Page 100 of Gift from the Tree

Palace team? What does that mean?

“Oakly, you’re with me,” Ry orders, giving her a stern look.

“What? No, I’m not leaving Willow,” she disagrees, crossing her arms.

“Corentin, Draken, and their team will need to be as focused as possible going underground. They’ll already be worried about Willow. They don’t need to be focused on you too. You’re with me.” Ry stares her down, daring her to argue more, and she’s about to.

“He’s right. If they separate us, there’ll be more eyes on us, and they’ll be able to focus better. Everything will be okay. I promise,” I say, placing my hand on her arm.

“Fine. But I don’t like it. Please be safe.” She gives me a hug and I return it just as hard.

“Come on, little wanderer. Time to move.” Draken intertwines our fingers, and we begin making our way through the woods.

Coming through the tree line, a huge structure made completely of stone, with no windows at all, comes into view, and like Ry said, only one door is visible for this whole building. As quickly as we can, we run toward the structure, all of us placing our backs on the stone, as palace team one and two prepare to enter the door.

I’m expecting some crazy shit like them exploding the door off the hinges or something, but they just rip it open and file in. Extremely anticlimactic, but I still hold my breath, waiting as I hear some grunts and a shout that’s cut off before its sound can travel far.

An E.F. member comes back out, whisper-yelling, “Clear,” and we all begin to run through the doorway. The space is much larger than I thought it was going to be and almost all of us fit into the darkened bare stone entry.

“You know your objectives. Move.” At Corentin’s order, everyone begins to head toward the stairs that lead up or down, other than Oakly, Ry’s team, and us. There’s a hallway to the left and that’s where they head.

Nestled between Draken and Corentin, with half of the palace team in front and behind us, we take the stairs as quickly and quietly as possible. My chest begins to pull tightly the farther we go down this never-ending fucking staircase. I thought it’d just be one flight of stairs we’d have to travel, but no, it keeps going.

After six of the largest flights of stairs I’ve ever fucking been on, we finally come to a landing with a single door. As soon as one of the team members pulls the door open, a stream of water sends him flying backward, smashing into the wall on the other side of the landing. One of his teammates rushes to his side and shoves a vial into his mouth and tilts his head back to make it go down. Obviously, nothing serious is hurt or broken because he shakes his head out and waves the other guy off.

Another E.F. member calls on his water element and begins furiously throwing streams back into the room, pushing his way in. Once he crosses the threshold, the rest of the team powers through, throwing their elements in every direction. Draken pulls me behind him as he and Corentin make their way through the door.

“Stay behind me, Willow,” Draken commands with a serious tone that has me nodding. No arguments here.

Fuck, this shit just got real.

Glancing behind me quickly, the E.F. member who has taken the first hit stands up, getting ready to make his way over to us, and that gives me a little relief knowing it’d take a lot to completely take these guys out because if that were me, I wouldn’t be getting up.

Finally entering the room, it’s complete chaos. There are way more than twelve people and our team is scattered everywhere. In the corner of the room, there’s a stairwell that leads down, with five men standing guard in front of it, prepared to stop anyone who tries to get by.

I’m so distracted by looking at that stairwell, something about it calling to me, that I don’t realize Draken and Corentin are moving to the opposite side of the room to take cover.

“Willow,” Corentin shouts, trying to charge back to me, but it’s too late. The ground begins to shake, and a huge wall of stone shoots out of the ground, separating us and sending me flying backward.

My air shoots out of me, slowing my fall so I don’t crash into the wall. Dust and dirt are flying around everywhere, and I can’t see Corentin or Draken anymore, but the five men who were guarding the stairwell are locked in, fighting off some of the palace team members.

Crawling as quickly and quietly as I can, I skirt around them and make it to the opening of the stairs. It’s pitch-black going down, but I can see a small amount of bright light shining through a crack at the bottom of the stairs.

Caspian.

I have no clue how I know that, but the nagging in my mind that it’s him and the pull in my chest urging me to get down these stairs has me moving before my mind even has time to process that I’m going down there alone, with no fucking idea what I’m about to walk into. But I have to get to him. I know that if I don’t, he doesn’t have much longer.

Looking behind me, the room’s in disarray. Our guys fight like their lives depend on it and, well, I guess it does right now as we’re seriously outnumbered. Corentin’s looking around the room frantically, but his pursuit to find me, I assume, doesn’t slow him down. He’s a beacon of light, blinding or burning anyone who comes close, knocking them out or killing them before they can gain their sight back. Moving my gaze, I freeze as I see Draken. He’s covered in scales, partially shifted in his dragon form but still on two feet, claws for hands, and breathing fucking fire.

Fuck me, they’re amazing.

I shake out of my awestruck stupor and turn back toward the stairs.

Hold on, asshole, I’m coming.

Twenty-Two

Caspian

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