Page 74 of A Tale of Treachery

The humming lowered in volume, growing quieter with each passing moment until it ceased entirely.

Ahh, blissful silence.

Redmond smiled, his eyes alight with something akin to excitement as he approached. “Better?”

“So much,” I breathed, glancing at the men surrounding us with perplexed looks on their faces.

“Just as I suspected. You’re connected to whatever that substance is,” he whispered low enough that the others wouldn’t hear.

I hated to admit it, but it was true. There seemed to be an almost telepathic link between the portal and me, and I sensed the joy it radiated. It vibrated with contentment and peace at being whole once again, which unsettled me. I didn’t want a connection to the otherworld. I wanted nothing to do with that vile place.

I hoped it swallowed Malachi whole.

“It’s okay,” Redmond reassured me with a squeeze of my arm. “Are you ready? We can make this quick, so you won’t have to be over there for long. We just need to know what’s on the other side. Take note of what you see, what objects lie within the mist, and whether the creatures seem to be uneasy and crowding the portal.”

I cleared my throat from the sudden thickness that swelled it closed. “There are too many witnesses. What will they think when I cross to the other side?”

“They don’t know they can’t cross over. I made sure to get a new party of soldiers that have never been. They’ll think I’m protecting myself by sending my protégée instead of going myself.”

I laughed a little at his suggestion. He would never do something like that, but the others didn’t know. They thought him reckless.

“All right, let’s get this over with,” I said with a groan.

“That’s my girl.”

Redmond pulled back and started shouting orders at the soldiers to keep their distance. They reluctantly agreed and backed toward the edge of the water, taking defensive stances, their eyes wary. George refused to move, his face filled with suspicion.

“What are you doing?” George challenged.

Redmond blocked his path. “She’s only going to take some samples that I can’t risk taking on my own.”

George’s jaw dropped. “No! She is the prince’s mistress. We’re here to protect her. You will not risk her for something you deem too dangerous to do yourself.”

I huffed in indignation. Why did George care so much about me being with Aiden? Why was he pushing it so much? He clearly had an agenda.

Redmond pushed him back with surprising strength. “And she has been my apprentice for longer than she has held the title of mistress. She is here today as a healer and scientist in training and will be performing her duties. Do not make me tell the king that you are interfering in a matter of utmost importance. The safety of the kingdom—the world—rests on this study today.”

The king’s command trumped the word of the prince, and George retreated with a threatening glare. Redmond would have hell to pay upon our return.

Once the commotion had died down, I took a deep breath and approached the gateway, reminding myself that this was a necessary evil. We had to know what was keeping the otherworld creatures from coming into our world. More importantly,Ihad to know. Knowledge was the power that could potentially gain us all peace of mind. If we knew how to prevent the invasion of our world, we could breathe more easily. I wouldn’t have to worry about Malachi ever again.

If I didn’t see him on the other side.

The thought fortified me as I gazed into the billowing portal, comprised of liquid mist and shadow, and steeled my spine. This had to happen. Reaching my palm up, I braced myself and touched the whirling black. My breath hitched when the portal seemed to hum once again, but this time, it wasn’t a loud roaring that pierced my skull. This time, it was a soft thrum of noise that resembled the soothing purr of a happy cat.

I smiled for a second, my stoic façade slipping at the familiar warmth trickling through me.

The portal was welcoming me back to the world I belonged in.

Before I had time to process the thought, the dark goo spread along my fingertips, winding around the digits and crawling down my arm. I wanted to scream and cry out for Redmond’s help, but my body was frozen, left defenseless by the invading source that was grasping on to me and binding with my being. All I could do was watch as the dark sludge wrapped around my arms, my neck, my chest, and slowly crawled along the remainder of my body.

I squeezed my eyes shut as a pulling sensation tugged my body inward. The portal swallowed me whole, dragging me through its depths until I was encompassed by nothingness. For a moment, all I could feel was relief, relief from the silence surrounding me, the feeling of peace that filled my body as I floated in absolute darkness.

Then the portal spat me back out.

I landed hard on my hands and knees, my neck cramping from the force with which my body had been tossed. Gathering my bearings, I rose and slowly opened my eyes, patting myself to see if the substance was still clinging to me. There was nothing there, nothing but the clothes I’d dressed in this morning and clean skin, not a trace of the tricky, sentient goo that had grabbed hold of me.

I glanced around for Redmond, prepared to face the disappointment of his failed plan, but he wasn’t there. I was no longer in my world.

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