Chapter 41
Chapter Forty-One
The snake den
blythe
Every time the wooden cart hit a stone, pain ricocheted through my body. My wrists ached from the thin rope that bit into my skin. Red welts accompanied purple and brown bruising in a patchwork effect.
The tunnel we travelled through swallowed the cart whole, its walls closing in like a throat.
Damp stone pressed close on either side, slick with moisture and veined with thick roots that crawled through the cracks like living things.
The air was heavy and wet, reeking of mould, rot, and something coppery beneath it all.
Torchlight barely reached the ceiling, leaving shadows to writhe and shift as the cart lurched forward.
Snake had kept me bound, wings strapped tight, from the moment word reached him from that dick of a guard with the limp that Nik was in Oscuro. The whisper of his name sent a thrill straight through me. He’d received my letter. He’d come for me again.
The moment Snake realised Nik was here, his eyes turned black with delight. A grin spread across his gaunt face, slow and knowing. I begged him. Told him I’d do anything.
Be anything.
He’d only laughed.
It was my fault. All of it. And the knowledge gnawed at me as the memory of what I’d been offered—safety, kindness, something beautiful—burned in my chest. I’d been a fool to run from it. More than ever, I knew that now.
But it was too late. I was chained in the back of a cart, dragged through lightless tunnels, Nik crumpled at the opposite end. His wings were bound, and his face was ashen from whatever poison the Thorns had injected him with.
I stretched my legs, straining until my muscles screamed—but he was still too far away.
“Nik,” I hissed. “Nik, please.”
I needed to tell him I was sorry. That I would have chosen differently if I’d understood. That I would have let him hold me. Let him help me heal.
The Thorn at the head of the cart glanced back with a snarl. I stared her down. Her eyes were dead things—empty, hollow, stripped of all compassion. Snake rode ahead, out of sight, and for the first time since all of this began . . . I was alone with Nik and I needed him to wake up.
I reached for him with my boot once more. “Nik . . .”
His breathing changed before his eyes opened, and my heart leapt into my throat at the sight of his chest expanding with ragged breath. With a low groan, he shifted, his wings straining against the bindings.
“Nik, thank the light,” I cried in a low, strained voice.
His emerald eyes cracked open, unfocussed and disorientated. He took a look around the dimly lit tunnel before his gaze landed on me. “Blythe . . .?” he managed to whisper, voice hoarse and almost disbelieving.
A fragile sob escaped my lips as my boot reached for him again. “I’m here.”
Iron clinked as he tried to sit up straighter. He strained against the chains, arms pinned to his sides while his shoulders bulged forwards. “I’m so sorry—”
“Shh, you have nothing to be sorry for. It’s me who needs to apologise.”
His eyes travelled over me at an alarming rate. He stretched out a leg and brushed my boot with his. “Are you hurt?”
I shook my head. “No more than I'm used to.”
“I’m gonna True Death him,” he said through clenched teeth.
Tears gathered at the corner of my eyes as my heart threatened to burst right out of my chest. I pulled against my own restraints trying to reach for something more than the rough bite of rope on my skin. “Nik, please. We might not have this time again and I need you to listen.”
His gaze flicked up towards the Thorn guiding the horses before finding me again. The sound of the cartwheels rattling on the stones was enough to distort the sound of our voices. “We need to get free, then you can tell me anything you want.”
I shook my head, biting the inside of my cheek as I held back the years of pain I buried deep in my soul. “No. I need to do this now, before it’s too late.”
Nik stilled, his focus wholly on me. “Okay,” he said. “I’m listening.”
I dragged a breath in. “I’m sorry,” I whispered, my voice shaking. “I didn’t leave Lucius because I didn’t care. I left because I thought I didn’t deserve it.” I swallowed hard. “Lucius. You. Any of it.”
My eyes burned as I forced myself to look at him. “You offered me something beautiful, and I didn’t know how to accept it without feeling like I was stealing.”
A tear slipped free. “I thought I had to earn a life like that. Or to be whole before I was worthy. I didn’t realise I was allowed to just . . . want it.” My breath hitched. “To want you. To choose you. To choose myself.”
Nik’s gaze never left mine. Even bound, even hurt, he leaned forwards as much as he could, boots brushing mine like an anchor. “You don’t earn safety,” he said quietly. “You don’t earn kindness. And you don’t earn being chosen.”
His voice roughened, but it never wavered.
“You were never stealing anything from Lucius. Or from me. The only mistake you made was believing you had to be worthy before you were allowed to want more.” His eyes softened, fierce and gentle all at once.
“You chose to survive when that was all you knew how to do. That doesn’t make you unworthy, it makes you a fighter. ”
Tears spilled down my cheeks, and I didn’t bother wiping them away.
All I could see was the male in front of me—the one who had been real and steady when I’d spent my life bracing for cruelty.
The one who checked on me even when I snapped at him.
Who stayed even when I tried to make myself small enough to disappear.
It hit me all at once, quiet and undeniable.
I was in love with Nik.
“And for what it’s worth,” he added softly, “I didn’t choose you because you were whole. I chose you because you’re you. Exactly as you are.”
The sob I’d been holding back tore free. I wanted to reach him, wanted his arms around me. But I couldn’t get to him and it made the grief choke harder. “I’m so sorry I got you into this mess. I tried to come to Abby’s. I truly did, but Snake, he—”
He tapped the sole of his boot on mine. “Hey, none of this is your fault. And we are getting out of this. Alright?”
I wanted to believe him, and a small part of me did. But this wasn’t Lucius. It was Oscuro and it turned everything good and filled with light to dust and decay. Snake was the ruler here and I’d spent enough time in his presence to know that he was wicked to the core.
I swallowed hard, forcing my voice steady. “Snake will kill you,” I whispered. “He’s been threatening it for weeks.”
Nik shifted as much as the chains allowed, trying to get closer to me. “I will not let him hurt you again,” he said. “We are getting out of this. We have to. There is an ocean waiting for us. And Wisp.”
The tears spilled down my cheeks and refused to stop. “Nik, I—”
Before I could finish, the cart jolted, wheels scraping stone as it came grinding to a halt.
My heart seized as I spun around to see the Thorn stepping down from the cart.
There was no roof to shield us—only low wooden sides that did nothing to block the damp air and musty stench.
Torchlight flickered along the tunnel walls as shadows stretched and warped.
Heavy boots echoed closer. One set. Then another.
Thorns emerged from the dark, their black leather armour like oil spilt on stone as they approached, faces unreadable.
My breath stuttered. I could see them. Every step. Every second ticking down.
“Sapphire, look at me,” Nik murmured.
I tore my gaze from the approaching doom and tried to focus on his beautiful face. “I can’t do this—”
Hands reached for Nik first.
“No—!” I cried as they hauled him upright.
He fought them instinctively, chains rattling as he snarled through clenched teeth, wings straining uselessly against their bindings.
He was still weak from the poison in his veins, barely able to stand upright, but he fought the Thorns with the little strength he had.
I panicked. There was no knowing what Snake was truly capable of and it frightened me to the core. I lunged forwards as far as the bindings would allow, rope biting into my wrists. “Take me!” I screamed. “Take me, not him! Please Snake, don’t hurt him!”
Thorns came for me next, strong hands gripping my arms as they yanked me from the cart. I cried out, the wooden edge biting into the bare skin on my legs.
A slow clap echoed through the tunnel.
Snake stepped into the torchlight, emerging from between the Thorns like he’d been enjoying the show. His smile was lazy, indulgent, his eyes alight with something sick and pleased.
“You two are tragic,” he drawled. “It’s almost sweet.”
My stomach dropped to the ground so quickly I nearly emptied its contents onto the boots of the Thorns holding me captive. The look Snake offered was cold and it was calculated. He was enjoying every second of this.
“Fuck you, Snake,” I spat at him.
The words felt sharp and bright in my mouth—defiant in a way I hadn’t been in a long time.
He moved immediately, boots scraping against stone as he strode towards me, that sour grin slithering wider with every step.
I held his gaze as he stopped in front of me, forcing myself not to look away.
My jaw clenched so hard my teeth ached. I bit the inside of my cheek until the metallic tang of blood flooded my mouth.
I couldn’t let him break me. Not now. Not when I’d just decided that I wanted to live.
His fingers were cold and thin as they wrapped around my jaw, cruelly familiar, forcing my face upward until I was trapped there. My pulse thundered in my ears.
“No thanks,” he murmured, breath hot and foul against my skin. “But you can do that later.”
Every instinct screamed to recoil, but I locked my body in place, refusing to give him the satisfaction. “I would rather you True Death me,” I said, my voice shaking but loud enough to matter.
His smile sharpened. “That could be arranged after?”
“Don’t touch her!” Nik roared.