Page 297 of The Spider Queen
I inhaled a shaky breath. “I’m in Hell, aren’t I?”
“This is a gateway. It’s Hell, but not.”
“Gateway? That means I can get out!” I scrambled around, looking for another crack to slither through.
“Foolish girl,” she chided. “Do you really think you can leave him?”
“You tell me, you’re the oracle.”
“Oh, sarcasm. And from one so young.” She laughed again. The sound of it skittered down my spine like a cluster of spiders.
“Do you know who you are, young one?”
“That feels like a loaded question, doesn’t it?” I shot back.
Something pulled the hair off my neck, and a cold hand pressed against my skin. Icicle fingers wrapped around the column of my throat. Another hand cupped the back of my head.
“Watch,” the voice whispered.
Clear diamonds pulsed in the wall of the cave, and then arranged into the form of a diamond spider.
“Your birthright,” the voice said. “Daughter of the two Guardians.”
“Yes, I know.”
“Your mother,” the voice went on, ignoring me, “a powerful Guardian in her own right.”
“What does that have to do with—”
“There has never been a female Guardian before your mother. Some say she is stronger than your father, who hails from an unbroken lineage.”
“What doyousay?” I asked.
“It does not matter who is stronger individually, for their strength is bound to one another, entwined like a knot.”
She fell silent and just when I thought she was done speaking, she said, “But you are their child. Their only child. And you are the bridge that binds us all.”
The hands released me and the diamond spider faded. I rubbed the back of my neck as if I could chase away the chill that had crept into my skin and bones.
“You carry the mark,” she said. “You will have one chance to find the three. Ask the asp, take the dome of glass, and you will begin your journey.”
The voice faded away into silence, and the cave was suddenly chilly. The oracle had been life and warmth, and now that she was gone, there was only the eerie feeling of death.
“Fucking riddles,” I muttered. I stumbled toward the wall that a moment ago twinkled in the shape of a spider. I touched the stone. It was cold. Shivering, I turned and retreated to the crack in the cavern.
When I got outside, I winced at the sudden brightness. My throat was parched. I heard the sound of trickling water and frowned. I looked around but didn’t see a stream or creek running through the canyon.
I went around yet another curve, and saw water dripping from a rock.
“Better than blood, I guess,” I murmured. I rushed over to the stone and cupped my hand underneath it. The water was clear, faintly tinged blue, but it was sweet and satiating.
Once I had my fill, I splashed some water across my face, washing away the sand and silt that had collected on my skin. I thought about the oracle’s riddle.
Find the three. The three what? Ask the asp…I had to ask the asp about the three.
Asp.
Snake.
