Page 43 of Quarter Labyrinth

Then Tove asked, “Will the wolves come?”

Harald drew his mouth into a thin line while pulling his sister closer. “No, the Labyrinth Wolves won’t hurt you.”

Thankfully, this time I wasn’t the only one who didn’t understand. Clark frowned. “Labyrinth Wolves?”

Harald looked at us as if we were crazy. “You don’t know of the wolves? They are the oldest fable on our island, and the one told to frighten children who tarry too close to dark woods.” As he spoke, his smooth voice washed over us in that magical way once more. “The wolves are almost as old as the labyrinth itself. They were once competitors, once as hopeful as we were when they entered the labyrinth that they could win. But somewhere along the way, they grew weary and desperate. Instead of going home to admit defeat, they pledge to the wolves.

“It’s as simple as declaring you wish to pledge to them. Then you’ll pick which Stone God to serve. Your lives are now theirs until they deem to release you even if that lasts a century. You’ll turn into a wolf with but one desire, to carry out the wishes of the stone god you swore to. The wolves run through the labyrinth as if it is their playground. They attack if they deem to. They help you occasionally. But far more often, they are sent by the Stone God to get in your way, and devour you if they must. Stone Gods are dangerous enough. But if they’ve set their wolves upon you, not even Callahan can save you.”

Clark shivered. “I’d rather die than become a wolf.”

As would I. If this labyrinth didn’t result in the Silver Wings under my command, I’d find a new path to follow, and it would be far away from this cursed labyrinth. Once I got out, I’d never come back in. Clark would feel the same.

I inspected him at my side. His jacket undone, sleeves rolled up, hair tossed effortlessly as he leaned back on one arm. Wherewould his path lead after this? Surely not back to Haven and the family that didn’t know what to do with him. Would he find a new island, perhaps journey with one of the kids from this group? Would they become his new family?

A strange thought hit me. If Clark won, could I take that from him?

That’d been the plan. He would step into the center first to fulfill the vision given by the fortune teller, but I’d take control of the ships.

Now, I wasn’t so sure I could take that from him.

“You might change your mind when you sit at the edge of death, clinging to life, and the stone gods can save you,” Harald told us. “Many ledge to the wolves to stay alive.”

A chill swept against my bones. The silence felt too deep, too quiet. As if his words had ushered the rain to stop.

No, the rainhadstopped.

It took a moment to understand, then my head tipped toward the sky. The clouds parted as if a hand had swept them away, and the stars shone without hindrance. A heat took the place the rain left, one that made my skin feel sticky and my breath feel hot.

“Spring is over,” Harald said. A stir ran through us all. “We only have three seasons left to find the center, and there’s a lot of labyrinth still to search. Let’s move, Seaweeds.”

As they packed their things, I held a finger up for Clark.

One season.

TWENTY-ONE

I hated summer more than spring. The only good thing was how Clark’s and my water got delivered the next night, along with our food. I half expected the other Seaweeds to make a bid for it, but they allowed us to eat in peace.

Clark shared some of his water. I did not.

“We need them to like us,” he argued.

“We need to stay alive,” I argued back.

He sighed, and I ended up cracking long enough to hand Tovethe last of my flask.

“Thank you,” Harald whispered as his little sister greedily took the water. Then he addressed the group. “Summer changes things. I’d like to cross through the stone maze here, but it offers no protection from the sun and I worry about our ability to maintain any speed when we are dying of thirst. I propose we go through the forest. If the direction the Archer told me is true, the forest is slightly out of the way, but we need the shade.”

We were all too hot to argue. Each breath felt like hot coals in my throat, every step slow and every thought sluggish. The colors of the labyrinth brightened to saturated greens and browns as every tree had come to life as the sweet fragrance of pine drifted through the maze.

But the thick leaves gave the feeling of being enclosed, the sense of disorientation growing with each twist and turn. They also blocked most of the breeze. It left stifling pockets of still air. Even the patches of dappled shade that occasionally appeared offered little relief.

My only solace was how the star continued to grow closer.

However, the absence of rain made the sound of my heartbeat tattoo quite difficult to hide, and twice that day I’d caught one of the others checking for what made that sound. I concocted a delightful lie about being sick as a kid, and my parents paid for a bit of magic to make my heartbeat visible on my forearm so they could have a sense of peace, but so far none had asked. I kept the story in my back pocket anyway.

I crossed my arms as we stood at the crossroads while twilight painted the sky colors of lavender and orange. With hope, night would provide relief from this heat.

---