Page 81 of Of Withering Dreams
A stretching shadow raced around the corner that led down to the foyer below as I pulled the pewter barrier closed with a soft click.
As I rushed over the stone in pursuit, my boots were soundless. I peeked over the balcony, glimpsing the shadow gliding toward the Great Hall.
After descending, I snuck into the room, avoiding the center where the moon cast its beams through the line of windows depicting its phases. I felt along the left wall as my eyes adjusted to the dark.
A soft tick sounded ahead of me like a pebble bouncing off a stone. I gulped, taking a step back. And bumped into something solid.
My startled squeak rent the air before a large, warm palm covered my mouth and another wrapped around my biceps.
“Keep quiet, Little Star.” Gavrel’s warm breath rushed across my cheek.
“Bollocks,” I snarled, turning to face him and swatting his shoulder, which was like slapping a boulder. I flexed and shook out my hand, frowning at him. “Why the bleeding void are you lurking about?”
He scratched his stubbled cheek, his shoulders dropping. “No reason. Just a late-night stroll?” His words lifted as if he was asking a question.
“You’re a terrible liar.”
His mouth set in a firm line. “I need to check on something—and I need to do it alone. Go to bed, Seryn.”
Irritation skittered up my back, forcing my spine straight and lifting my chin. I squinted my eyes at him. All my anger and confusion and frustration and embarrassment from the past months … all of it boiling together in a frothy vat of acid.
I stepped into his space, my voice spitting venom. “Donottell me what to do. Where do you get the nerve after ignoring me for months, you … you arrogant wanker?!” I poked his rigid chest, my silky nightshirt rustling against his black tunic. A rush of heat fled up my chest, my breathing ragged. “Now, tell me what is going on, or I’ll have to figure it out myself.”
His brows rose, eyes blinking rapidly, and he licked his bottom lip, contemplating his next move. His nostrils flared, jaw ticking. He opened his mouth but then snapped it closed, pulling us deeper into the shadows.
I squirmed in righteous indignation but then froze as Melina slinked onto the stage from the right with a silky, dark robe wrapped around her. Lucan and Ryboas followed, their faces set in mirrored apathy.
We watched as her aura smoked around her. She splayed one hand across the back of the throne. Her front was painted in a quivering glow before she and the others walked right into the obsidian, disappearing from view.
“What the void?” I hissed.
A heavy sigh fell across my shoulder. “I overheard Melina telling Lucan to meet her here during the full moon. Something about a dungeon.” My eyes widened so much I thought they might pop out of my face. He stood tall, scanning the room and cautiously stepping toward the stage. “I need to figure out what exactly is happening—it’s my last chance until the next Dormancy. Would you listen if I asked you to go to bed politely?”
“Not a chance.”
“That’s what I was afraid of.” He scrubbed a hand over his face, pushing his fingers through his thick waves. “Stay close.”
Behind the throne, he placed his hand on its intricate carvings, his star rune lighting up brighter than any in the night sky. The back glowed, shimmering and flickering before a fissure split down the center as if the stone was vapor.
I gasped, staring down a chiseled obsidian passageway. Gavrel nodded once before entering, my feet trailing after him. The opening sealed behind us, and I gripped the back of his tunic, not wanting to be left behind.
His tattoo was the only light guiding us through a twisting, descending maze of tunnels and stairs. He disentangled my nails from his tunic, wrapping his warm fingers around mine. The chilled air pressed into my skin as we pushed forward, urging us to turn back. I squeezed Gavrel’s hand, my heart beating erratically.
As we approached an archway, flickering radiance swayed within its opening. Gavrel crouched, his mouth close to my cheek. Tingling heat washed over my skin. His words were solemn as he whispered, “Please be as quiet as possible and keep your aura from surfacing. I’m not trying to be an … arrogant wanker.” The corner of his mouth quirked, his dimple peeking out. “I just need you to be safe, yes?”
I bobbed my head, cheeks flushing. The thumping under my star-shaped mark was relentless. I brushed over it as I concentrated on my respirations.
At least Gavrel was with me. His steady composure offered some relief. Just knowing he was near smoothed the ruffled edges of my anxiety—the prickling dread that we’d be trapped within the dark stone surrounding us.
A cavernous well burrowed down the center of the open space beyond the arch. My knees wobbled as I stared into the bottomless void, my feet retreating until my heels pressed into the stone wall.
Gavrel looked at me, taking my hand again and leading us down the spiraling ramp carved into the walls. Hovering lantern orbs lit our way, exposing various tunnels, stairwells, and barred cells. I wondered where they all led. How many had been kept prisoner over the centuries?
I inhaled the cool, damp air, concentrating on each step. My ember tapped at my nape incessantly, trying to get my attention. I exhaled, my left thumb grazing the smooth boughs of my tourmaline ring upon my forefinger.
Deeper and deeper we went, the temperature increasingly frigid, the atmosphere buzzing with frenetic energy.
Seryn.
