Page 58 of Savage Hunt

Scarlet lightning flashed over the pitch-black sky as we scaled the rocky side of the mountain Heldrok perched on. I slipped on the onyx rocks, but Fane caught me before I plummeted over the edge.

“I can see why they wouldn’t expect us to go this way,” I gritted out. Who in their right mind would attempt to escape the Underworld prison down a steep mountainside?

Venna and Mykel brought us through the prison's front entrance, which was terrifying enough. When they’d taken the burlap bags off our heads and revealed the ebony monstrosity built into the side of a mountain, my heart had dropped. Heldrok looked like a castle in the bowels of hell where the devil himself dwelled.

Logan peeked over his shoulder. “We don’t have much longer. Once we get across the bridge, we’ll be safe.”

Nadia scoffed, earning a glare from Logan.

The high demon rolled his eyes. “We’ll be safer than this.”

Ruin had been unusually quiet since discovering his supposedly dead twin was the warden of Heldrok.

“What happened with Ruin and his brother?” I asked Fane through our mental link.

He shrugged. “Ruin hired me years ago to find Wrath because he’d been into some highly dark dealings. I found him in the witch realm, Illyria. Ruin said he’d tried to help him out of a mess, but it ended in his death.”

Had Ruin actually killed his brother, or did Wrath die due to something terrible he’d done?

A breath of relief rushed out of my lungs as the land finally leveled out a little more and we weren’t in danger of falling into a bottomless pit full of sub-demons.

Fane’s hand brushed over my back as we walked the craggy ground. “I knew we’d get out of this together.”

My throat constricted as images of me torturing him sped through my mind. How could he ever forgive me?

Having felt the change of emotions through our bond, his lips thinned. “You did what you had to, Teague. Dylan’s life counted on it.” He squeezed my shoulder. “I would do it all over again as long as it kept that kid safe.”

But the things I did and what I made him see were seared into my memories. Even though I hadn’t been in control, I’d witnessed everything unfold, and sometimes it was my hand doing the carving.

“This all lands on Venna, and we’ll make her pay for everything she’s done. I don’t blame you for any of it.” Fane gripped my chin and forced me to look at him. “Do you understand?”

The intensity of his gaze stole the air from my lungs, and I had to resist the urge to bury myself in him. He was the first person, maybe the only person, who didn’t abandon me after seeing all my faults and scars. “I understand.”

Someone cleared his throat, and we broke our silent conversation as Ruin pointed to a bridge up ahead, lines developing between his brows as he scrutinized us. “We cross here.”

Logan knew much more about our bond after he witnessed Fane take my pain at the Anders’, but neither of the high demons knew we could communicate through our minds. If they watched us too closely while we traveled through the Underworld, they might start putting the puzzle pieces together and realize just how deep our connection ran.

Would it be such a bad thing for them to know? Logan would only give a shit-eating grin and make some joke about us being soul mates while Ruin might be more interested in examining the abilities we shared.

A knot fisted in my gut. I’d have to come clean about divulging his secret to Venna. Fane said he wouldn’t be angry, but he’d be disappointed. Hell, I was disappointed. Creating a soul supplement would change the world for demons and humans.

I rubbed the headache throbbing behind my eyes, and as we approached the bridge, my blood ran cold.

What the ever-loving fuck is that?

A huge cavern dug into the mountain, creating a gap where the bridge joined the two sides. And by bridge, I meant rickety wooden boards held together by fraying rope. It looked like something straight out of an Indiana Jones movie.

“Is that going to hold us?” I asked in a squeaky, high-pitched voice.

Some of the color drained from Nik’s face. “I sure hope so.”

Logan’s chuckle did not match everyone else’s mood. “You guys are being such worrywarts. It’ll be fine. This bridge has been here forever.”

“That’s what I’m worried about,” I mumbled.

Nik insisted on crossing first, and Nadia went with him. My heart pounded as they trudged across the wooden planks, the bridge swaying precariously when they reached the middle. The creaking and groaning filled me with even more anxiety.

Sweat slinked down my nape, and my guard’s uniform stuck to me. A breath of relief rushed out of my lungs when Nik and Nadia finally reached the other side. And then it was our turn.

---