Page 34 of Soul of Thorns
Its pitch-black eyes shift to the ledge we’re on, and my breath catches. A moment of quiet stretches as all three of us wait. Then, the rabbit darts toward the rocks and disappears into some unseen crevasse in the mountainside.
“Did it see us?” Rev asks.
“Yes,” I whisper, watching the place it fled. “Maybe we’re not as inconspicuous as we’d previously thought.”
“You’re using your shadow magic?”
“Yes, but only a veil, not a full shield. It would take more energy for that.”
He pursues his lips. “Should we use more shadow magic?”
I bite my lip. “Probably. But that comes with some drawbacks. It’ll drain my power pretty quickly if I cast a full shield day in and out.”
“We can rely on my magic for offense. Yours for defense.” Rev’s light magic is impressively effective against wraiths, so it does make some sense. But I hate the idea of weakening myself and having to rely on him to defend me if an attack comes. Not that I can’t fight without magic, even entirely drained, I’m stronger than most of the creatures we come across. So long as there aren’t too many of them. I picture the clawing skeletons from the bog piling on top of Rev.
I remember that helpless feeling because I couldn’t reach him in time. Well, I could have. Would have if I had to. Back then, I had an ally helping me. Sort of. He would have happily watched Rev drown in that smelly muck. Just like in my dream, he wants me to leave Rev behind.
That wraith that called himself my ancestor is pretty high on my list of enemies. I put him just behind the Night Terror because she’s the bigger threat. I’m not sure where I should rank the Night Bringer because he’s not here inside these walls and he can’t get in. Even so, I’ll never forget him. The way he hunts and waits for the right moment. Luring fae into his trap.
I shiver.
“So, what now?” I ask. We can only wait here for so long.
“We still don’t know how to pass through the flames,” Rev answers.
“That rabbit crossed without so much as blinking. Maybe it’s not as formidable as we think.”
“Look at where we are,” Rev says with a flat voice. “It’s more likely to be worse than we think, not better.”
“So, what? We just keep putting it off? We try to figure out some puzzle we only have one piece to? We have to make the leap, Rev. We can’t just wait this out. It’ll only get worse.”
Rev winces. “We can gather more information by continuing to watch.”
“How? What do you think we could find out?”
“Maybe we should have talked with your wraith ancestor. He could have—”
“He could have purposefully gotten you killed. That’s what he’s most likely to do. He isn’t trying to help us, Rev. He wants something from us, just like everyone else.” I swallow and look past him toward the glowing wall of red fire, eagerly lapping into the sky like fingers reaching for something to burn.
“I’ll go,” I say.
“What do you mean?”
“I’ll go first. If I don’t disintegrate into ash, you can follow.” Easy solution if you ask me. It’s certainly possible I’ll die a very painful death, but at the end of the day, that’s better for the both of us anyway. Well, I mean, I’d prefer a painless death, but that’s never been a likely option for me anyway.
Rev clenches his teeth, his jaw muscle popping. He steps forward. I cross my arms, holding my ground, but my heart races. It always does when he gets this close.
“What do you think your chances of survival are?” his intense grey eyes pinned to mine. I feel like that rabbit facing a predator. My magic is stronger than Rev’s, but he has power over me that I cannot control.
“Slim,” I admit, forcing my stare to remain solid.
His fingers grip my chin. “Why do you wish for death, Caelynn?”
I close my eyes, suppressing a shudder. “You said you want more information. You know we need to cross the fire. We can’t wait forever. This is doing exactly what you’re asking for in a way that limits the risk. That’s it.”
“Limits the risk,” he mutters, shaking his head. His jaw ticks. “If we’re taking huge risks with our lives, why not talk to a wraith?”
I step back, lean against the rocky hill behind us, and slide down to my butt. “The risk of talking to a wraith is that I get captured and taken to the Night Terror. I’d rather gamble with my death.”
