Page 97 of Ruby & Onyx

“No shit,” Amin laughs incredulously.

Bas’ eyes narrow on me with wonder as the corner of his lip tugs upward. My fingers start to tingle, and there’s a tug between us like I’m being pulled closer. It starts in my chest, pulling and pulling.

Before I can either give in to that tug or discuss the implications of praecian power lingering in my soul, Gemma appears from behind the stable and waves us over.

“Follow me,” Bas says to the group as he slinks over to Gemma. We rise as one and follow his lead.

The stable is a large stone structure with a rust-colored roof. It’s a monolith on the outskirts of the palace, as if it could hold the horses of an entire army. The grass and dirt surrounding it are worn from stomping hooves.

Gemma stands next to a solidly built man with a burly beard. His muscles tear at the seams of his leather riding gear. They’re standing comfortably next to each other, and I can sense the hum of intimacy between them. I flash Gemma an approving look, which makes her blush.

“Truston will help us. Come on,” she says, opening the door and ushering us inside.

Truston walks over to a trough by the back wall and calls out, “Help me, aye?”

Amin, Bas, and the invisibles hustle over to help him. They heave it up, grunting and moaning at the weight as water splashes from the side. It budges only five feet, but it’s just enough to reveal a hatch hidden underneath.

Truston bends over to open the hatch using the recessed brass ring on top of it. It pulls open with a creak, revealing a dark and empty space and wafting a musty odor along with it. “There’s not much to it. Just follow the path until you reach the sea,” he says.

Gemma pulls Truston away to the corner, wrapping him in a full-body embrace. I can’t hear the words they’re exchanging in each other’s ears, but I imagine it’s a bittersweet goodbye. When he releases her, she gives him a peck on the cheek.

“Alright, Vito goes first. Everyone else, pile in behind him,” Bas commands.

When it’s my turn to lower into the dark stairwell, I slip on the top step and slam onto my backside. “Ow!”

“You’re an immortal who likely holds praecian power in your soul, and yet you can’t handle a set of stairs,” Amin quips.

“You know what might be helpful?” I ask, making sure that I take each step carefully. The hatch door closes behind us, leaving us only with the light from the invisibles to guide us.

“What?” Even though he’s jesting and jabbing, Amin seems to get a kick out of our banter. His jokes are all coated with amusement, and not at my expense. Honestly, I appreciate it. It’s a welcome distraction from the danger lurking in our every move.

“If you just stayed very, very quiet for the rest of our journey together,” I say, even though the opposite is true.

Gemma pipes up from the back of the line, as she was the last to enter, “Will the two of you stop your bickering long enough for us to get out of this creepy tunnel?”

I haven’t heard Viola speak in a while. She did follow us down here, right? I call out her name to confirm it.

“Yeah?” She responds, quiet and sullen.

“Everything okay?” I ask.

All she says in return is a meek, “Yeah.”

We trudge on, and I try to ignore the feeling of cobwebs brushing against my arms. I have to bite my lip to keep from screaming when I feel a bug crawling on my skin. Its eight legs creep from my shoulder down toward my arm, and I feel every hairy movement before brushing it off. The cold, clammy air swallows us whole until finally a beam of light shines in the distance.

“We’re almost there!” Bas yells to us, and we all quicken our paces. We’re all so exhausted and weary, but this is the final stretch. The closer we get to the light, the more I can feel a hint of a breeze. Sand sprinkles the stone in increasing volume as we near the small opening carved into the cliff.

How did I not notice it before?

Vito exits first, dropping to his knees and crawling out into the light. We take turns shuffling through the exit one by one. When it’s my turn, I nearly collapse onto my hands and knees. It takes a bit of maneuvering to squeeze through the hole, and my bones cry with each movement. All I can do is force myself to keep going. I have to - for all of us. We have to make it out of here.

Once I clear the opening, I stumble toward a skiff perched near the water and begin laboring through the sand. But before I reach it, I hear the voice that makes my skin crawl.

“Radya, you didn’t care to say goodbye?” Olly shouts, and my heart drops into my stomach faster than I can blink.

Chapter 41

We come to a screeching halt – Bas, the invisibles, and Amin in front, and then Moose, Gemma, Viola, and Guylita behind me. Less than fifty yards stand between us and the boat. If we just keep on going and ignore that asshole, then we can make it…

---