Page 234 of Eldritch
The priestess’s eyes softened and as she raised a hand to my face, I recoiled, but she rested a gentle palm against my cheek. “No, sweet child. It is the will of the goddess. Morsana chose Deimos. And she chose you well.”
Lips pressed together, I fought the urge to break. “Did you see where he went?” I asked the guard.
He shook his head. “My friend was bitten. We hurried back.”
“How did the guard pass so quickly? My sister carried her infection for days.”
“Your sister bore a scratch across her ribs. I have reason to believe the gashes inflicted directly may be the purest form of the plague. The origin.” She nodded toward the guard still lying on the floor with his mate beside him. “He had no scratches. No bite marks that I could see. They crawled beneath his flesh.” She shook her head. “The ichor in our blood has grown weak. Centuries ago, those spiders would have perished inside of us, expelled with ease. Each generation grows more vulnerable. Frail.”
“Then we learn how to be stronger. Not just future generations but now.” I turned toward the other guard. “How did you escape unbitten?”
“I stabbed the spiders with my spear.”
I swung my gaze back to the priestess. “You see? Not with magic, or blood. You fight.”
“For now. But when they infect those who carry blood magic, our spears will be useless.”
“You’re exactly right.” I turned away from her but as I strode toward the door, I felt a grip of my arm.
“Where are you going?” the priestess asked.
“To find Zevander. And keep those damned spiders from crossing into Aethyria.”
“The Rotting Tree.” The priestess stood alongside me and pressed her palm to the drawing on the wall that I’d woken up to earlier. “There’s still warmth. He cleaved.”
“He had to be with someone. Zevander doesn’t cleave.” Again, I found myself staring at what appeared to be a gaping cavity in the tree. “And what is this tree?”
“I’ve seen it.” The sound of Aleysia’s voice had me spinning around to find her standing in the doorway. A look of fear claimed her face. “That’s where I was kept before I escaped.”
“Can you take me there?”
Her face pinched to panic, and she shook her head. “You shouldn’t go there, Maeve. Terrible things…I saw terrible things.”
“I understand. I won’t ask you to come with me, but I am going after him.” I twisted toward the priestess. “Do you know where this is?”
She shook her head and sighed. “I would venture to guess your dragon knows where to find this tree.”
“Raivox?”
“They’re very wise creatures, the Corvugons.” She lifted my gloved hand and sighed. “Perhaps it’s time I showed you what this is.”
Flexing my fingers, I nodded. “Can you give me a moment alone with my sister?”
“Of course.”
As soon as the priestess exited the cottage and closed the door behind her, I felt the first fissure in my heart.
“You’re leaving,” Aleysia said before I spoke a word.
“I want to tell you to come with me, but …” I cleared my throat in a poor effort to swallow back the rising emotion. “Mortals can’t cross the boundary.”
“So, in terms ofleaving, you mean Mortasia.”
A sharp sting burned across the rims of my eyes, and I turned away. “We could try something. Zevander captured the man who’s been stalking us. Theron. He could…force a bond. There would be an exchange of blood that might allow you to cross.”
Aleysia chuckled and I lifted my gaze to see her eyes wavering with tears. “Do you hear yourself? If I didn’t know better, I’d think Agatha had inhabited you just now.”
“It’s a terrible idea, I know. But Agatha sought our betrothal for personal gain. I only want to keep you safe.”
