Page 84 of Poison Sun

“Show us a way,” I whisper, and then my magic does something I’ve never seen before.

It glows.

I expected it to give me a word for Blaze to use to get us out of here, but instead, the light weaves through the valley, a safe passage shielded from the storm’s fury.

I stare out at it in awe.

“That’s it,” I breathe. “The way out.”

“What?” Blaze’s eyes are alight with curiosity, confusion, and undeniable anger.

I can deal with that later. For now…

“The path.” I stand, pocketing my dagger, looking out to the glowing trail ahead. “Come on. We have to follow the path.”

“What path?” He squints into the darkness, but it’s clear he’s at a loss.

He doesn’t see it. Which means…

“Just follow me,” I say, and when I move forward to test it out, it’s surreal, like stepping onto a bridge made of moonlight. “Stay close, and step where I step. I’ll guide us through.”

He hesitates, and then he reaches for my hand—the hand that a minute earlier, was dripping with my blood. “Okay,” he says. “Lead the way.”

I can barely look at him as I tighten my grip.

We’re going to have a lot to discuss after we cross this valley.

But first, we have to successfully cross it.

One step at a time. Literally.

And so, I steady my breathing, focus on the path ahead, and lead us forward.

Morgan

The storm rages around us, and lightning arcs overhead, but it doesn’t come near us. The wind howls like a beast in pain, yet it can’t touch us. It’s like we’re moving through another world, a bubble of calm in the midst of fury, the path a never-ending ribbon of light guiding us to safety.

Blaze’s grip tightens with every step, his trust in me both a weight and a lifeline. It’s like when we crossed that bridge, but reversed. I trusted my life with him then, and he’s trusting his to me now.

He shouldn’t, I think, but I push the thought from my mind, continuing forward.

I don’t look back at him as we walk. I can’t. I don’t want to know what he’s thinking. All I can do is focus on getting us out of here.

Eventually, the path leads us to the end of the valley.

As we step off the glowing trail, the storm calms, as if it never existed, and the path’s magic dissipates, the light fading away into the night.

The crystal palace built into the mountain is so close now. All we have to do is walk around the bend in the valley, and what we’re looking for will be there.

The Rose Garden.

The one from Alpine mythology where we’ll surely find the Witch Langwerda.

Blaze’s hand falls from mine, and when I turn to him, the look on his face stops me cold.

His eyes, usually fiery, are daggers of ice stabbing my heart.

My blood freezes. I wish I could sink into the ground and disappear into the Valley of the Vanished. It would be way better than standing here with him looking at me like that.

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