Page 102 of The Crown of Nyx

42

Ivy

The shadows dropped us in what appeared to be more ruins.

My nose crinkled as I breathed in stale air. It was almost like no one had set foot in this particular place since it’d been abandoned.

I glanced around, eyes sharpening as they got used to the darkness. Based on the decaying metal and the old charms woven into what looked like bars, we were in what might have been a dungeon. There were, thankfully, no giant zombie-rats here, though it might have been too soon to make that judgement.

There was something about the space that felt oddly familiar, though I couldn’t place why.

Orion moved out of the formation first, shadow-daggers palmed. He nodded to Hawk, who moved to stand beside him.

I’m going to see if we are alone down here,Ry said, his eyes flickering to mine briefly.

I pressed my lips together. Although I didn’t like the idea of being split up, technically, they weren’t alone if they were going together.

Ugh. I nodded to him, sparing the half-Fae male a glance. He didn’t look at me, though. Instead, he had his own daggers palmed, wings freed, and a look of concentration on his face.

I sighed through my nose and watched as they left the room.

Do you think we’re alone?I asked Maeve, turning to her.

Since leaving the palace ruins, her features had returned to normal, her eyes blue again. She had her team-leader mask in place as she surveyed the room, though when our gazes met, she nodded.

I don’t sense anyone else, but that does not mean they aren’t hidden,she replied.

A shudder rolled down my spine, but instead of responding, I wrapped my arms around myself.

Hawk and Orion returned with matching grim expressions. “All clear,” Hawk said, though he only sheathed one of his daggers, keeping the other loosely in his hand. It was a wonder he hadn’t reached for the gun at his side, though I had a feeling the sound would be a clear indicator where we were to anyone hunting us.

“Then why do you look like someone pissed in your cereal?” Rowan asked, crossing his arms. “What’s out there, assholes?”

I spared Rowan a sharp look, though if he noticed, he didn’t appear to care.

Hawk’s lip curled in a sneer, whereas Orion rolled his eyes. “Vampire crypt. We think. There’s a room full of skeletons, but they look to be old.”

Maeve moved to stand in front of me. “What makes you think vampire crypt?” she asked, hands on her lips.

“There are five sarcophagi in a room. Dusty as fuck, so it looks like they haven’t been touched since the war,” Hawk replied.

“It was believed that some vampire families chose to stay,” Adrian said. “At least, that’s what my dad always told me. He’d studied some of the records from the war and movement to Avalon. There were some who didn’t want to leave the land at all. But specifically, there were vampires who believed if they waited, Nyx would reward them with a new world just for them.”

My skin prickled, and I couldn’t help but grimace as I looked from Adrian to the others. “That sounds like something we shouldn’t touch…”

Rowan turned to me, brows raised. “Aren’t you the least bit curious to see if there really are thousand-year-old vampires sleeping in the crypt?”

A small—very tiny—piece of me was. But when I checked in with Maeve, I could tell that was the last thing she wanted. It must have triggered something about her brother—the male turned by her sire and groomed into becoming a danger to Avalon. Maeve had told me his punishment for siding with their Sire was a sleep stasis.

I’ll tell them to leave it alone, I told her.You don’t have to do anything you’re uncomfortable with.

Maeve’s bond warmed.This is not like what is happening with him. I know that, deep down. But it is…hard. Knowing that whoever these vampires were chose this when it was punishment for him.

Slowly, I moved to her side and took her hand. “Let’s keep moving,” I said, looking around the team. Elias had his arms crossed, though when our eyes met, he gave mea single nod. “Figure out where we are. And then I need to find out where we need to go next.”

There werestairs leading above ground that we took carefully. Though the dungeon itself had been dry, the stone of the staircase was slick with rain, and we had no idea how dangerous they were. It was pure luck they didn’t crumble as we made our way to the surface.

However, when we did reach the landing, there was nothing but forest around us. Other than two walls that were mostly covered in moss, the rest of the structure was pretty much gone, and in its place were tall trees and misty rain.

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