Page 93 of The Catacomb King
But no. The eddy came from someone else emerging into this catacomb.
The Vizeking.
When he saw me, he stopped. “I thought I locked you up,” he said. There was a strange, distant, dark look on his face, as though he truly could not remember whether he had.
That expression made my stomach crawl. I dropped my mother on the ground behind me and put my fists up to my face.
The Vizeking turned his head up to the empty entry-tunnel the human soldiers had dug. “Is she here foryou?” he asked.
I wasn’t sure I’d understood him properly. “What?”
From high up the entry tunnel, a male voice also said, “What?”
I stiffened. I recognized that voice.
It couldn’t be.
A moment later, Calix’s feet landed flat on the earth.
My blood ran cold.
I was behind him. He hadn’t seen me. The Vizeking looked back and forth between us. Calix tossed his hair and said to the Vizeking, “Sorry I’m late. I had a funeral this morning, and then I had to oversee the transport of some additional equipment. The first thing the Body wants to do is get as many drills in here as possible.”
I cleared my throat.
Calix jumped. He turned and spotted me.
The blood drained from his face.
“What,” I said clearly, “the fuck.”
“Well,” said the Vizeking thoughtfully. “This is interesting.”
“What are you doing here?” Calix said wildly. He whipped to the Vizeking. “What is she doing here?” To me: “Did they kidnap you again?” To the Vizeking: “This wasn’t part of our deal —”
“DEAL?” I screamed.
“I certainly don’t know what she’s doing here,” said the Vizeking. “Perhapsyousent her.” Calix boggled. “As a spy.”
“I have certainly not been spying on Your Suzerainty,” Calix said stiffly. “I haven’t the faintest idea why you would make such an accusation. I have —” He stopped.
“You’ve what?” I demanded.
“I did not mean to suggest you were spying onme,” said the Vizeking. “Perhaps you were spying on His Lordship. I found herin his bedchamber.” He added dryly, “I see she has changed her clothes since then.”
Calix’s eyes fixed on my clothes. Or lack thereof. The blood rushed back into his face. He opened his mouth.
“I don’t want to fucking hear it from you,” I said furiously. “What is this?”
Calix got a retreating look in his eyes. Then he frowned. He sniffed the air. “Is that formaldehyde?”
“Don’t change the subject.”
His eyes fell on the bundled package of my mother behind me. His face contorted into a mask of horror. “Persephone. What did you do?”
“What didyoudo?!”
Calix stepped forward tightly. He boxed me against the wall. The Vizeking, watching us, tilted his head curiously. He still wore that dark, faintly blank expression. I wondered how much he understood of what was going on. Hell,Ididn’t understand what was going on. “This is what I had to do to rescue you,” Calix muttered. “I did what you wanted me to do. Okay? I negotiated with the godlings. And now I find thatyou, after I go to all that trouble, come back here of your own accord —”
