Page 54 of Wilds of Wonder
“Maybe they were buried alive,” Driscoll said. “Closed in and trapped.”
I chewed at the inside of my cheek, then stepped toward the nook. Before I could enter, Maverick grabbed my arm. “What do you think you’re doing?”
His hand was warm and firm. Just days ago, if someone would have told me I’d be in a crypt from the Old World with Maverick Von Lucas,I probably would’ve fainted. Then woken up and fainted again. I’d spent so long dreaming of the day I’d get to talk to him, to pepper him with questions, to be treated as his equal. Then I’d actually met him, and everything changed between us. My dreams shattered. That seemed to be a recurring theme in my life.
I wrenched my arm from his. “Oh, you know, I just thought I’d close myself in there. Maybe then I’ll finally get some peace and quiet.”
Driscoll snorted. “Ooooh... burn.” He’d moved away from the bones and now sat by the wolf. Still unconscious. Or possibly dead. I hadn’t checked its pulse. He reached out a tentative hand and stroked its head, then glanced up at us. “I already made the frost joke. Now I make a burn joke and still nothing from you two?” He shook his head, mumbling what sounded like insults, but I couldn’t be sure.
Maverick pointed to the crypt. “You can’t just waltz in there and disturb a historical site.”
“Well I would fly, but I’m missing essential body parts for that to work.”
“Can you be serious for one moment?” His stubbled jaw worked back and forth.
I leaned forward. “I think you’re serious enough for the both of us.”
I moved to step forward and he shot out an arm to block me. “You might disturb important evidence that could help us better understand who was trapped in here. Step on a bone or cause the entire structure to collapse. We need light, we need proper tools?—”
“Oh, please.” I threw up my arms. “In case you haven’t noticed, we’re in the Deadlands. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. If we escape this place, we’re not coming back. So you can get over your haughty attitude and either help me or leave me alone.”
His mouth dropped open. “It’s not haughty. There are procedures in place for a reason.”
I ducked under his arm and into the nook. “And have you always followed those procedures? Mr. Bone Collector?”
His jaw locked. “That was different.”
“Right. Just you playing pretend.” I whirled, not realizing how close he was, our noses now inches apart. “It sounds like you’re okay with exceptions, but only when they come to you.”
A fire danced in his eyes. “You are so...”
“I can’t tell if you guys are turned on or angry, but this is actually getting pretty entertaining,” Driscoll said from behind us.
I quickly stepped back. “You’re welcome to join me in here, unless you’re afraid of breaking too many rules.”
“I’m not letting you in there by yourself,” he said. “I don’t trust you.”
Like he hadn’t spent years trusting me. When I was the white rabbit. Now that he knew my true identity, he wanted nothing to do with me. That was the crux of it. That was what was bothering me.
I made a face at him and turned to examine the area, but it was too dark to see anything. “Do you have enough magic to light this space?” I asked.
I expected him to argue since that was all he seemed to know how to do, but instead a small fire lit his palm, and the dim glow casting over the nook.
I sucked in a sharp breath. It hadn’t just been the door threaded with iron. It was the walls, the ceiling, the floor under our feet. Iron spikes jutted from every inch. Iron spikes that I’d been just about to step onto. Maverick's magic faltered, and I pushed him out of the nook.
He scowled.
“You have to stay out there so your magic doesn’t weaken. I’ll look around and report back.” He was already opening his mouth to argue, but I cut him off. “Do you want answers about what this is or not?”
His brows furrowed, but he stepped far back, holding out his firelight so I could see.
“What do you notice?” he asked. “Even down to the smallest detail.”
“Well, other than the giant spikes...” I glanced around. “And dust.”
I swiped a finger over the ground, that same black dust that covered the land here too. I cocked my head. And it looked like another color of dust was mixed in, but it was so dim, even with Maverick’s magic, that it was hard to tell. This dust. Something about it was bothering me, but I couldn’t figure out what.
“So someone was put in here alive. Most likely. Or they were dead and didn’t deserve a proper burial? But then, why even go through the trouble of the iron and the stone door?” Maverick murmured, hisquestion clearly rhetorical. “That would mean this was a dangerous elemental, then. Very dangerous from the lengths gone to entrap this person.”
