Chapter 9
LYRAE
“Lyrae. Stop. Stop, goddamn it.”
Ryland’s hand clamped down over my shoulder with enough force I winced, my boots slipping on the icy ground as he stopped me a few feet away from two enormous stone pillars, the ward churning just behind them.
He ripped his face covering free, lips pale from the cold.
“Give me a minute before you go charging straight into that.” Ryland let me go, rubbing his hand on his thigh like he was cleaning off dirt. “Just…give me a fucking minute to think.”
“You saw this an hour ago.” I waved a hand at the wall. “Now you want to think about what to do next?”
I’d never admit my own fears, but this ward was terrifying. Those shadows took on a life of their own, blacker than the darkest storm clouds and filled with enough energy every inch of me prickled from the ozone-charged air.
The second we stepped inside, that magic would strip the flesh from our bones, if it didn’t smother us first.
Ryland swung his calculating gaze from one stone pillar to the other, then to the empty spot between them, his face flat. Unreadable.
I’d seen that shuttered expression a hundred times, and my heart plummeted.
“You said you could get me through,” I accused, tucking my hands in my pockets so I didn’t stab him in the chest. “You swore to the queen herself you were the male for the job, and now you’re standing there, trying to figure out how you’ll spin this situation to your benefit.”
“Shut up, Lyrae,” he pinched the bridge of his nose. “For one fucking minute, just…shut up.”
“You’ll never collect your gold if you can’t do this.” I hissed behind my face covering, and couldn’t even enjoy the bitter taste of his failure. “Poor Ryland Storme, slinking back to Tempeste as a total and complete…”
“I said shut the fuck up, Lyrae, or I’ll have Varian gag you.”
Varian winced. “I really don’t want to…”
“The fact is, you lied.” I cut him a hard, knowing look. “You were just looking for a big payout, just like always.”
One second Ryland was ten feet away, the next, he was in my face.
“I don’t give a good godsdamn about gold or glory or whatever bastardized version you’ve twisted me into over the years.
I’m not risking either of your lives needlessly.
The wall’s denser than it’s ever been, and this smell…
I’ve never smelled magic like this. It’s old.
Foul. Corrupted. I don’t know what’s happened these past months, but something has changed. ”
Old.
Corrupted.
Say…Like three ancient Fae artifacts fused together into a doomsday weapon…corrupted?
I peered over his shoulder, trying to pierce that void of darkness with my own eyes and see what horrors lay behind the veil.
“Okay. This is where you usually cross, right? How thick could the ward be here?”
“A hundred feet, at most.” He tipped his head, measuring the distance between the twin stone columns again.
“These pillars mark the entrance to a narrow corridor cut through the rock, about thirty feet down. After a hundred feet, this trail empties into a stand of pines, and from there, it’s a day’s hike to the main city. ”
I didn’t bother mentioning we weren’t heading for the main city, because once we were past this first—and seemingly insurmountable—obstacle, we had to locate a fortress in the middle of a frozen lake. Or a moat.
Or something wet and frozen.
Gods, why hadn’t I asked Torin more questions?
“We either take our chances getting through that, or we admit defeat and hike north to Mysthaven, which is over two days away.” I hunched my shoulders, the straps digging in painfully. “In this weather, we’ll be lucky if we don’t freeze to death. I say we try.”
No need to tell them about the little glass globe nestled between my breasts.
Besides, calling Zephryn for backup rankled.
I’d rather fucking freeze to death than admit failure this soon.
“I second that,” Varian said quietly, his eyes flicking to mine before returning to that thin spot in the wall. “I’ll go first, stay in long enough to get my bearings, then come back.” Ryland started shaking his head, but Varian just smiled sadly, that cleft in his chin deepening.
“Someone has to go in there and I’m the most expendable of us three. I don’t come out, don’t wait until dark. Head to Mysthaven.” He squinted up at the sky, the watery sun turning his eyes to dark pools of amber. “You two can make it, if you keep moving.”
If I don’t come out again, don’t wait. The words were so eerily similar to that day when he warned me to run. To leave him and Ry behind and save myself.
My hand went to my chest, to where the little glass globe hung from its chain.
“One minute, then we come in after you.” I smirked at his wide-eyed gaze. “Don’t think I actually care, Kronos. You never know when I might need to sacrifice you for the cause, so no need to martyr yourself just yet.”
This time I laughed out loud at his horrified expression. “Oh, don’t look at me like that, I was only kidding. I’m not letting anyone die this early in the mission. I’m in charge, remember?” I winked.
“What would that say about my amazing leadership abilities?”