“Dad!” she called again. “Please say something! Are you all right?” Her eyes filled with tears, and she froze with fear.
Every second that passed made her ill. Why wasn’t he responding? Who held her back in the darkness?
“Julia!” Lancer’s voice rang out clearly. “Julia! Are you there?”
She tried to move forward again until finally she saw who stopped her.
Panic filled Julia’s body.
Alexis stood alone, her face just as beautiful and terrifying as the last time they had met. She held out her sword and watched Julia with intense black eyes.
“Julia?” She tilted her head, and she lowered her weapon.
“Could it be?”
Julia glared at her, ready to fight.
Instantly, Alexis raised her golden sword high in the air, swinging it down, and hit Julia’s sword with such force that it fell out of her hands. A loud metal noise echoed off the pyramid walls.
“Don’t touch her!” Lancer growled.
Alexis ignored him. “I can’t believe you haven’t learned, Julia,” she hissed. “Messing with me is fatal.”
Julia became silent, feeling helpless. Where had Scarlet gone?
“Is this true, though?” Her face contorted into a smile.
“Are you really a siren?”
Julia sniffed and stood up tall. She would not let Alexis belittle her.
“I just can’t believe it.” Alexis reached forward with her free hand to touch Julia’s hair.
Julia slapped her hand away. “It shouldn’t be too hard to believe,” she said in a dry voice. “Considering you’re a siren yourself.”
Alexis pulled back her hand and looked amused. “Oh I see. You’ve conversed with the sirens have you. Did they tell you I’m a siren?”
Julia didn’t answer.
“I’m guessing if they told you that, then they also told you about the curse?”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Julia spat.
Alexis sheathed her sword slowly in the darkness. “You are so easy to read when you’re lying, a trait you got from your father I’m afraid.”
She clenched her teeth hard. If she could shapeshift, she’d rip Alexis to pieces.
“I’ll take any trait from Lancer as long as it means I’m less like you.”
Either Lancer or Liam stirred in the darkness.
“Julia,” Alexis snapped, “I’d be careful what I say if I were you. I’m the one who has your life, your father’s, and Liam’s all at my disposal. You, however, are unarmed, alone, and, I’m sure, unable to shapeshift.”
Julia swallowed but tried to look strong.
“Tell me,” Alexis said. “How has everyone in Ossai adjusted to knowing that you are a siren? I think I’m right in assuming that most people can be … rather mistrusting of sirens.”
She stiffened and kept eye contact with Alexis, but she wouldn’t play into her trap. She focused on Lancer and Liam.
“Or have you not told everyone?”
“Alexis …” Julia shivered a little saying her name. “What do you want?” She said every word slowly and clearly.
Smiling, Alexis let out a loud cruel laugh, which made the hairs on Julia’s arm stand on end.
“You think you’re so clever. You thought that you’d ignore my request to get married and then storm in here and save the day. You think you’re such a little hero, don’t you?”
“I was getting married,” Julia said under her breath. “But I realized that you were asking just a little too much. Don’t you think?”
Julia knew she pushed her limits; she needed to be more cautious.
Alexis tilted her head again. “Careful,” she whispered.
“What do I have to do to get my father and Liam out of here?” Julia needed to hurry. The Soldiers would continue fighting until she freed Lancer and Liam. “If I stay here, will you let them go?”
“NO!” Lancer screamed out in the blackness.
“That’s not exactly what I had in mind,” she replied. Alexis pursed her lips, and Julia noticed once again how terrifyingly similar they looked to each other.
“You know I need your blood to unlock something.”
Julia furrowed her eyebrows. “What is it? Why didn’t you have Lancer unlock it? Why me?”
Alexis scowled. “You think I didn’t try that? Siron Feelious left something in this pyramid. It’s sealed off and only accessible by a descendant with his blood—or so I thought.
Lancer tried several times, unsuccessful. Then I realized how stupid I had been. Of course, only a female with his blood could unlock it.”
“Why?” Julia asked. “Why would he make it only a female? How do you know it’s not just locked forever?”
She looked irritated. “Because he gave everything to one person only. It wasn’t his wife, Mildred, or his other family—it was left to his daughter. Of course he would leave something so powerful to her and make sure only she could access it.”
“And you’re convinced my blood will work?”
“Oh,” Alexis said, wrinkling her nose. “It will work.”
Julia lifted her chin and looked at her father. “And if I open or unlock whatever this weapon is, you’ll let my father go?”
The torch flickered in the corner, and a little breeze blew throughout the room.
“No,” she answered. “You must marry and denounce the throne to me.”
Julia shook her head. “No. You don’t get to call all the shots, Alexis. I know you need this weapon more than you want to become queen.”
“You don’t even know what the weapon is,” Alexis answered haughtily.
“But I’m not an idiot.” Julia raised her eyebrows. “I know that you’ve wanted this for years. You thought you were close last year when you kidnapped me.”
Alexis watched her for several moments. “Fine,” she snapped. “If you unlock this, I will let them go.”
“I don’t believe you.” Julia glared at Alexis.
“I don’t think you really have a choice, do you?”
She paused and took a deep breath. Alexis was right.
“Okay,” Julia said. “I’ll do it.”
Just as she had agreed, Liam and Lancer yelled out protests.
“You don’t have to!” Liam cried.
Alexis flipped around to face them. “Enough.”
She looked like she wanted to confront Liam and Lancer, and she raised her sword again.
Julia quickly lunged toward her. “Hey!” she yelled out, stepping in front of her pathway.
Alexis stopped in her tracks and opened her eyes wide at Julia’s bold move. “Let’s do this,” Julia said firmly. “I’m ready to unlock it.”
Alexis regained her sinister composition. “Fine. Follow me.” Julia kept in stride with her as she glided across the dark space to the wall opposite of Liam and Lancer. When she stopped, she pulled out a lighter from the wall and lit up a torch right next to her.
The torch caught the flame and lit up massively. It illuminated the whole wall in front of them, and Julia gasped.
Thousands of hieroglyphics covered the wall. The art depicted hundreds of stories of people, animals, and places, all painted carefully on the stone.
Below the hieroglyphics stood a large door made of rough stone. A blue drawing of water followed the border of it, and something in the center caught Julia’s eye. She peered closer and saw the S stamp, identical to the secret passageway in the ballroom at Lockham castle.
“So I’m guessing I’ll need the S ring.” Julia tore her eyes away from the doorway.
Alexis looked smug and held out her hand. Slowly she opened up her palm to reveal the golden ring with the large S engraved in it.
“It’s all yours,” she said tauntingly to Julia.
Julia steadied herself and grasped the ring from her palm.
For a split second, she wondered what would happen if she threw the ring. Obviously it was necessary in Alexis’s plans and Alexis would go after it. H
owever, she might end up taking out her wrath on Lancer and Liam.
“Put it on,” Alexis barked, noticing Julia’s hesitation.
“I am.” Julia took a deep breath and slowly put the ring on.
The metal felt warm; Alexis must have been wearing it.
Julia stepped forward and took one last glance at the doorway before unleashing whatever weapon it contained.
“Lancer and Liam don’t have all day, Julia,” Alexis said loudly.
Anger flushed through Julia as she shoved the ring into the S carving. Her hand reverberated as the power in the ring met the lock.
With her hand in a fist, and using al her strength, Julia turned her fingers to the right. She struggled, but eventual y the S carving turned with the ring, and the S clicked into place.
The door made a soft echoing noise, and Julia quickly released her hand, stepping back.
Alexis had a grin on her face and pushed Julia out of the way. She gripped the handle firmly and tried to pull the door open, but it didn’t budge.
“Julia!” she yelled, still grasping the handle. “Help me open this.”
Julia didn’t move.
Alexis quickly let go of the handle and raised her sword at Julia. “Now.”
Julia growled and bent down to grasp the huge iron handle. Together, Alexis and she slowly pulled open the door.
The stone door scraped against the floor, and Julia felt like her back might snap from the force of pulling so hard.
Once it finally started to move, they pushed it open until there was a ten-inch opening.
A gust of air blew past Alexis and Julia, and their hair whipped wildly around them.
Julia stepped back and huffed. “It’s done,” she said to Alexis. “I’ve done my part. Now let them free.”
“So you can lock me in?” Alexis questioned. “I don’t think so. Your part of the deal isn’t over. You will enter this tunnel with me.
Table of Contents
CHAPTER ONE
An Unexpected Arrival
CHAPTER THREE
The Royal Family
CHAPTER FIVE
Dreamwalker
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
The Prophecy
CHAPTER ELEVEN
A Familiar Queen
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
I can’t believe it.” Terrence had finally let her go.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
The Siren's Secret Page 25