Page 47 of The Ruins of the Heartless Fae

She readied herself mentally and looked up at the Jötnar. Its eyes were directed at her, its smile grim. She released a shuddering breath and turned back to the tile.

And then, she jumped.

For a split second, she thought she would trip, but she landed in the center of it. Her feet slid toward the corners and she flailed her arms to balance herself. But she made it. She let out a shaky breath of relief.

Eyfura’s hand flew to her chest in relief and her shoulders relaxed. Eyfura looked like she aged ten years in two seconds. She gave her a thumbs-up and moved on. Kolfinna did the same and went forward. It didn’t take long for everyone to reach the end of the room by the exit.

There was only one problem: the door was locked.

Truda yanked at the heavy iron handles, but they didn’t budge. She turned to Kolfinna sharply, as if to tell her she had lied to them.

They had done what the room had asked, so why—

Kolfinna’s heart sank when she noticed the runes above the double doors.Take the spikes off the Jötnar and place them in order into the appropriate holes. She hadn’t noticed it before, but there were three holes flanking both sides of the door, and now that she looked at the Jötnar more closely, ithad exactly six spikes in its body.

Of course it wouldn’t be that easy.

But what did it mean byappropriateholes? What would happen if she made a mistake?

Kolfinna twisted around until she faced the Jötnar, which still had its predatory gaze on them all. She could feel the weight of everyone’s stares; they wanted her to save them all, but she could also tell they didn’t trust her.

She would take the spikes off and put them in the holes—alone.

Since they couldn’t speak to each other, it was pointless to hope for anyone’s help. They also didn’t know about which designated hole the spikes went into—granted, neither did she, but she could figure that out.

Before anyone could grab her and try to ask her why the door wouldn’t open, she hopped to a white tile. A few of the party members clapped to draw her attention, notably Mímir. His forehead was creased and he clapped incessantly.What are you doing?He seemed to say. But Kolfinna pressed forward, jumping to another white tile. The clapping grew louder, as did the sound of boots slapping the hard floor behind her.

She twisted around to find Blár two tiles behind her. His blue eyes were too …loud. His emotions shone harshly in them: the animosity, the mistrust, the murderous nature of his ways. Kolfinna froze, absorbing the coldness that exuded from him. Even without his powers, he had the ability to shrink the room and all its occupants; and even without his icy magic, everything about him was socold.

Kolfinna’s breath faltered, as did her step. Why was he following her, and why did he look like that? So angry and mistrusting? She was trying to save them all. Couldn’t he have a little faith in her?

She shooed him away, but he remained. Did he not understand? No, that was impossible. But why? Why did he want to follow her? Kolfinna pointed back to the party.Go, she mouthed. But he stayed rooted in position.

A million questions swarmed her, but the only logical one was that he was wary of what she was doing. Did he think she was going to leave them all behind? Sabotage them somehow?

Whatever the case, she leaped forward, toward the Jötnar. As she jumped closer to it, the clapping dwindled into silence. When she was three tiles away from it, the smell of it hit her. It was an acrid, rancid, decaying smell. It hit her like a mace, smashing into her until it was hard to breathe. Up close, the Jötnarwas even more hideous. Its skin was shiny and slick with an oiliness. Bits of flesh clung to the gaps between its pointy teeth and there was another ribbon of flesh that had fallen from its mouth and was lying on one of the spikes. Blood coated its teeth and dribbled out of its mouth.

Her stomach churned at the thought that these pieces of flesh had been her companions.

Kolfinna reached for the nearest spike with trembling hands. The Jötnarpeered at her as she wrapped her fingers around the warm, black metal. Its mouth opened and it hissed, flecks of blood spattering across her cheeks. She gasped and released the spike, taking an involuntary step back. But Blár’s hand was on her lower back in an instant, stopping her. She realized with a start that she almost stepped onto a black tile. And the Jötnarnoticed too because its smile widened.

Blár saved her,again. Heat rose to her cheeks in embarrassment, but she pushed that thought away as she focused on the spike. It was plain, long, and had a pointed end. Nothing about it was extraordinary. She grabbed it once more, her fingers curling over it. It yanked out easily, as if she were pulling a knife out of a slab of butter. The Jötnarscreamed and her entire body flinched, waiting for the attack to come.

It never did.

The Jötnarwatched her as she held the spike in her quivering hands. It was heavier than she thought it would be. She twisted it in her hands and noticed the numbertwoetched in runes on the side of it. That must’ve meant something.

For a second, she thought she had to take it back to the doorway and retrieve each spike, one by one. But a better idea sprang to mind when she looked at Blár.

She held out the spike to him. He tilted his head to the side in confusion but took the spike anyway. Unlike Kolfinna’s arms, which had bent at the weight of it, he hardly budged at all. Kolfinna moved a tile over and grabbed the second spike off the Jötnar’sbody. It pulled away with ease, and another scream emitted from it.

A ribbon of flesh slid off the spike and slapped the floor. Kolfinna’s stomach dropped and she swallowed the bile rising up her throat. The Jötnar’sclaw grazed Kolfinna’s arm as it shot out and snatched the piece of meat. Kolfinna held her breath, watching as it devoured it hungrily. Sweat rolled off her and dampened her hands to the point that she almost dropped the spike.

Kolfinna turned to Blár, who took it expressionlessly. Slowly, they rounded the Jötnarand Kolfinna removed the spikes, handing them to Blár. The weight didn’t seem to bother him, but by the sixth spike, he broke out into a sweat. Kolfinna reached for one of his, but he shook his head and headed toward the rest of the party. Her heart tightened with unexpected warmth. Why didn’t he let her carry any? It couldn’t be chivalry; there must’ve been an ulterior motive. There had to be because Blár Vilulf was anything but chivalrous.

They made it back to the door wordlessly. Blár held the spikes, and she went to the holes. There had to be a reason each spike had a number on it. As she thought, inside each hole was a number. Relief pooled in her chest. This made sense!

She took one of the spikes from Blár’s hand and aligned it with its appropriate number. She slid it into the hole and it clicked in place. Kolfinna smiled. This wasn’t so hard. She moved to take another spike, but Mímir already grabbed one, seemingly keen to help.

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