Page 41 of Beneath the Flames
I let out a shaky breath.“In exchange, you will tell me how to get home.”
She thinks it’s so simple.
“I already told you that there is no going back,” I replied.I wasn’t sure if I was more irritated that she kept gnawing at that bone, or that I was truly starting to feel guilty about keeping her here.
“You’re the Prince of Eroth.Surely if there was anyone who could bend the rules, it would be you.”
“The curse won’t let you leave,” I said, watching her carefully, wondering if she’d be smart enough to realize what exactly I was telling her.
But instead of following that line of thought to where it ended, she simply said, “All the more reason to break it then.”
This frustrating human was relentless.
Though I had to admit, she seemed genuine in her desire to help, which was more than I could say for any of the others—who couldn’t have cared less about Nico, Eroth, or me.
And yes, it was true—the curse wouldn’t allow her to leave Avalea.The moment she had seen my magic, I had doomed her to spending her last remaining days in Eroth.Any human who entered this world was unable to leave unless the curse was broken.But even if itwas, the fact that she had seen my magicwould require her to stay anyway.
But she didn’t need to know that, right?
A quiet resurgence of hope filled my body.Maybe she’d be able to figure out how to free me after all.At least she was willing to try.
Something about Maren was different.I had sensed it in that store back in her world.It was why I had attempted to talk to her, why I’d saved her even though it put us both at risk.I didn’t want to put my faith in her.Not this close to the end when everything could fall apart.
But I couldn’t help but wonder if maybe this would finally be it.If, on the verge of losing it all, fate would finally be merciful.
No, Rhydian.There’s no hope.Do not let yourselfwalk that path.
“So how do we break it?”The optimism in her voice killed me, much the same way it did when I heard it in Nico’s.
The problem with Maren’s optimism was that it was contagious, and it gripped me, trying to pull me into its depths.I forced my mind to focus, pretended it was a living thing and stabbed it in the heart.I couldn’t afford to expect anything but the worst.
Especially not when she heard the cost of being the cursebreaker.The tasks themselves were dangerous enough, but she could never accomplish the final one.The hatred shining in the glare she always gave me said enough about the chances of completing it.
I shook my head.“The language of the curse is vague.”
“Between the two of us, surely we can figure it out.”When I didn’t respond, she added, “Unless you don’twantto be free.”
I blinked slowly, trying to keep my anger down at her words.
Breathe.She’s an ignorant human.Ifyou kill her, then she can’t help you.
“You haveno ideawhat I’ve done to try to break it,” I growled.I felt a small bit of satisfaction at the way the blood drained from her face.Her breath shuddered, her hands fisting at her sides.
“Then help me help you,” she whispered, and the sincerity of her words made me still.None of the others had ever said such words, let alone in such a genuine way.Once Carrow got involved, they didn’t say much at all.
Fury, hot and fast, burned through my blood, and I had to force myself to take several slow breaths.It was an effort to get the muscles in my hands to relax, for my fists to release.
Maren’s gray eyes bored into mine, missing nothing.Her emotions were all over the place.Confusion, anger, empathy, sincerity, and worst of all—pity.Normally I could decipher a person’s thoughts based on what they were feeling, but Maren was feeling too much.It was like trying to wade through a thick pit of mud.
Finally, I recited the only line of the curse I was willing to say aloud, editing out the end to avoid more incessant questions.
When a heart ofstone dares to love the one it vowed to despise,
then the curse will shatter.
Maren was quiet for a moment, her fingers rubbing absently at her wrist.The wrist with all the bruises.Why did the sight of them always make me feel protective of her?
Don’t be ridiculous, Rhydian.She’s a human.The only reason youshould want to keep her safe is so that she can stay alive long enough to break the curse.The bruises don’t matter.
