Page 21 of Blood and Reign

I take a step back, keeping my eye on the spot. “Good to know.”

Turning around, I take another step when I find Rion right in front of me, his eyes focused on Soren’s retreating back. “I don’t trust him, but I can’t find anything malicious about his energy, either.”

“Maybe you just can’t get a read on him? His energy feels old,” I tell him, looking back at Soren as he inspects the wall on the other side of the cave.

“Maybe.” Rion frowns before looking down at me, his eyes softening.

“Come on. Let’s get away from the water. I don’t want you accidentally falling in.” Rion takes my hand as we make a move toward the passageways.

I roll my eyes at him. “I’m not that clumsy.”

“No, but the universe likes to fuck with us, and I’m not taking any chances when it comes to you.”

“What would happen, if someone were to fall in?”

“You might manage to escape the souls, but it’s river oblivion. You’ll also forget everything and everyone else, too.” Rion’s grip on my hand tightens. “So, stay close.”

Kai walks into the cave, followed by Axel. “The passage just loops around. It was a dead end.”

Luka appears with Jax right beside him. “We had a quick look. It goes on for a bit but there might be a way out through ours.”

Soren moves from his stationary spot of inspecting the wall and heads toward the passage Luka and Jax had just come from. “Good, let’s move—”

The ground beneath us begins to shake, gaining momentum quickly. Dust falls from the cave ceiling before pieces of rock follow.

Rion’s grip is like a vice on my hand as he pulls me closer to him and out of the way of a large chunk of rock. We make a move toward the guys, only getting a couple of steps before the ground beneath us splits apart.

Seconds drag in slow motion as I lift my head to look over at them. Kai’s eyes widen as he tries rushing toward us, but it’s too late as the ground beneath me and Rion completely collapses, pulling us down with it.

* * *

Rock slidesand collides around us as we plummet down an endless descent. A rock hits the side of my head, making me dizzy just as Rion pulls me tighter into his hard body.

“Don’t let go,” Rion grunts. I hold on tighter as the rocks continue to strike us from every angle, leaving every part of my body feeling broken and bruised.

Just as my healing ability kicks in, another rock hits the spot, starting the process all over again.

The longest minutes pass before the tunnel- like structure we’re falling through opens up, and the rocks fall more sparsely around us.

A sliver of relief slides through me thinking we made it through the worst of it. But then I hear a grunt just as Rion’s arms loosen and fall away from me.

I reach out to grab him, but it’s too late, as I get yanked in a different direction. Something hits me hard, making my head spin.

Splashes of water hit my ears just before I drop into icy cold water. I’m dragged down by the force of the fall, but instincts soon kick in and I push through the pain and start swimming upward as if on autopilot.

It’s so dark and murky I can barely see anything around me, everything slightly blurring in and out of focus as my healing ability takes its time kicking in.

I ignore my surroundings and keep swimming upward, hoping to break through the surface soon. My lungs starting to burn already from holding my breath.

The dark murky water clears a little, giving way to light that makes my sensitive eyes squint, but I know I must be near the surface, so I push my legs harder. The burning in my lungs grows as my chest turns tight, but I keep pushing hoping I’m getting close.

My fingers are a couple of inches to the top when something yanks my leg back, pulling me further away from the surface. Air bubbles escape from my mouth as I feel long, claw-like fingers wrap around my ankle and yank me deeper down into the darkness.

My eyes widen, my hands flailing as I try to pull back against whatever is dragging me further into the depths.

My mouth opens on a scream, forcing gulps of water down my throat. Every gasp of burning like thousands of sharp needles. My healing ability works overtime trying to stop my body from passing out, but without air, it can’t do much more than slow the process.

My body starts to spasm and twitch on its own as the cold water fills my lungs. Shadowy spots enter my vision, blending in with my murky surroundings as my body grows weaker.

---