Page 176 of Kissed By the Gods
At least I still have him.
I don’t know how long Ryot walks, or how far we travel. Time is impossible to measure down here, in the suffocating deep ofthe earth. But he continues with those sure steps for so long that I start to doze, my arms wrapped around his neck, my cheek pressed against his heart.
Eventually, we start to climb back up. The air changes. It shifts, almost imperceptibly at first. That metallic bite, that taste of adamas, fades, replaced by a fresh coolness. It becomes lighter and carries the promise of open skies. Then, the awful stillness of the air breaks with a soft whisper of movement. A breeze weaves its way through the tunnels. It brushes against my face. A lifeline.
But …
“We’re going the wrong way,” I mumble against Ryot’s chainmail. He stops.
“Yeah? But I smell snow and the forest from this way. I think we’re almost to the surface.”
I crinkle my nose. Yes. I smell it, too, from the path to the right. But …
“We need to turn around,” I say.
There’s something here. Something important. Something vital. My heart beats faster and my eyes spring open. I wiggle, pulling myself out of Ryot’s arms. He sets me down, his brow crinkling in confusion. He looks again at the tunnel to the right—there’s hints of sunlight up ahead. But still, he turns with me to the tunnel to the left. He smiles, brushing tender fingers against my cheeks before he grabs my hand in his.
“Alright, my rebel girl,” he murmurs. “Lead the way.”
I take a step forward, pulling him with me. As I walk, I take inventory of myself in a way I didn’t—couldn’t—before. The wound on my arm is nasty, but healing. My daggers are strapped to my thighs and my scythe is strapped to my back. I’m caked in dirt and blood and ash. I ache, and my head throbs.
My heart is shattered. Again.
I wonder briefly how many times it can do that, and I can yet rise. I squeeze Ryot’s hand with mine, and he squeezes back. Comforting. Soothing.
At least I still have him.
The tunnel to the left also leads gradually up, but not to the outside. It winds around, going up and down. After another few hours at a brisk pace, we walk into a stope. This one is higher in altitude than the one from earlier—the air is lighter, cooler, fresher. It has the look of an abandoned mine. There are no men milling about, no mining tools, no piles of adamas to bring to the surface. And yet, something is off about this room, unlike the others.
A heartbeat later, I realize why.
It's not set up like a mining stope at all. It’s a training room. Weapons racks line the walls around a sparring pit in the corner. Voices carry our way from another shaft, one that leads off to the side. My heart beats faster. Ryot drops my hand, and he presses a finger to his lips. I pull my daggers from my thigh holsters at the same time Ryot draws his sword. Ryot’s shield goes up.
Light spills into the end of the tunnel, lanterns glowing from a chamber off the stope. The voices grow louder, and a hooded man ducks out of one of the chambers. Ryot and I silently glide back into the shadows, backs pressed against the wall. The man is armed, with a battle hammer at his side, made of adamas. But he doesn’t notice us. He turns a corner and disappears from view.
But still, that pull drags me forward.
I step from the shadows and keep walking, ignoring Ryot’s furious shake of his head.
My pulse quickens; my breath catches. I lengthen my steps, determined not to lose the man in the maze. But before I’m able to turn the corner to follow him, the other voice we heard stepsout from the room. I almost slam into this man’s chest because he steps right into my path.
My soul recognizes him well before my consciousness does.
Threat.
I’m already swinging my hand back, taking aim. I let my dagger fly. I won’t miss—I never miss.
And yet, I do.
Because Ryot threw up a shield that blocks my dagger and protects the man I tried to kill.
King Agis.
The king dismisses me with a single glance, as if I’m beneath his notice, even now, then turns calmly to Ryot—who is already rounding on me.
“What do you think you’re doing?” Ryot shouts, aghast. “You can’t murder the king!”
“You were the one who said we would depose him!” I cry out. I stare up at Ryot in shock. Didn’t he say that?
