Page 40 of Devil's Doom

Lech puts one on Dar, too, and like he said, the symbols vanish at once, leaving behind just a faint echo of magic. When he turns to me, I fold my arms.

“I need to know what kind of magic I’m putting on,” I say, more harshly than I intend.

He rolls his eyes. “Do you, now? I just explained. Believe me, darling, after yesterday you don’t have much ground to stand on.” When I bristle, his expression softens. He takes my hand. “I’m offering you safety, and I really want you to come with us. We will hide here for a time. If you don’t come, we won’t see you, and both Rada and I will miss you. Please.”

I hike up my sleeve and give him my forearm, my heart stuttering. Lech’s words undo me more than he can know. He and Rada are my first magical friends, and yes, I will follow them despite my fear and misgivings.

“Brave girl,” he says with a smirk, pressing the stamp into my skin.

The symbol of Weles gleams red and then sinks in with a small tingle. It’s done. When I look up from my now clear forearm, I startle, noticing a narrow door in the wall. It wasn’t there before.

“Come on. Be careful on the stairs.”

Lech opens the door, revealing a winding staircase that leads into the cellar, and I understand. The house is just a front. Whatever we came for is down there.

The stamp allows me to see the door. This is really well hidden, and a flicker of hope mixed with dread lights my chest. Living in Slawa, I am the most free I’ve ever been, but being subject to the dragons’ terror is a horrible strain.

The promise of safety beckons.

Lech goes first, Rada second, and I behind her.

We descend the stairs for a very long time. Magical light orbs float under the ceiling here and there, giving just enough light to let us see a few steps ahead. The air smells of mildew and gets cooler as we go deeper, though not as cold as outside.

The walls grow furry, covered with a black, fuzzy substance that Lech murmurs is harmless mold.

I stumble against an uneven stair and have to catch the wall to keep my balance. It doesn’t feel like fur, but a springy sort of spiderweb. I shake it from my fingers with disgust and keep going.

“Halfway there,” Lech promises.

By the time we reach the end of the stairs and a heavy, metal door on the bottom, Rada breathes hard, her legs shaking from effort. I’m a little better but still winded. I tried to count the steps, but stopped after I got to eight hundred.

Lech knocks in the same pattern he used upstairs. The door swings away, and we go into a well lit cavern. The ceiling is far up, supported by pillars hewn from rock. The space is evenly laid out, the walls and floor smooth. It’s not a natural cave. Someone built this place with a lot of thought and effort.

Tables line the walls, benches scattered here and there. A wide, perfect circle is drawn in the middle of the cavern, a red-haired wila wearing a skimpy dress standing there, her arms stretched out, as if in a dance pose. The golden orbs crowd around her, lighting her well.

A few people mill around, a chochol, a few upirs, and a wrinkled, wide-mouthed woman with completely white eyes I recognize as a strzyga. She turns her eyes on us when we enter. Her unseeing gaze lingers on Rada, and she grins, smacking her lips. Her gums are black, teeth sharp. Her hair is silver, arranged around her head in a crown of braids.

“I see Lech brought us fresh food,” she says with an ugly cackle.

Rada presses close to me, shaking from exhaustion and fear. I put my arm around her, assessing the strzyga. I remember they are rare and powerful, but not as powerful as me. If she comes any closer, I’ll teach her a lesson.

“Leave her alone,” Lech snaps, lunging at the strzyga with his fangs bared. She holds her ground. “One more word, and I’ll end you.”

She gives him a mocking grin. “Boy, you don’t make the rules here. I’m hungry and I haven’t had baby stew in years.”

Lech hisses at her, then turns to us. “She’s joking. Or trying to. She’s not very good at humor, as you can see.”

“I want to go home,” Rada whispers, pressing her face into my hair.

The strzyga turns to her, snorting with derision.

“Lover boy didn’t tell you? Sweetheart,thisis your home now. You know our secret. That means you must stay.”

Chapter fifteen

Bottom

Lech leads us through the cavern into a narrow corridor, and then into a small underground room. It’s crammed with crates and sacks but thankfully empty of people. He closes the door and leans against it, giving us a wary look.

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