Page 20 of A Door in the Dark

Clyde Winters was a husk.

There was no other word for him. It looked like he’d been cooked from the inside out. Every vein had burst. His eyes bulged and popped. She saw blackened scorches underneath the skin. Almost as if the magic flowing through his body had boiled, hard and hot. Even his clothing looked burned. There were dark streaks across his cardigan and his trousers. Ren thought she could handle it. Cadavers had never bothered her before, but then the scent of burning flesh hit her nostrils with full force. She turned in time to retch on Timmons’s shoes.

“Hey! That’s disgusting, Ren! Why…”

And then her friend saw the body. She let loose a scream.

For a few seconds Ren stood there, bent over, her chest heaving. Even the smallest motion threatened to rock her stomach. She waited until she was certain she wasn’t going to throw up again. Then she pulled her scarf up over her nose and turned back to face the dark scene.

Timmons looked like a dying flower. She was kneeling in the dirt, face buried in her hands, her entire body shaking uncontrollably. Theo stood with one hand pressed to the base of a giant tree, struggling to keep his feet. He’d turned his back to them. Anything to avoid looking at what was lying on the forest floor between them. Ren’s eyes skipped over that same spot.

She looked at Avy instead. He was on his back, staring up at the thick canopy. His chest rose and fell, and she remembered he’d been hit by a stunner before the portal spell activated. Likely its effect had amplified. She suspected the magic felt like a two-ton anvil now.

Only Cora remained calm. Of course. The medical student would know what to do when everyone else was panicking. Ren watched her navigate through the maze of bone-thick roots. She knelt down to take vitals and announced unhelpfully, “He’s dead.”

Those words finally brought the image back into focus. Ren couldn’t ignore it now. Clyde Winters was sprawled at a strange angle on the forest floor—and he looked very, very dead. Cora was fishing through her bag. She unpacked a small medical kit. The sound of her tools clinking together finally forced Theo to turn around. He wiped his mouth with one sleeve.

“Knock it off. That’s an heir of House Winters. He’s not a test cadaver.”

Cora paused in the middle of her preparations. Even though the forest was thick with shadows, Ren saw the girl’s expression clearly. She looked like she wanted to tell Theo that was exactly what Clyde was now. Instead she offered a begrudging nod.

“You’re right. It’s just… unlike any death I’ve ever seen… knowing the cause.…”

Ren saw the sharpness in Theo’s expression. She decided to intervene.

“Not now, Cora. We need to figure out where we are first.”

Avy finally sat up. He blinked a few times. When he saw Clyde’s body on the ground, both hands went up defensively. “I… I didn’t do that. I swear! There’s no way.…”

For some reason his denial dragged Timmons back into the conversation.

“I told you not to do magic in there. Look at that. Look what happened to him!”

Avy shook his head. “I didn’t even cast a spell. That’s what I’m saying. It couldn’t have been me. I didn’t use any magic.…”

There was a moment of silence. No retching or heaving or sobbing. It was just long enough for the forest to press in around them like a shadow. A sharp breeze stirred the branches, clacking them together like spears. Ren heard dying birdsong and the distant shuffling of larger creatures. The group looked around, unnerved. The quiet was a reminder that this place—wherever they were—was also a threat to them. She’d never felt so exposed. It didn’t help that one of them was already dead. That thought was followed by a darker one.

And one of us killed him.

She tried to trace back through the steps that had led to this moment. The chaos in the portal room. The fight that had broken out just before the waxway spell had activated. Somehow they’d all been transported to this forest full of shadows. Ren tried to refocus on the present. Theo had removed his cardigan and was attempting to cover Clyde’s body with it.

He’s dead. I can’t believe he’s actually dead.

The others were in varying states of shock, but as Ren watched, Theo straightened. His hands reached up, almost on their own, and adjusted the tie at his throat. She saw his facial features smooth out. It was a quick clearing of the head. That polished facade slipped back on like a mask. This was the son of a family who built and conquered cities. She should have expected this kind of poise from him. When he spoke, his voice didn’t even shake.

“There’s nothing in transportation magic that would have caused a death like this. The magics don’t just mix. That’s not how it works. Balmerick’s portal spell is an established magic. It’s been in place for a decade. Clyde brandishing his wand and casting a few stunners wouldn’t be enough for him to tap into a preexisting spell of that magnitude. It doesn’t work like that.”

He was cleverer than he looked. Ren had concluded the same thing.

“Tell that to Clyde,” Timmons shot back. “He’s… gods. He’s actually…”

She turned around and burst into tears again. Cora was still kneeling by the body, clearly hoping for permission to continue with her inspection. Avy paced back and forth like a massive wounded animal. Ren felt the need to defend him.

“There’s no spell Avy could have cast that would have killed Clyde.”

Avy shook his head. “I didn’t cast anything. He’s the one who hit me.”

Theo ignored him. “You’re right. It was something else.…”

---