Chapter 20 #3
Sand swallowed me from feet to knees. It happened so quickly, I couldn’t move against it. When I struggled, it softened more and sucked me farther. Manus reached out but the sand was moving all around me, not letting him get close enough to pull me out.
“The iron! In your pack!” Manus got himself up on the pile of rocks as I struggled to pull the pack off.
I swung the pack around and my ribs screamed in pain, making me release my hold and send the bag flying into the shifting sand.
It was sinking. I leaned forward, fighting the pain. I missed the shoulder strap.
“Cauldrons!” Angry and on the verge of panic, I bent even farther, the dirty sand now up to my thighs, and somehow managed to stretch far enough to grab the bottom of the strap before it disappeared in the churning granules.
I tossed Manus one end of a heavy chain and he pulled.
I stopped sinking, but the suction created by the sand that was now at my hips wouldn’t release me.
He wrapped the chain around a large boulder for leverage and pulled again.
“It’s no use,” I shouted. I wasn’t budging and the iron chain was digging into my forearm. The force pulling me down was winning.
Another of the worms launched out of the sand, flying at my face.
I couldn’t get out of the way. I heard Manus cursing and the clattering of the chain as he wound the remaining length of his end around the rock.
I leaned forward as far as I dared without putting my upper body on the sand and shoved the dagger upward at the bottom of the worm, only nicking it as it dove back into the sand behind me.
The movement shifted the sands again, pulling me down past my hips.
I closed my eyes and concentrated hard. Thrust, I thought. Thrust! I felt the power surging in my abdomen and it burned as much as my battered ribs. I pushed it outward, screaming with the pain of the magic leaving my body, sending power into the sand as I cast.
THRUST!
The sand exploded out from around me, letting me move my feet.
But the hole I had made with the spell was too large and I started to sink back in.
Like water returning to the sea after a wave, the grungy sand was slipping back in around the cavity faster than I could climb.
I was sliding farther in instead of getting out.
I grabbed for the last link of the iron chain. I almost lost my tenuous grip but held on and gritted my teeth as I pulled myself torturously away from the hole. By the time I reached the sanctuary of the rock pile, all had gone deathly quiet again. Even the sweltering breeze had stopped.
“Your magic worked here.” Twenty feet away from the rocks, Manus lay on his back, panting. I was holding my side and trying to stand.
“I guess it did,” I huffed and cringed at the pain.
He lifted himself to one elbow and looked at me. “That was Demon power.”
“It hurt.” I was still winded and trying to breathe shallow. “Demon power?”
“We didn’t know if you had inherited any of the Demon power from Coyle. I guess you did. Maybe he’s alive and feels your presence here, perhaps even did something to help.”
He grabbed his pack and rummaged to find a pain amulet, handing it to me when I approached and kneeled next to him. I slipped it over my head. “Bevin’s magic doesn’t work, though.”
“I figured. But I brought a few just in case.” He ran his hands through his hair and pushed it from his face, then pressed at my side to try to see how bad my ribs were. I cringed at each touch. “Sorry. Feels like only two are broken. Can you manage?”
“Yeah, just need a breath. We should probably move on before they come back.”
“I wouldn’t if I were them.” He shook his head. “You about threw me off the island. I think I was ten feet in the air. Were you directing that my way?”
“Uh-uh, I was pushing down,” I replied, trying to get all my hair behind my ears. The band had broken.
“Damn. You’re really that strong, even when it hurts?” He was shaking his head.
“Everything seems to be strongest when I need it to be.”
Translation: when I’m terrified.
“Maybe you should be my guardian.” I saw a change of expression cross his eyes.
“Who’ll sleep on my feet?” I laughed.
He didn’t. I had too much to worry about right now to soothe his ego. Evil sisters, fallen angels, the fate of the Kith, and lovesick Vampires were enough. He looked off toward the shacks.
“Manus,” I said softly. “I’ll always need you.” He looked back at me with some uncertainty but managed to smile.
“On we go. What’s the plan?” He stood and offered me his hand.
Pain shot through my side as I stood. I stretched and tried to see how much I could move. The screaming pain subsided to a sharp tightness as I shifted and moved around.
“Let’s check the shacks first…then we’ll get to the castle.”
“We’re running out of daylight. Should we split up?”
I was shocked that he even suggested it. I hadn’t thought he would ever allow it. But I guess my little show of power gave him a bit more confidence in me. “Not yet. We still don’t know what else is out here, and I want you at my side.”