Page 55 of Shadow Master
What the fuck? I urged my ride forward with a clip of my heels until I was abreast of Lugh. “Why are we stopping?”
He climbed off his horse and looked up at me with my lover’s face. “The horses need to rest for a while. An hour and then we continue. The location is in the rocky terrain up ahead. It’s close. I can feel it.”
Can you now?
“Your expression suggests doubt.” He held out his hands. “Let me help you down.”
I stared at the hands that had loved my body, hands that knew me intimately. “No, thanks. I got this.”
I climbed off the horse and stood facing him, hating how much I wanted to hug him, to pretend that it was Brady I was holding, not some imposter. Instead, I lifted my chin to glare at him.
“I swear, if you’re fucking us about, I will make you pay.”
The corner of his mouth twitched as he suppressed a smile. “Oh? And how do you intend to do that?”
Good point. I allowed my shark smile to come out and play. “Oh, I’ll find a way. I’ll find a way to target your spirit and leave Brady unharmed. Trust me, Lugh, I have skills.”
The shadow of doubt that crossed his face was enough to satisfy me.
My smile fell. “Go rest. We leave in an hour.”
I strode away from him. Yeah, I’d just given their liege an order, and from the looks of it, he was following it.
* * *
The rocky terrainproved impossible for the hooved horses to navigate. We ended up abandoning them and continuing on foot. Athos, with his padded paws, managed to keep up just fine.
Hyde had climbed off Athos and insisted on walking. I didn’t argue. He looked better now. His movements were smooth and his stride strong.
Lugh and Abram made up the lead again. The rest of the league was behind us. I climbed, using my hands and my feet to move forward. We were in a rocky pass with walls rising on either side of us, and it was getting narrower by the minute.
The urge to askare we there yetwas a scratch at the back of my brain.
Harmon stomped behind me, grumbling under his breath. “Fucking rocks.”
My foot slipped, and Hyde grabbed my elbow to steady me. Our gazes tangled, and our breath mingled, reminding me of our night together. The only night we’d ever get because once we returned …
“You okay?” he asked softly.
“Yeah. I’m fine.” I gave him a quick smile.
“Here!” Brady’s voice drifted back to us, and my heart leaped before my brain reminded me that it wasn’t Brady speaking. It was the thing inside him.
Urgh. We picked up the pace. Up an incline and over the rocks until we were climbing into an aperture that opened out into a cave.
Abram lit a sconce and held it aloft. Several other league members did the same. The darkness retreated as we moved forward into the cave. It was wide enough for us to walk in threes, but we settled into pairs. Hyde beside me, Harmon and Athos behind me.
The cave smelled earthy, and my lungs swelled with fresh air. I’d learned enough during my studies to know what that meant. This cave had running water, a stream somewhere to account for the rich air. A rumbling sound drifted to my ears.
My suspicions were confirmed a moment later when the tunnel opened out into a vast chamber, home to a large body of water. A waterfall crashed into the pool from the wall to the left, and a stream meandered out of sight to the far right. Set in the middle of the lake was an island housing a pedestal.
It was impossible to see what was on the pedestal from our vantage and distance, but it had to be the eye.
Lugh confirmed it a moment later. “There!” he said triumphantly, sliding a smug glance my way. “The eye, for all who doubted me.”
Abram looked horrified. “No, my liege. We would not doubt you.”
Lugh snorted. “Now, we must find a way across.”
