Page 139 of Of Rime and Ruin
My throne. My kingdom. My safety. I’ll risk everything for the chance to hold her one more time.
Ahead of me, Perrin dives and arcs gracefully into the depths with the confidence of a merman who’s done this before. He follows the mountain’s jagged edge, the tip of his tail disappearing into the dark fathoms below.
I angle my spinning blades and kick my feet as I descend. Too fucking slow. She could be dead by now. Torn to shreds by the clawbeast’s claws. Her bones, used as toothpicks to clean her own flesh from its jaws.
Rage burns in my stomach, fueling me. The blades spin faster. I speed up, vision darkening, pulse racing, teeth clenching. I will tear that beast apart one scale at a time if it puts a single hair out of place on her head.
Perrin tucks into the mouth of a tunnel, and we regroup at the entrance. Jagged rocks hang like spikes from the ceiling, leaving a space wide enough for the beast to fit through. He signals with one hand, using traditional hunter motions to convey his meaning without sound:Nahla’s scent is strong here.
I’ll take the lead,I signal.
Perrin huffs, and bubbles spray from his mouth. His hands move with irritation.This is my rescue mission. I’ll go first.
I hold out my arm, blocking the young guard’s path.Sorry, squirt. Can’t let you do that. I need you in the back.
He pouts but obliges. Silently, we glide deeper into the tunnel with Perrin taking the rear. Near-darkness descends, the only light coming from the quiet flicker of glowmites clinging to the stalactites. The mites stir into wakefulness with our passing, glowing brighter and dimming. A signal of our presence.
Fuck.
Will the clawbeast see us coming? Are we swimming into a trap?
The path is winding, the walls twisting and curving until I can no longer determine which direction we face.
Before me, the rock bends sharply to the left. I follow its curve, trailing my fingers along its rough surface, and end where I started. A dead end.
I bump into Perrin to get his attention. My hands sign:It’s a labyrinth.
He frowns and nods, pushing in front as he taps his nose. He’s caught her scent. I follow his lead back the way we came, taking a right turn at the main chamber instead of left. The water feels colder here. More sinister. I inhale, trying to place her scent among the cold stone.
There. Faintly. A thread of her warm vanilla scent, doused in fear. The tunnel curves left. We follow. Faster now. I kick my legs hard, gaining speed. The blades of ice whirr at my sides and propel me faster still.
She’s so close I can feel it.
I’m coming, Nahla. I’m going to get you out of here if it kills me.
A roar trembles through the tunnel, freezing the blood in my veins. The glowmites snuff out, and the tunnel plunges into shadow. I slam into the wall, rough rock gouges my skin, and pain bursts through my shoulder.Fuck!
The sharp scent of fear permeates the water as we fumble in the darkness. I can’t call out to my companion, or else I’ll give away his position.
Pebbles clatter to my left. I strain to hear moving water. Someone slips past me. A kick of bubbles. Perrin?
The clawbeast roars again, louder this time, bouncing around one final curve in the tunnel. With numb fingers, I grip the hard rock and prepare to spring.
Chapter fifty-eight
Nahla
Theclawbeastignoresme,squatting at the mouth of her cave without a backward glance. She stiffens into a watchful stance and surveys the darkened tunnel beyond. Her tail is the only part of her that moves, flicking back and forth.
Shock tingles through my body as I process the turn of events. I’m still here, heart beating, mind reeling, watching her as if through someone else’s eyes. When I asked the clawbeast not to eat me, I didn’t expect her to listen. Now I don’t know what to do.
Try to escape? Too difficult. She blocks most of the entrance with her body, leaving minimal room for me to slip through.
Call for reinforcements? I could sing. Summon a nearby animal to create a distraction. And then what? Hope she eats them, giving me enough time to get away? The beast is clearly not hungry.
Kiss her ass? That might work. Every lonely girl has a praise kink.
I reach for her mind, brushing the periphery of her psyche, as I sample her emotions: annoyance reigns, tinged with impatience, boredom, and anticipation. She’s waiting for something to happen, something she’s wanted for a long time.
