Page 101 of The Queen

Our foot falls scuffed off the cave floor. It was only the barest scratch of rubble on stone, but felt cacophonous in my ears. My frantic pulse soared when the door protested on its rusty hinges, screeching the announcement of our arrival. My breath stilled in my lungs, and I didn’t move, waiting for the moment we’d be discovered.

Distorted watery sounds drifted through the tunnel from a distance, and we waited, barely daring to breathe. The faintest of light outlined Shadow’s silhouette in a silver glow, but there was nothing else in the gray gloom. When there was no other movement, he motioned me forward, keeping a half a stride ahead.

Every step was an agony of nerves until we were free from the tunnel and into the dim cave that branched off into the illuminated halls of the city.

Giddy relief flooded through me. We’d made it. We were in.

I was following so close behind Shadow that when he stopped suddenly, I ran right into him.

His smoke and starlight scent filled my lungs, making my belly tighten, but over the smell of the damp dirt of the caves came a wisp of something else. Sour cherries and over ripe persimmons.

Shadow’s growl shivered along my skin, lifting the fine hairs on the back of my neck.

I tried to look past my mate, but as I went to side-step him, I felt a sting in my arm and what little light there was in the cave narrowed to a pinprick and vanished.

My ears rang, and my body crumpled. The dirt was gritty and moist as it smacked me in the face. I heard something large hit the ground beside me and a puff of fetid stench flew up my nose.

A thin, whiny voice that seemed familiar echoed in the darkness. “See, I told you they’d come through here.”

Chapter Sixty-Three

Saphyra

My head throbbed, feeling overly large and heavy. There was a high pitched buzzing coming from everywhere and nowhere all at once. My stomach churned, and I rolled to my knees, panting. Bile burned its way up my throat, but I swallowed it back with a grimace.

Through slitted lids, the only thing I could see was fuzzy dirt, dry under my palms and packed hard so not even my fingernails could find purchase. Why was the dirt fuzzy? Dirt shouldn’t be fuzzy like that.

The buzzing faded, if it was ever there at all, and memories of the moments before everything went black rushed in.

That whiny voice. I recognized that voice. One of Edeth’s lackeys, Mik, I think they called him. Insignificant other than his family name, or so it had seemed at the time. Realization of his betrayal dawned, and it was like cold water in my face. He’d been there that day when Shadow had sparred with Fenix’s team. The alphas had treated him as a friend. But here I was, heaving on all fours in the dirt because, apparently, he valued his position more than loyalty.

The ground lurched, and I wobbled. Maybe I shouldn’t jump to conclusions. I didn’t even know where I was or what had happened.

Wait. Shadow. Where was Shadow? I swung around and my head spun, but I found my mate crumpled on the floor across the far end of the cell. If it was worthy of the name cell. Decrepit bars lined one wall, the rest was solid, dark rock. It wasn’t like any jail I’d ever imagined. More like a dungeon.

I crawled to Shadow’s side, too dizzy to stand. His chest rose and fell evenly, and I could feel him nestled snug in the bond. Our connection was a blank slate, warm and empty. It felt much like he was sleeping.

They must have knocked him out, too. If they hadn’t, I would’ve expected to see more blood in his clothes. As it was, his jacket was gone, so were his guns and knives.

I gave him a gentle caress. “Shadow. Wake up.”

When there was no response, I took hold of his shoulder and jostled him, but nothing. He was completely limp under my hands. “Come on. Get up. Please.”

Desperation grew, and I grabbed him more firmly and shook.

He flopped over onto his back alarmingly, and I scrambled over him. “Are you okay? What did I do?”

He still hadn’t moved on his own. His breathing was calm and steady. But not me. I gulped down panicked breaths that did nothing for my swimming head.

I mumbled to myself as I looked around the bare cell. “It’s okay. You’re okay. Everything is fine. You can handle this.” I wasn’t sure if I was talking to myself or to him, but the point still stood.

Only, as I considered my options, I accepted that my unconscious mate and I were on the wrong side of those bars with no way out. I didn’t have the luxury to panic. Our jailer could arrive at any time, and we were helpless.

There was nothing in the dungeon at all, not even a palette to lie on. Beyond the confines of our cell was a dark room with a tiny window high on the far wall. The trickle of light that spilled from it looked artificial. Not like sunlight at all. I wondered if there was a guardroom on the other side and debated the wisdom of shouting to get someone’s attention. I had no plan and was worried about making our situation worse, so I held off.

A rough looking wooden table stood alone in the center of the room with grimy shackles bolted to each corner. I didn’t want to think about what those were for. The surface was covered with objects that I had to strain my neck to see. Strewn about the tabletop were remnants of the equipment we’d been carrying, what looked like all our weapons, and the gold tablet I carried on me. A gun would be nice, but that datapad couldn’t be allowed to fall into the wrong hands.

Eyeing the large keyhole in the door, I patted my boot and unsurprisingly found the dagger Shadow had given me missing. I glanced down at my ankle and noticed that my clothes were in disarray. My pant leg was pulled up. Someone would have had to do that to get to the knife, but everything else was crooked and uncomfortable, too. I tugged my twisted sleeves into place and flinched at the soreness on the inside of my elbow. That feeling was all too familiar. When Grey was first assigned as my handler on the Hive, he drew blood for tests that left small bruises. With practice, that stopped happening, but it was a vivid memory. My belly felt tender too, and when I lifted my shirt, there were dark patches blooming with pin pricks at the center of each. What had happened to me while I’d been out? Cold dread leached the warmth from my body.