Page 102 of Unbound By Shadows
An odd buzzing started in her hand. It spread up to her arm then across her whole body. The familiar smell of ozone hit her nostrils, and it felt as if the room was spinning.
She looked at Queen Lamia, panicked. “Something’s happening… ”
“The stone! Let go of the stone!” Queen Lamia shouted.
Selene looked at the stone in her hand. She tried to pry her fingers apart as realization dawned. But it was too late. Her body lurched and twisted like she was being pulled inside out. Queen Lamia’s desperate face swam before her, gripping her shoulders and begging her not to go.
Then everything went dark.
Chapter 43
Sam awoke in agony. He thought the throbbing pain where his horn used to be had blurred his vision black. After a moment, he realized he was wrapped in the darkness of the cave.
“Selene?” he tried to call out, but the words turned into a cough that wracked his broken ribs. The sound echoed through the walls of the cave. He listened intently for a reply or the presence of Zaybris’s guards but only heard the rush of the waterfall and his own heartbeat reverberating in his ears.
I failed her.
He reached out to feel the ground around him, at first encountering only dust. Then his hand bumped against something made of glass and metal. His fingertips explored the object until its shape came to him. It was one of the lanterns from Queen Thema’s castle, now broken. They had all been smashed to pieces, he realized. Finding his way out of the maze that had led them in felt impossible without light. Still, he had to try.
Carefully, Sam attempted to stand but collapsed face-first onto the ground. He knew his life-force was ebbing away, but he wouldn’t fail Selene a second time. Zaybris must have taken her to the Goblyncastle with the traveler’s stone, he reasoned. The vampire was probably putting her in chains right at that moment or harvesting blood from her veins. The thought filled him with such terror and rage it gave him the strength to roll to his side. There, he could see light coming from the rock opening to the waterfall. A way out. Slowly, he used his elbows to inch his body closer to the waterfall and the sliver of sunlight reflected.
At last, he was able to peer over the cliff edge to see what was below. The waterfall flowed into a river, one he knew flowed toward the Goblyn castle. The drop was steep, not much less than the tower’s staircase that led to his chambers at Queen Thema’s castle. He considered climbing down the crag, but his hands were bloody and raw from fighting. Yet, he knew there was no other way out.
Without stopping to consider the dangers, Sam dove over the cliff’s edge. Wind and water rushed past him as he fell, whipping his hair around his broken horn. The resonance of the waterfall pounded from all directions. The murky depths of the river below came toward him faster and faster until he was plunged into a shock of cold water.
He let himself sink for a moment, relishing how the icy water soothed the pain of his injuries. Numbness overtook his body. Feebly, he tried to kick against the water’s pull, but his feet felt heavy.
He needed air. Instinctively, he opened his mouth to breathe, and river water rushed in. The more he tried to expel it from his mouth, the more it filled his lungs. Twisting and turning, Sam tried futilely to take a breath, but he was too far below the water’s surface. Down and down he sunk until the motion in his limbs stilled. His eyes slid shut, and his head tilted back.
I’m dying.
Demons in the living realm couldn’t die of sickness or old age, but they could still perish if their vital functions were compromised. Sam thought again about how he had failed Selene. Betrayed her. Lied to her. He had failed Queen Thema too. He had done almost nothing of worth or honor in this life. He had squandered the love ofhis fated mate and would now be exiting the living realm with his vengeance for Zaybris unfulfilled. At least he would soon be reunited with his parents.
Sam’s heart slowed, and his attempts at breathing stopped. Just before he slipped into unconsciousness, he felt something large swimming behind him. It swam again past his side, then he felt pressure around both wrists. Without warning, Sam’s body was jerked up and pulled through the water at top speed. He felt his head breach the water’s surface and air race over his face. Then he was flipped onto his back and pulled through the water again as though he were a heavy fishing net. Finally, he felt the bite of river stones against his back and the sun beating on his bare chest. He was no longer in the water but on land.
Sam rolled to his side, vomiting up water and gasping for breath.
“Easy now. Breathe into this,” Sam heard a voice say. Something hard and round was pressed to his lips, and glorious, clean air filled Sam’s mouth. Greedily, he breathed it in. Feeling rushed back to his limbs and the haze in his mind began lifting. Then suddenly, the air-delivering device was ripped away from him.
Sam made a noise of protest and turned to see someone peering down at him. It was a Nereid, a male with patches of gold-scaled skin. The top half of his body was muscular flesh, but below his waist, he had a golden fishtail instead of legs. Down the middle of his head, strands of blue and green hair were woven together in a braid.
“Slow down, or you’ll be even worse off,” the Nereid said, holding up a long, slender seashell. The end of his ruffled tail splashed rhythmically into the riverbank. “This shell is enchanted to deliver air, but too much can be deadly.”
“Thank you,” Sam rasped.
The Nereid smiled broadly, displaying a row of sharp white teeth. “I knew it was you.”
Sam wiped water from his face. “What?”
“You’re Samael!” The Nereid said his name like a victory cheer. “What happened to your horn?”
“Do I… know you?”
The Nereid shook his head, “No, but you saved my life many years ago. My name is Kye.” His tail rippled, sending droplets of water into the air. “When I was young, a group of vampires tried to get me to fight for them. They took me from my waters, made me don legs, and locked me in a wagon.”
Sam nodded weakly.
“On the night I was supposed to fight, you set fire to everything and freed me. It was amazing! I always wanted to repay you. And then today, you just showed up! In my river! What are you doing here?” Kye said.
