throat and said, “She had been a problem for years. Recently she became a political threat. But I never would have actually killed her if she hadn’t tried to poison you. When I figured it out… I saw red.” His voice roughened. “I wanted to burn the entire fucking world to ash.”
The mix of anger and something softer in his tone made my stomach flip.
“Why?” I asked.