Page 65 of The Ruins of the Heartless Fae

She bit it, while Blár hissed, “What are you doing? It could be poisoned.”

It tasted sweet like a raisin. “Too late,” she murmured, her stomach churning in hunger. She poured herself a glass of water and downed it in a second. She then popped one of the white cheeses into her mouth. It was creamy, rich, and salty. “It’s good.”

Blár eyed the nuts and his lips formed into a tense line. “We can’t just trust her. Who is she and why is she here? How is any of this possible? And why is she so surprised by me?” The last part came out with a hint of irritation. “Last I checked, humans weren’t rare.”

Kolfinna chewed thoughtfully. It was strange,verystrange. But things had stopped making sense ever since they stepped foot inside the castle ruins.

“What if she attacks us?” Blár’s frown grew wider and his blue eyes attacked her accusingly as she took another bite of cheese. “This is a trap. It has to be. In my village, there’s a story of a girl who loses her way in the woods and a demon gives her a berry. She accepts and is whisked away to his world.”

“How does the story end?”

He stared at her levelly. “She’s eaten by a horde of demons.”

“Why a girl? Why are all these horror stories centered around foolish girls?” Kolfinna scoffed and picked up another dried fruit. “If we get attacked, at least we’ll have full stomachs.”

Blár narrowed his eyes. “I, for one, do not plan to die here. I don’t trust that woman and I don’t plan on becoming another Gertrude.”

“Who’s Gertrude?”

“The stupid girl in the story.”

“Oh. Well, I don’t want to become Gertrude either, but we need food and information. She clearly knows about this place. Much more than we do.” Kolfinna poured herself another glass of water and then began cutting into the bread with a butter knife. “It’s weird. It’s almost like—”

“Almost like what?” Revna called from the entrance of the kitchen. She balanced two steaming bowls in her hands. She placed the bowls in front of them and grabbed the back of one of the seats before yanking it and plopping down on it. Her hood slid down to her thin shoulders. “I see you’re eating well, Kolfinna.”

“Ah, yes.” Kolfinna paused from smearing jam on the slice of bread she had just cut. “It’s good.”

“And you?” She turned her vivid purple eyes to Blár. “You, who refuses to say his name and who smells weird.”

Blár looked taken aback. “I smell just as bad as she does.” He jerked a thumb at Kolfinna. “Anyway, who are you?”

“I’ve already told you.” She sighed, as if the question inconvenienced her. “Revna is my name.”

“Why are we trapped here, Revna?” Blár pinned her with a stare that would’ve made Kolfinna wither on the spot. “Are you behind all of this?”

Revna looked at him like he was a bug who crawled in her path. “Heavens, boy, why would I be behind all of this?”

“That’s what I’d like to know.”

She sighed, as if she was speaking to a child. “No, I’m not behind all of this.” She shifted her gaze to Kolfinna and helped herself to a piece of cheese. “I’m trapped here the same as you both.”

Kolfinna stilled. “How long have you been trapped here? We got here a few days ago. Were you part of the previous party?”

“No,” she said. “I didn’t realize there were parties of people entering the place recently. I’m sure I would’ve met them by now if they made it this far.”

“So how long have you been here?”

“I have no idea. It feels like forever.” Revna smoothed the checkered tablecloth with her hand and scratched an old bubble of food that was stuck to it. “Centuries, perhaps. Time doesn’t seem to move at all.”

“If what you’re saying is true, how are you alive if you’ve been here that long?” Blár crossed his arms over his chest and didn’t seem convinced.

“Because it’s only my soul that’s here. My physical body is in the castle.”

A chill settled in the room and Blár gave her a hard look. He turned sharply to exchange bewildered stares with Kolfinna.

Kolfinna lowered her bread onto the plate. “What do you mean your body is in the castle?”

“It’s as I said, my body is in the castle. I’m just a soul right now.” Revna didn’t look like a soul. She looked like a flesh and blood person, like Blár and Kolfinna. Weren’t souls supposed to be transparent or shift from opaque to invisible? If they hadn’t been in a dimension with two suns and three moons, she would’ve thought Revna was either crazy or a liar. But all things considered, Kolfinna half-believed her.

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