Page 92 of Trial of Thorns
I hope it’s her truth they give to me. My stomach squirms, knowing there is no truth in her that will fix my hatred. It’ll only make my life harder—and that’s likely the exact reason the well will give it to me.
I steel my heart for what she’ll expose eventually. Truths I know I don’t want. And yet, can’t possibly walk away from.
“Let’s keep moving,” Ty says. “We’ll have to puzzle it out as we go.”
Our steps are swift but light as we careen down the pathways, compasses out. It bothers me how seamless the portal was—sights, sounds, and smells didn’t change in the slightest. Which means we might not notice the change even now that we know what we’re looking for.
I almost want to go examine the bridge portal again—there had to be a clue we missed. But it’s best to keep moving, putting distance between us and where we assume the others to be.
I’ve somehow swapped from the strongest alliance in the trials to the weakest. Four of the strongest fae are hunting me. Though, I’m almost at full strength, my climb yesterday set me back, and my two allies are lesser court fae. Weak.
I shake my head at my ridiculous predicament.
At least I’m alive, I suppose. But death very well may be just around the corner.
“Could we destroy it?” I ask suddenly. Ty and Caelynn turn to me. “The bridge, the portal. If you’re right that they’re behind us, they were likely on the other side of that portal and if we destroy it, they may never find the right course.”
Caelynn presses her teeth to her bottom lip. I stare mercilessly, then shake my head.Stupid.
Yes, she’s attractive. Yes, she’s smart. Yes, she’s strong. And probably more things I’ve never expected from her—but she’s still my enemy.
She destroyed my life for her own gain. She’s a damn terrorist.
“We don’t know that will work,” Ty says.
“That’s not a reason not to try.”
“What if we have to go back through it later?” Caelynn says, flecks of gold flickering in her eyes like fire.
I purse my lips.
“This is supposed to be some kind of maze,” she says. “So far, it doesn’t seem very complicated. I’d be willing to bet these portals will become more and more important as we complete the challenge.”
“We’ll have to follow the same route we used to reach our tasks, you think?”
“Possibly.”
I nod sharply, content with the reason not to destroy our known portal.
“Should we leave clues for us to find later?” Ty asks as we continue our swift pace.
“Maybe,” I say, “but then we run the risk of the others following our hints. I’d rather trust my own memory and instincts. Brielle has a particularly sharp eye. She’ll notice something out of place.”
We cross another small body of water, but after a few moments of testing, we decide there is no portal here. We keep moving. Our miles take much longer than we’d have liked, but figuring out the keys to the portal maze is easily worth it.
Our pace is more of a swift walk than a run, but we still travel several miles before deciding a meal break is in order.
“Does your bandage need changed?” Tyadin asks.
I pull up my shirt to examine the gauze over my stomach. “Looks fine to me. Did you changed it last night?”
He nods. My shoulders relax slightly, knowing it was him that aided me while I slept and not Caelynn. For all I know, she’d poison me while she did it.
I don’t want her to touch me, at all. Ever.
“Did you do something different? It seems to be healing better than before.” That or I didn’t hurt it as badly as I thought while climbing the cliff.
He nods but keeps his eyes low.
