Page 121 of Cherish

“Thanks for that visual,” he says with a groan.

“Anytime,” I answer.

“Silence!” the head guard bellows. “You are being arrested for crimes against the queen. Please put your hands out in front of you now and clasp them together.”

Considering Hudson is the only one of us they know has been here before, it seems a bit abusive to arrest all of us for mythical crimes against the Shadow Queen. But again, we’re getting what we wanted, so none of us says anything.

Instead, we do exactly what they ask.

I hold my arms out, lacing my fingers together and pressing my palms against each other. As soon as I do, one of the guards steps up and rests a hand on top of my wrists. Seconds later, a shadow cord appears out of nowhere, winding itself around and around my wrists and binding them together.

Another wave of his hand, and a blindfold covers my eyes. “Hey, what—”

I break off as something that feels an awful lot like tape slams down on my mouth.

And just like that, panic explodes in me.

I was okay with being arrested because it would get us where we need to go—namely, to the Shadow Queen. But being blindfolded? Gagged? I didn’t sign up for that.

Beside me, Macy lets out a high-pitched squeak—the most she can do, I assume, with her mouth taped shut. And then the others are making noises as well, muffled shouts and cries echoing through the air.

I can identify Flint’s and Jaxon’s growls, Heather’s cry, Eden’s muffled snarl. But Hudson doesn’t make a sound—not one sound.

Terror explodes deep inside me, has my stomach turning in sick somersaults and my heart beating way too fast. Where is Hudson? What have they done to him? Did they hurt him? Take him away?

I’m breathing much too fast now, nearly hyperventilating—which is horrible in any circumstance and triply horrible with my mouth sealed. I’m trying desperately to take a deep breath to calm myself down, but there’s only so much air I can pull in through my nose.

And the more I try, the worse it gets.

“Hudson!” I try to say, but it comes out all muffled and unintelligible.

I try again. “Hudson! Hudson!”

I can’t even understand myself, let alone expect anyone else to understand me.

But then he’s there, the side of his arm brushing against my shoulder as he, too, makes a noise beneath his gag that sounds an awful lot like my name.

Because of course Hudson, the hero of Vegaville and the Shadow Realm, can find a way to talk with a gag over his mouth. If I wasn’t so relieved to know that he’s okay, I’d laugh.

I am relieved, though, and when he brushes his arm against mine again, I can feel the tension deep inside me unlocking just a little bit. My stomach unclenches, and while my heart continues to beat way too fast, it becomes a lot easier for me to breathe.

I remember one of the tricks Hudson taught me to control my panics and start doing math in my head. One plus one is two. Two plus two is four. Four plus four is eight.

It’s okay, I tell myself as they start shuffling us down the street. Eight plus eight is sixteen. This is what we wanted. Sixteen plus sixteen is thirty-two. This is what we needed to have happen. I take a deep breath through my nose, hold it, then let it out slowly.

Of course they blindfolded us if they’re taking us to the queen. Otherwise, we’d figure out the location she’s tried so hard to keep secret.

It’s actually a good thing, I tell myself as I concentrate on taking more slow, even breaths. Because the sooner we get to see her, the sooner we can make a bargain to save Mekhi and help Lorelei.

It’s a good thing, I repeat again, like a mantra. A very good thing.

Even if, right now, it feels like anything but.

We walk for a while—one thousand and twenty-seven steps, to be exact—before one of the guards orders, “Stop!”

I do, so abruptly that Macy crashes into me from behind.

She makes a noise that I can’t quite distinguish, maybe “sorry,” maybe “ow,” but we both manage to stay upright, so I’m calling it a win. At least until I hear the clang of metal doors—followed by the high-pitched whinny of an animal I can’t identify.

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