Page 16 of The Ordeals
A thin trail of warmth slithers down from my nose, but I ignore it, along with the throbbing in my skull.
‘Step diagonally to the left, then forward two,’ I say.
‘Stop,’ Alden says suddenly, pulling me against him. A growl emanates from his throat and he slices out with both hands as a web of vines shoot over us. I reach for my switchblade and, in a smooth motion, swing at the nearest snaking plant. It claws at my waist but falls away.
‘Right two, forward three!’ I gasp, gripping his suit jacket and surging to the side. He follows my lead, eyes tracking the vines as they tighten around us, forming a web overhead to blot out the night sky. I quicken my step, knowing we’re about to be trapped. ‘They’re … attracted to you. Maybe it’s your magic.’
‘Or you,’ he says, risking a glance at me. ‘They know we’re a threat. Get us out of here, DeWinter.’
Another vine whips out, fastening around my throat. I cry out, dropping to my knees as I bring my blade up to slice through it. But even as it falls away, more vines claw their way towards me.
Alden grips my arm, hauling me up, and I realise he’s bleeding. A gash, shoulder to elbow blooms with blood, his jacket sleeve shredded and useless. ‘Which way? Shit …’
Flames leap in a circle, higher than my head and I know I’ve gone wrong. I’ve stumbled to the right, avoiding the vines when I should have led us forward.
We’re surrounded.
I pull in a breath, drawing on whatever inner strength I have. The ground melts beneath us, the very air choked of oxygen as we’re forced into the span of two squares.
‘DeWinter …’ Alden says urgently, eyes darting back and forth.
I squint, the blood seeping freely now from my nose, my vision edged in darkness. The courtyard tilts and swims and I sway sickeningly, searching desperately for even a hint of illusion. I turn in a steady circle, considering each square, searching for glints and glitter in the flame, even as the blood continues to flow, even as my vision swims. But there’s nothing but fire. ‘It’s all real!’
Alden says nothing for a moment. Then he chuckles darkly. ‘Never thought this would be the way I would go if I’m honest …’
I laugh as well, hysteria rising within me. Is this how I die? In a burst of flame and agony? How can I die when I am so close tofinally living? And somehow, as the flames lick at my edges, as the heat raises such terror I didn’t know it was possible to feel, I say,no.
I will not fail.
I reach for Alden’s hand and grip it tightly, catching a glint, the smallestspark, and hope I’m not clutching at straws, that it’s magic, that there’s a way through—
‘Now!’ I gasp, pulling on his hand.
And rush through the flame.
We collapse onto an empty square and I release Alden’s hand, slamming mine to the cold stone ground. My shoulders heave and I fight to keep myself from retching, even as my mind catches up to what I’ve just done, what could have happened …
Suddenly I’m aware of gasps, of the other hopefuls calling out to us and as I look up, I find the woman with the twinset staring at me, not so far away now, eyebrows raised, as though in challenge. She cocks her head to the side, as if to say,is that all you’ve got?
‘We have to keep moving,’ Alden breathes, slicing out with one hand as the vines snap for his legs, and offering me the other. ‘Don’t give up on me now, DeWinter. You’re just getting interesting.’
‘You seemed to find me pretty interesting in the bar,’ I mutter along with a few curse words, grabbing his hand once more and steeling myself for the final squares, only a handful now dividing us from victory. I find the path we need to take. Shouting commands, I lead us past the flames both real and illusion, a vine wrapping my wrist that I wrench away. Alden’s hands are sluggish as he slices, but I push him over the final square, lunging past a sudden burst of flame.
Then it’s all over.
We hit the wall on the other side of the courtyard, the throb in my skull spreading across my whole face, tunnelling my vision. ‘Shit,’ I murmur, leaning my head against the wall, blood splashinglike ink from my nose to the ground. It’s so intense, so unbearable, pain exploding out in bursts. I think I could pass out.
‘Take my handkerchief,’ Alden grates out, from where he leans on the wall next to me, shoving a slip of fabric into my fingers. I grasp it, shoving it underneath my nose, giving myself a moment.
When I glance up at him, he’s dishevelled and pale, that gash across his arm bleeding freely. But as my gaze travels up to his face, I find his features are unreadable. Almost as though he’s put up a wall between us. ‘Thank you,’ I say, wiping away the last of the blood. ‘Your arm, you need to staunch the flow …’
I hold the handkerchief out to him, but he turns away. ‘Keep it. I crossed first between the two of us and gained third place. Think of it as a consolation prize.’
Of course. I could laugh at my own stupidity. For a moment I forgot where I was, that this is an entrance exam and he is my rival. He only saved me with an antidote so that I would find a way out for us and now he’s used my magic to cross the courtyard, beating me to the other side to be the third to cross, gaining the first favour of the Ordeals, I’m no longer of use. His mouth is already twisting, the glint in his eyes steely as he turns to survey the other hopefuls. He’s sizing everyone up, deciding who he will choose as his partner.
Then he turns those eyes on me. And smiles.
‘You will make the perfect partner, DeWinter.’
