Page 65 of Beneath the Flames
But still…just whowasPrince Rhydian?Why was he cursed in the first place?And other than his golden death rays, what made him so dangerous that anyone would want to curse him in the first place?
I wished I could ask him these questions, but he had proven that he was unwilling to answer any of them.I probably could have gotten the information out of Nico eventually, but instead of being safe in the castle with him, I was freezing my butt off trying to climb a volcano, risking my life for a curse I didn’t even understand—for a man, err—Fae—I didn’t understand.
“You need to focus,” Rhydian said a moment later, bringing my attention back to the mountain, to the cold icing over every inch of me.“We’re almost to the top.”
Glancing up in surprise, I realized he was right.Between the freezing air and our conversation, I had completely lost track of how many hours had passed and just how far we had hiked.But now that he called attention to it, I felt it in every movement of my body.A deep, frozen ache encompassed every bone, every muscle, and I suddenly found it incredibly hard to keep putting one foot in front of the other.
“The moons will set soon.Once we reach the top, we’ll camp for the night and face your task once morning comes again.”
I snorted and muttered, “Morning.Right.Funny.”
Rhydian’s smirk told me he heard my sarcasm, but he didn’t say anything, probably content to watch me squirm when he thrived in the dark.
My heart pounded with the exertion of climbing the steep mountainside, and I could barely get air in my frozen lungs by the time we finally crested the top.Hunched over with hands on my knees, I panted, trying to breathe the too-thin air.
“We made it,” Rhydian commented, glancing around.
In the dark there wasn’t much to see.I expected there to be nothing but lava up here, but so far I saw none, though it appeared we had a lot more walking to do to make it to the center.My legs wobbled so violently that I had no choice but to sink to the ground, the sharp rocks and pebbles digging into my legs.
“Did you doubt we would?”I asked through labored breaths.‘Cause I certainly did.
“Of course not, Maren.”His tone was heavy with sarcasm.“I never doubted your ability to climb the largest mountain inEroth for a second.”
I couldn’t help the scowl that turned my lips down.Something about it must have been funny to Rhydian because he burst out laughing at the sight of it.
Once again, I had the thought that his laugh was…really nice, and I found myself wanting to do more to keep drawing it out of him.
But such thoughts were dangerous so I pushed it from my mind—or at least tried to.
“So how exactly are we supposed to camp here with the cold and biting wind when your tent was destroyed down there?”I pointed to the valley where we nearly died from the Scorching Rivers.“Without more snuggling,” I added, which elicited a small smile from him.Why was it suddenly addicting to make him do that?
“Don’t worry, there will be no moresnuggling, unless you ask.”He paused to wink at me, and my face grew warm.“Lucky for you, my ancestorsbuilt a small cabin up here.”He pointed off to the right.“It’s not far.”
“Why would they build a cabin at the top of a volcano?”I asked.
“Let’s get inside first, then I’ll tell you the story,” he replied, leading the way, seeming as eager to get out of the cold as I was.
Every part of me was numb when we finally made it to the little cabin, which I would have referred to as more of a tiny shack.It was built of thick logs, but I didn’t know how that was possible when there weren’t many trees here in Eroth.Had they brought them from one of the other kingdoms?And then lugged them up the mountain?
I’m sure gladthatwasn’t my task.
Stopping at the door, Rhydian waved his hand over the doorknob.At first nothing happened.His jaw clenched, andhe tried again.Still nothing.It took two more tries before the tiniest flare of golden light appeared for a split second followed by the sound of a latch clicking.
His shoulders were bunched by his ears, frustration radiating off him as he said, “After you.”
I eyed it suspiciously.“When’s the last time anyone was here?”
“A long time.”
“That’s not very specific.”
“I don’t know the exact date, Maren.”
“How do you know the last person here didn’t booby trap it or something?”
Rhydian snorted.“Booby trap?Is that another saying from your world?”
My cheeks heated, and I crossed my arms.“Maybe.”
