Page 47 of Taloned Heart

“Wonderful! You’ve made it this far,” Algor said, his voice echoing in the vast chamber. “Now is the hard part. You have to trust me.”

“Trust you?” Abraxas barked. He wasn’t afraid of heights, but he feared what waited for them in the shadows. “What is the game here, dwarf?”

“No game at all. It’s a trust exercise. I’m certain you’ve heard of it.”

Beauty weaved a little too close to the edge. Abraxas leaned over her and pressed his arm over her shoulders, forcing her back against the wall.

“Dwarf,” he snarled.

Lore seemed all too happy to be where she was. With a bright tone, she asked, “What do we have to trust you about?”

Algor slapped a hand to the wall and the sound of rushing water filled the chamber. He could hear it, but couldn’t see it. Abraxas looked up, expected a waterfall to open above their head. But no, it was below their feet.

He stared down as the water rose toward them and felt his stomach twist at the shadows that swam through the depths. The dwarves were feeding something in this cavern. Those dark shadows twisted and wove like coiling eels, just too large to be anything natural.

“What have you been feeding down here?” he asked.

“Oh, I’m not sure, really. I’ve always called them ‘the creatures’. My grandfather found them when he was mining this area for the first time. Kept them because they weren’t bothering anyone but us.” Algor shrugged. “Nasty things, though.”

The water was getting closer and closer. Abraxas could almost feel it licking their feet. Surely Algor had an escape plan for himself. Creatures like that weren’t picky about who they consumed. Now he just had to find the escape plan.

“Here’s the part where you trust me,” Algor called out, his voice ringing over the rushing water. “Take a step forward.”

“A what?” Abraxas shouted.

And then, to his horror, he saw Lore do just that.

CHAPTER18

Stepping off into the unknown might not have been her best idea. Lore knew just how dangerous it was to walk over a surface that was clearly water with writhing beasts inside it. Who knows what they even were?

She peered down into the water, seeing red eyes reflecting the light and hungry flashing teeth. And something inside her whispered, “Trust him.”

So she did.

Lore didn’t even hesitate as she stepped off the ledge and onto the unknown. Maybe she was about to be sacrificed to those creatures. She had no intention of dying today, though, and her powers were great enough to battle them back. But there was also the chance that the dwarven king was truthful and that he had a gift for them. A gift that might help them find Zephyr, who was so close she could almost feel him.

Why wouldn’t she take the risk? It was foolish not to. Trusting this dwarf might be the best thing she’d ever done.

And as she stepped off the ledge, her eyes focused on the darkness below her, her foot connected with something solid. Something real that wasn’t water at all. Frowning, she scraped her heel against the surface. A loud screech filled the room, and she left a small scuff mark behind.

“Glass?” she asked, her voice filled with wonder. “Is this cave filled with glass?”

The dwarven king clapped loudly behind her, the peals of his laughter overpowering the dwindling sound of running water as he stumbled toward her. His humor was so great that he seemed barely capable of walking.

“Yes!” he finally gasped. “Oh, you should have seen your faces! Terror! It’s always terror when people see my grandfather’s pet but they never guess that I wouldn’t kill them! Oh, oh, oh, that was well worth it. Even the Fallen Star finds fear in the dwarven kingdom!”

She didn’t, actually. And if he took one look at her, he would have seen that she wasn’t afraid in the slightest. But Lore didn’t want to ruin his fun, and she supposed this was a rather ridiculous prank to pull on people.

But then she looked over her shoulder and knew Abraxas was seeing red. Her dragon had been preparing to save them, she was certain. He likely was already feeling the explosive power of his change, and that might actually crack the glass under their feet. Then they would all have a problem, and she was certain the dwarves would not appreciate their disregard for their hospitality.

Sighing, she turned toward him and pressed her hands against his cheeks. “Abraxas,” she murmured. “We are all safe.”

“This was not a funny joke,” he growled.

“No, it wasn’t. But we are all alive and well.” She thought, at least. They were all in one piece, and that was enough for her. Lore didn’t care if Algor wanted to prank them. It was a funny joke. He got what he wanted out of it, and they were still getting a gift.

“Oh!” Algor’s voice rang out as the last trickles of water died. “I didn’t think about it, but of course, your dragon would be upset.”

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