Chapter 51 Elias
Elias
My heart pounded. Not for the first time, I scented the wind, searching for that familiar whiff of coffee and coconut.
But instead, all I could smell was fear and despair. The scents of different shifters, creatures—Fae and mages, specifically—were intermingled, though there were others. Like the sulphur of hellhounds. Smoke from fires being lit on the mountain.
I took several steps back, pebbles crunching beneath my feet as I counted the fires erupting beyond the cliffs. Four since the first was spotted. And with the howls and screams sounding every so often from the darkness between the trees, we could map the escape.
But it was the shore across from us that took my breath away.
Almost like the beach we’d landed on in the Old World, this one had a cliff at its back, but it was accessible by stairs carved into the stone on one side, and a rocky path on the other.
But rather than black sand, it was pebbled like the one we walked on now.
I remembered it. Being on that beach was locked in the back of my mind. I could just reach it, remember the feeling of the stones beneath my feet, the way the sharp ones cut into the soft skin of my heels as I ran.
And I remembered the water. It hadn’t been calm like it was now. It’d been rushing, like a recent storm had torn through the land. There’d been less beach that night, too.
I swallowed hard, shoving the memory aside.
“Recovery teams go up, start pulling the escapees out,” I said, finding my voice for the first time in hours.
It sounded hoarse to my own ears. “There should be a tunnel somewhere around that cliff. That’s where…
” I trailed off, almost terrified to say her name.
Like if I said it aloud, she would disappear again.
No one fought me on the plan; the four Elysian demons, as well as the Wrath demons and witches immediately disappeared, the shadows transporting them to the stairs lining the cliff.
I held my breath as I waited for them to signal, to show they hadn’t lost their memories.
I prayed to the Goddess we weren’t about to lose our only chance at saving these creatures.
When one of the Elysian demons looked back at us and raised their fist, I blew out a shaky breath.
“No mind wiping—yet,” Grey murmured, stalking towards the edge of the water. “No one has dared go to the beach, though.”
She was right; although there was a way down, none of the escaped creatures tried it.
They were running down the mountain, trying to get as far away from wherever Dante had kept them.
But for whatever reason, they didn’t try the water.
They could have crossed onto the island, and if they were aware, they could have swam further towards the coast of Seelie.
The Spring Court was right there with their own beaches they could escape onto.
Kingsley moved to Grey’s side, his shoulders tense. From his pocket, he pulled out a rune stone. “Throw this across the water. It’ll light up if there are any wards or lingering magic.”
As Grey took the stone, I stalked towards them, jaw clenched tight. Behind me, the demon and Archer followed, their anticipation high.
I couldn’t stop my stomach from twisting with fear as I watched Grey launch the stone into the air. It landed on the opposite beach with a crack before lighting up with a yellow glow.
“Fuck.” I stepped back, running a hand through my hair, as the others cursed.
There was a trap there. Something that could stop us—or Ivy.
I scrubbed a hand down my face as my wolf pushed at me to take over.
He thought he might survive whatever waited for us.
It took all my strength to keep him at bay and remain in control.
I had no idea how my wolf would react when we saw her again, especially in the state we already knew she was in.
I knew the rage would take over, and I couldn’t let my beast hurt anyone she was with—or her.
“What if we went to the stairs like the others?” Archer asked, crouching at the edge of the water and staring over at the beach. “Then made our way down with another rune stone to see where the spell starts?”
Part of me wanted to say fuck it and just go.
Only one of us technically had to pull her out.
Get her and the others to the water then swim.
I paced the length of the beach, shooting the cliff and mountains quick stares.
The howling quietened, and through the trees, I was pretty sure I saw the Elysian demons transporting shifters away.
“We have no idea where the tunnel opens up,” Grey replied. “I don’t see any sign of an opening.”
I stopped my pacing and stared at the cliff itself. She was right. I tried to remember how I escaped the tunnel with Cyrus but came up blank.
I remembered the tunnel. The cold, icy feeling of being followed. The rush of the escape. My pounding heart as terror tried to claim me.
I remembered the pebbles cutting my feet and the water. I remembered having to swim. I’d been a boy who knew no other life than the cage, being forced into water for the first time. That had given me a whole different fear.
I squeezed my eyes shut and forced the memory into my mind. Tunnel, where is the tunnel? I ignored the emotions that arose at being forced back into this part of my life, the way it made my hands tremble, my heart race.
It must be somewhere by the beach, I thought. Somewhere on the rocks.
I opened my eyes, zeroing in on the other side of the cliff. Not the stairs, but the strange rocky path leading down. Stalking towards the water’s edge, I took in the uneven decline.
“It’s there,” I growled, pointing to that side of the cliff. “You can’t see the opening, but it’s hidden in the rocks. See how they form a barrier, like a wall?”
Grey moved to my side and cocked her head. “I believe you,” she murmured. “But that doesn’t answer how we get over there, or—”
She stopped at the sight of a slinking, mottle-grey creature. The smell of sulphur tickled my nose as I watched the hellhound appear between the rocks and stop. Red eyes searched the beach before swivelling towards us.
Then it walked back into the tunnel where it came from.
My breaths came harder. “That’s how we get in. Stay as close to the rocks as possible. And then we should—”
A fiery arrow landed on the ground beside me, the flames burning bright. I leapt away, cursing, as another came arcing towards us.
Kingsley shouted, but we knew this would happen. Knew the chances of being spotted would be high. We fell into a tight circle as the shadows became a protective barrier around us for a moment before transporting us into the ruins of the high palace.
“What the hell did you do?” I shouted, turning on the demon.
The bastard held up his hands, eyes burning with anger. “The shadows pulled us away, wolf. Not me. And although I tried to get us over there, I couldn’t.”
“And why the fuck is that?” I growled, starting for him. Before I could reach him, though, Grey stepped in front of me, her own eyes dark with fury.
“Stop it,” she snarled. “We do not have time to turn on one another. You know better than that.”
“That hellhound came out of the tunnel, looked at us, and turned around.” I tore my eyes off the demon to meet her stare. “The chances of Ivy and her group making it out of there are slim if there are more in there. You know that. And she—”
“I know,” Grey hissed, shoving a hand down her face. “I know.”
Beside me, Archer cleared his throat. “Not to change the subject, because we sure as fuck don’t have time for this, but I just want to point out that we are not alone down here.”
I stiffened, breathing in deeply. The smell of brimstone and whiskey met my nose, the scent unfamiliar.
It was only then that I took a chance to look around; we were underground, save for the single hole above us in the ceiling that let in moonlight.
Otherwise, there were cells, mostly destroyed or in shambles.
Except one.
There was a young male standing at the door, hands gripping the metal bars. He had inky black hair that fell over his forehead, and tattoos that snaked up his neck. He didn’t look much older than Ivy, but when his eyes flickered between us, I didn’t get the impression he was young.
Instead, there was something about him that had the hairs on the back of my neck standing on end.
“No one visits me anymore, other than that annoying mage—Rupert something.” The male cocked his head, lips pulling in a curious smile. “What a nice surprise.”
“Rupert Lockwood?” Kingsley asked, taking a step forward. “Red hair, moustache, Dream Court Fae?”
I had no idea who he was talking about, but the male seemed to recognise it immediately. “That one. Likes to talk.”
Kingsley nodded once before looking over his shoulder at us. “Friend of Dante.”
And maybe a potential High Council member, he seemed to add with his eyes.
“Who are you?” I asked the male, crossing my arms.
“Don’t you have more pressing matters?” he replied, pushing away from the bars. “Come back when you have the girl. She and I need to make a deal.”
A chill rolled down my spine, but it was Rhadamanthus who stalked towards the bars with a growl. “You will make no deal with her.”
The male raised a brow, still smiling. “Elysian demon. King of the fields.” His nostrils flared as he breathed deeply. “I could make you a deal instead. A throne for a throne.” He opened his arms wide and chuckled. “I only want one thing. Nyx knows what it is. So will the girl.”
With that, he moved into the darkness of his cell. I watched him hit the back wall and slide down it, resting his head against the stone.
“Hey, so, not to alarm anyone about him,” Archer muttered, “but look at the runes.”
I couldn’t help but roll my eyes. “Why do they matter?”
“Because,” he said, running his fingers down them, “they’re God Runes. Why would Dante be keeping someone all the way over here, when his prison is in Luna? And why would he be trapping this guy with God Runes?”
“When you figure it out,” the male called out, “I’ll be here.”
I gritted my teeth, swallowing hard. “Let’s go.”
There were stairs around the corner, old stone ones that made no sound as we climbed them. My heart was pounding with all this conflicting information about Dante—why was he keeping this male on the island, alone? Why was he in a cell with God Runes? What the fuck made him so special?
Goddess above, I hoped he wasn’t another of Ivy’s mates. I was already done with the ones she’d identified. I wasn’t sure I could do another.