Page 288 of Cursed Evermore
"Elariya!" Arielle's voice cut through the darkness as she and Garrick appeared at the far end, both armed and moving fast.
"What's happening?" I whispered when they reached me.
“Rebels,” Garrick spat, panic sharpening his voice. “They broke through the wards.”
“How is that possible?” My pulse hammered. Wolfe had said no one could enter without his permission.
“We’ll have to figure that out later.” Arielle grabbed my arm. “We have to get to safety.”
“What about Wolfe and the others?” I gasped.
“Sirril and the other staff went to the village for supplies.” Arielle stared back at me with troubled eyes. “But we can’t reach Wolfe, Bastian, or Alaric through the bond.”
“Oh, gods.”
“Don’t worry about them. You two need to get out of here.And don’t portal or phase. That will give your location away.”
Another crash sounded, closer this time. It made us all flinch.
"Get to the caves," Garrick snapped. "Stay with the dragons. Pyrion and Hedion won't let anything happen to you."
“What about you?” I stuttered.
“My job is to keep you both safe. Now go,” Garrick urged. “Go.”
Arielle tugged on my arm, ushering me away. I looked back at Garrick, who gave me a firm nod before rushing back the way he’d come, his sword raised.
“Come on, Elariya, we must be quick,” Arielle said.
We quickened our pace down the hallway, heading toward the back of the manor. The reality of how vulnerable we were made me feel weak.
Whatever was downstairs, we were facing it with no backup and no Wolfe.
“This way.” Arielle pointed down the longer hallway.
Candle lights flickered low, concealing us but lighting our path so we could see. Sensing our distress, the hallway shifted and moved with us so we got to the stairs quicker.
We rushed down the stairs, our footsteps muffled by the thick runner carpet.
We were met by silence once we reached the ground floor, which somehow made everything feel worse. Like whoever had broken in was now lying in wait.
I prayed Garrick could stop them or that Wolfe could come back. I was sure these people knew he wasn’t here. That’s why they’d attacked.
"Almost there," Arielle whispered, glancing at me.
We rounded the last corner to the hallway that would lead us outside. From there we’d be able to run toward the dragon caves.
Without warning, the floor beneath us trembled. The walls of the manor groaned, and the hallway lurched, throwing us off balance.
“What’s happening?” I gasped.
“They’ve found us.”
She hardly got the words out before the hallway split in two. The drastic motion yanked us apart.
"Elariya!" Arielle reached for me, but she stumbled and fell, carried away by the moving walls. "Keep going! Get to the dragons!"
"Arielle!" I screamed, rushing to the wall, but it sealed off.
