Page 59 of Bound Paths
“I have you,”she sent through the bond.
“I never doubted,”he said again.
She rolled her eyes at him.“Now I have to open the door.”She chanced a glance at Aterra.“He’s going to notice.”
Luc shrugged.“He can’t get out himself. He’s tried.”
Either way, they had little choice, and this was as good a plan as any. Her wind rushed forward, opening the cell door as quietly as possible. Aterra still faced the opposite direction, but who knew when he would turn? Her luck ran out as she swung the door open.
“What do we have here?” Aterra’s drawl echoed through the cells as he turned to face them. “A jailbreak?” Aterra’s voice rose, drawing the guards’ attention down the hall.
Rose already hated this god with every fiber of her being because of what he had done to Luc and the continent. Her wind and water magic raged like a storm on the seas inside her—desperately wanting to fight him for everything he’d done and everything he was still doing.
“You’ll want to get back here!” Aterra yelled. “The prisoner is escaping.”
Rose grabbed Luc’s hand and tugged him deeper into the protective shield with her and Carter. “Get us out of here, Carter,” she whispered.
Carter’s yellow-green eyes met hers with such panic that she knew something was wrong. He tugged her forward, leading her back down the hallway from which they’d arrived. Unfortunately, this meant they were running toward the approaching guards.
He couldn’t explain but wanted them to leave the dungeon cells before transporting them back across planes. A chill ran down Rose’s spine.
Could he not transport them from here?
Rose cursed under her breath. Even invisible, they would never escape without being caught by one of the approaching guards. The hallway was too narrow. She wanted to scream as the guards neared. It wouldn’t help. Instead, she kept a tight grip on Luc and Carter as they positioned themselves to try to slip past.
“They’re invisible! Spread out!” Aterra yelled.
Rose clenched her teeth. The guards listened to the god, fanning out and covering the already small breadth of the hall.
“Get out of here, Rose. I can wait a little while longer.”Luc’s words flooded her senses as she tried to make a new plan.She hated everything the words implied.
She squeezed Luc’s hand tighter. “I can’t lose you again,”she all but screamed through the bond.
“You’re not losing me. You’ll never be able to be rid of me.”His words distracted her enough that he slipped his hand from hers, his magic pushing her shield away.
The guards collapsed on him, allowing Carter to drag Rose past. She froze, staring at Luc. Tears welled as she realized it was too late to get back to him; the guards were already roughly ushering him back into his cell.
Carter tugged harder—forward—turning briefly to show his teeth. She glared right back at him as the sound of Luc’s cell shutting echoed through her bones.
She knew Luc was right—once again making the decision she never would—but her heart broke nevertheless as she left him behind.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
Carter sprinted down the hallway and up the stone steps. Rose didn’t stop to question. She kept pace with him as he ran, keeping her fingers intertwined in the scruff of his neck so he could return them to the continent as soon as possible. Rose had a million questions. Clearly, he couldn’t take them back from the castle dungeon—or he would have. But did he know where to go now to make the jump?
They tore through the main castle entryway, narrowly avoiding everyone they passed. Carter barely paused as they turned the corner and made for the drawbridge. Rose huffed out a breath and kept running. Turning, she didn’t see anyone pursuing them. The guards must have been distracted enough by Luc’s appearance.
The knot in her stomach twisted and bottomed out. She couldn’t believe she’d left him.
Carter’s constant pull at least kept her from breaking down. If she and Carter were caught, she couldn’t try again. She flexed her fingers, not gripping Carter as they ran. Her hand had threaded in Luc’s. She’d thought she’d never let him go again.
Yet here she was, fleeing without him.
Her fury burned with a singular focus on Aterra. The Suden god was the bane of her existence.
As soon as their feet crossed the bridge exiting the castle, Rose felt the tug of Carter’s magic. She wound her fingers tighter into his fur, bracing herself to fall through realms. No matter how good she was with portals, this was different. She wasn’t sure she’d ever get used to the feeling. Especially after seeing Luc and Aterra wander, lost between realms, she had no desire to try this without Carter’s inherent expertise.
A sharp tug thrummed behind her breastbone. Her magic was as loath to leave Luc again as she was.
