Page 121 of Entranced By the Basilisks

We step into the inky surface without any further discussion. It’s like splashing into cold water, but the disorientation solves itself almost immediately. I gasp. The stone room we’ve stepped into looks to be another underground room, but the air is sticky, and the walls feature carvings.

The guy who directed us through the portal appears after us.

The clamor of people is instant. A couple of sour-faced men appear. One has scales and the other doesn’t. My nerves are buzzing in my ears, too loud for me to take in any more details.

“These are Circle guards,” the man who brought us here says.

“Chosen Rivera, is it?” the one with scales says. “I’ll take you to the Goddess’s chamber to wait for the hearing.”

“What about Jasper?” I ask.

“Adder will need to be interviewed. There are details that need to be discussed,” the other Circle guard states.

I grit my teeth and want to argue. I don’t want to be separated.

“I will be with him,” the guy next to us says as if that will offer me any comfort.

“I don’t know you,” I say, and he only nods.

“Emilia,” Jasper says. “This is Armand. We’ve known each other for some time.”

Isknown each other for some timecode for that he can be trusted? I’m so out of my depth here that the idea of swimming is a joke.

Jasper turns my body toward his and touches my cheek. “I would face any challenge to have you. This is just one of them. Go with the guard. You won’t be in danger.”

I scowl. I’m not worried about him hurting me. I’m worried about Jasper.

“Ari is on his way,” Jasper says. “Trust that.”

I inhale and try to calm my racing heart. Ari will come. Ari will do everything in his power to help.

Everything is going to be okay,I tell myselfeven though no one else will say it. This is merely a hiccup. We’ll be back trying to navigate the mess of our triad’s relationship in no time.

“Okay.”

“Brave girl,” he whispers so quietly that no one else can hear.

I only nod and let the man with scales lead me away from a piece of my heart.

Ari is coming.

* * *

The statueof the woman is a thing of beauty. I’ve taken a number of art history classes but can’t place the style. It’s almost as if it’s a combination of artistry from different regions and iconographies.

Time ticks on with me distracting myself with each flourish. She’s carved from stone with gold accenting her jewelry and the many snakes on her head. The upper half of her body is all sensual curving lines and beads of jewelry while her lower half makes up the body of a snake. Her snake body coils vertically behind her in a circle like a giant nimbus.

This must be the goddess everyone talks about.

I want to release the frustration that has been building in my chest on her, but I can’t. Each moment I let my gaze run over the features of her face, the tension in my body lessens. She gives me peace.

She gave me the snakes that coil around my head, my mates though we’ve been separated, and the power to protect myself. The thought of defeating Sigmund’s henchman fights the horror-covered memories of my abduction. This time I came out on top.

“Please let everything be okay,” I breathe, hardly louder than my heartbeat.

“Do you need anything: a drink, food?”

I gasp and spin. A woman stands there. She is, in a word, beautiful. She appears to be my mother’s age and the lighting of the room gives her brown skin golden undertones. Her dark hair is pulled back in a no-nonsense bun. She wears a black outfit similar to the ones that Ari favors, but the hems have gold embroidery. A gold necklace and bracelet catch the light.

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