Page 88 of Cruelest Kiss and Fairest Blood
The questions pour out of her as fresh fear flushes her skin. I don’t have the answers.
“We need to hurry and get you back to the mortal realm. There must be a healer who can reverse the damage.”
My amulet pulses. It’s been steadily thumping for the last half hour. I can only hope my ravens can keep things well in hand until I’m able to break free. My thoughts were so focused on Lenore, I didn’t stop to think about what would happen if I left my kingdom without a protector.
“Why does that happen?” She nods to the necklace.
“It means something is amiss in my kingdom.” My stomach is tight. I dread to find what will have happened when I finally return.
A tremor rocks through the ground beneath our feet. Then another.Something’s coming.I cannot even begin to guess what foul creatures we will encounter here. When the troll steps into the cottage clearing, I’m hit with a nauseous wave of dark energy. Lenore blanches. But it’s not the sheer size of the troll, nor its massive, grotesque features that has my raven clutching my arm. It’s not even the oversized club that has mashed-up remnants of his latest victims on it. It’s the length of chained-up humans trailing behind him. There are nine in total, all with collars around their neck that link them to the person in front and behind them. Trolls are despicable creatures that delight in capturing and trading in human slaves. They don’t care the age, gender, ethnicity, size, weight, health, or frailty. Be it children or the elderly, they’ll take any human they can find.
The troll halts when he sees us. His soulless eyes brighten at the sight of Lenore. Pushing her behind me, I spread my wings wide, blocking her from his view.
My shadows rise, fanning out around us and taking the shape of two great clawed hands. The troll takes several hurried steps back, crushing one of his slaves in the process.
I try to ignore the pleading looks from the people on his chains. There’s nothing I can do for them. I delight in suffering when it’s happening in my kingdom. Only because I know those who are being tormented deserve it. That’s not the case in the in-between. I would never have come back here if it weren’t for Lenore.
Her fingers land gently on my wings, reminding me she’s hiding back there. “Is it gone?”
“It is.” I lift my right wing. She ducks beneath it, tucking in close by my side. I wrap her up in my feathers, holding her against me.
Blood reaches my nose. She’s been biting the skin on her fingers. Six are bleeding. “Can we help them?”
“I’m afraid not.”
“But you said this was my version of the in-between. If I imagined those people, that horrible scenario, then I should be able to stop it.”
“The in-between is so vast, endless really. Your nightmare landscape at times crosses over with the landscapes of others. They are all living in their own hell, with their own doors somewhere inside.”
“But they won’t know. If someone doesn’t tell them, they won’t find it. They’ll never be free.” She looks behind her, gripping my shoulders. “There are others, people trapped in the web of a massive spider. We have to find a way to free them.”
My fingers comb through the length of her hair. “You have such a big heart, Lenore. It is going to be hard enough findingour own way out. We do not have the time nor the ability to save the others.”
Lenore covers her face and leans into my chest. “This place is awful.”
“It is.” I nuzzle into the top of her head. My raven should never have had to come here. When we get mortal side up, I’m going to teach that witch a lesson she’ll never forget or recover from. Ideas of how I can torment her build in my thoughts. Perhaps I’ll learn a thing or two from the monsters of the in-between and apply them to Catreena.
Chapter 28
Lenore
There are estates and sights scattered all around. Many of them I do not recognize. Apparently they are more places where my in-between is crossing over with someone else’s. We pass a home, large enough to belong to a noble family. I can’t help but wonder what kind of hell they’re experiencing right now.
I take Harrow’s hand, squeezing. He squeezes right back, reaffirming nothing will happen to me with him by my side. “You’re struggling to accept the fate of the others. I understand. I love the way your mind works, but try to keep it from wandering to anyone else. It will only bring you pain to overthink things in a place like this.”
That’s easier said than done.
The twisted, ominous trees looming above us take new shapes. I recognize those varieties. Stepping through a densethicket, I find a familiar sight. Finally, something I know is meant for me.
“That’s the cabin Cassius took me to!” I exclaim. The outside is identical. This is the first hope I’ve felt since Harrow rescued me. He said it would be something familiar. Dragging Harrow with me, I race to the entrance. “Maybe the door back to my world is inside.” I reach for it.
“Cassius took you to a cabin?”
Harrow’s tone makes me freeze. It’s deceivingly casual. Which mean I’m in deeper shit than I realized.
My fingers are resting on the handle. Swallowing, I respond, “Yes.”
I attempt to keep my voice even. Harrow doesn’t know what happened. He didn’t even know about the cabin before this moment. That much is obvious.
