My magic had flared high when Nathaniel had lifted me against him, and I was still riding that surge of power. I felt more than prepared to take out some harpies.
“They are only a little ahead of us,” Nathaniel said. “We are over the foothills of the mountain now.”
That was what flying could do for you over walking. It had taken us hours to get halfway across the field on foot, and in a few short moments in the air we had covered the remainder of the distance.
The harpies screamed as they came closer. I could see their faces now, and I wished I couldn’t. They were the faces of beautiful women, but contorted by a hate so fierce that it made them horrible to look upon.
I let loose the fire that blazed in my blood.
The vanguard fell screaming and smoking to the earth. Their sisters took up the cry with twice the ferocity, and I thought my eardrums might burst. I let the flame pour from my hands, and harpies plummeted to earth. The air was filled with stench of burning flesh and the howls of burning women. But still there were more, and more. There was a stream of harpies flowing from our wake back to the forest, and it seemed to have no end.
“How much farther?” I said, still loosing flame, still burning harpies with all the power I could muster.
“It’s farther away than it looks,” Nathaniel said.
“There are so many of them,” I said, and I wondered whether we would make it in time.
“Madeline,” Nathaniel said, and he put his lips on my neck.
I felt his magic flow from the place where his mouth touched, felt his power twining around mine again. And as it did, there was a blaze, as there was the first time our powers had touched. Heat blasted from my hands, uncontrolled, and then everything seemed to explode.
We were blinded by white light, and for a moment I was afraid Nathaniel would drop me. But he held me close, and my arms wound around his neck, my power spent. We hovered in the air, our eyes closed against the light.
When the light seemed to recede I opened my eyes and looked over Nathaniel’s shoulder toward the harpies.
The harpies were gone. So was the field, and a good portion of the forest. The path we had walked was a blackened husk.
“What about the others?” I asked, panicking. “Were they caught in the spell?”
“No, you maniac,” Beezle said beside me. “Although it was a near thing. You should have mentioned that you were going to set off a nuclear bomb.”
“You told me to play to my strengths,” I said, nudging Nathaniel so he would shift me back to our original carrying position. Jude, Samiel, Chloe and J.B. were floating in the air several feet ahead of us, and they all looked a little shocked. And smoke-smudged.
“So I should have expected you to reduce all animal and plant life for miles around to ash?”
“Yes, you should have,” I said. “That’s pretty much my M.O.”
“Titania’s going to be really mad at you now,” Beezle said as we started forward to join everyone else.
“Like she wasn’t mad before?”
“These faerie queens seem to take it amiss when you burn down their forest and their creatures,” Beezle said. “Remember when you killed Amarantha’s Cthulhu-thing and her giant spider?”
“Barely,” I said. “I’ve burned so many things it’s kind of all blurring together. And Amarantha was ready to be pissed at me before that, just as Titania is.”
“Then stop antagonizing her,” Beezle said.
“Maybe she should stop antagonizing me,” I said. “Before I wipe out her whole kingdom.”
“Dark side,” Beezle said.
“I am not going dark side,” I said impatiently as we flew along toward the top of the mountain.
“If you’re not going dark side, then you’ve definitely decided to adopt a scorched-earth policy for dealing with your enemies,” Beezle said.
“And why shouldn’t she?” J.B. said.
We all stared at him in surprise. J.B. was pretty much a rule follower. He was usually one of the first to chastise me when I killed someone or burned something to the ground. Of course, that may have been because he’d have to file paperwork about the incident when I was an Agent. Now that I was no longer an Agent, paperwork didn’t apply.
“She shouldn’t because she’s getting a reputation for being ruthless. No one will want to ally themselves with her if they think she might go crazy and blow them up at a moment’s notice,” Beezle said.
“I have never done that,” I said. “I only blow up people who are mean to me first.”
“If Madeline is not ruthless, she will never survive, gargoyle,” Nathaniel said. “Her enemies have no mercy, and neither should she.”
“Well, then, if you want to be a monster like everyone else,” Beezle said.
“I don’t,” I said. “But I don’t want anyone thinking they can have a go at me—or my friends—without consequences.”
The air was getting colder, and as we got closer to the peak, snow began to blow. Nathaniel did not seem even remotely bothered by the weather, but after a few moments I was shivering. I was wearing nothing but the stupid leather pants and the flimsy sweater that Puck had given me. Even Nathaniel’s body heat wasn’t helping.
After a while the snowflakes became a blizzard, and we could barely see a few feet in front of us.
“Stay close!” I shouted to the others. I didn’t want to lose anyone in this mess.
Everyone clumped up so tight that it was difficult to fly. Wings tangled together; people bumped and snarled. Beezle climbed into my lap and huddled there with his wings over his head.
“There’s the top,” Nathaniel said.
I don’t know how he could see anything at all except snow, but since his hearing had been enhanced by the discovery of his legacy, it wasn’t that far-fetched to think his vision would be as well. At least we knew we were still heading in the right direction.
Samiel was a little ahead of the rest of us. Jude was a snow-covered length of fur on his shoulders. The snow swirled for a moment, and we could all see the gray wasteland that was the end of Titania’s kingdom a few feet in front of us.
Then Samiel seemed to smash into an invisible wall in midair, and fell to the ground. Luckily, the ground wasn’t very far away.
“Samiel!” Chloe and I both cried.
Nathaniel and the others flew down to the place where Samiel and Jude had landed in a snowbank beside a large cave opening. Jude shook the snow off his fur. Samiel sat up, rubbing his head. Chloe ran to his side.
“How many fingers?” she asked, holding up her hand.
Two, Samiel signed, looking sheepish, as we crowded around him. What happened?
Nathaniel placed me on my feet. Beezle climbed up to my shoulder and settled in. Nathaniel walked toward the sharp edge where the snow ended and the wasteland began. He reached toward the space, palm out. And was stopped.
“There is a wall here,” Nathaniel said.
“There, see, you aren’t a klutz,” Chloe soothed Samiel. “There was a wall there. What’s a wall doing there?”
“This is a faerie kingdom,” J.B. said. “You didn’t think it would be easy for us to leave, did you?”
“We were chased by a spriggan and a horde of harpies. You call that easy?” Chloe asked.
“Easy is a relative concept,” I said, thinking of the Maze and the Hob and all of the other horrible faerie things I’d encountered.
I joined Nathaniel by the wall, and J.B. followed me, standing on my other side.
“What do you think?” I asked. “Could we take it down with magic?”
“You could, I’m sure,” Beezle said. “Just make with the explodey-thing.”
“Possibly,” J.B. said. “But it would likely be difficult and draining, and there’s a very good chance that the wall will make sure that anyone who tries to destroy it will pay the price.”
“Maddy might just blast the whole thing into oblivion, including any booby traps,” Beezle said.
&nbs
p; “And us, too?” J.B. said. “If she unleashes that much power at such a close range, it’s unlikely to be good for any of us. And there’s still no guarantee it would work.”
“What can we do, then?” I said, looking through to the wastes on the other side. They were so frustratingly close. “Tunnel under?”
Nathaniel shook his head. “It will be like this world is encased in a snow globe. If you tunnel under, you will still find the same barrier.”
“Well, there’s got to be a way out,” I said.
“Not necessarily,” J.B. said. “Usually when creatures come and go from this land, they have the power to transport themselves across dimensions, or are at the very least accompanied by someone who does.”
“I refuse to believe that we are going to be stuck in this godforsaken place because of a piece of glass,” I said.
I stared at the barrier, trying to will it to come down, and that was when I noticed it. There was a cave on the other side of the wall. I glanced back at the cave that was beside the place where Samiel had landed, and then to the other side again. The two openings were mirror images of each other.
“That’s the way out,” I said, pointing at the cave on the wasteland side.
J.B. followed my gaze, and then looked over at the cave on our side. He nodded. “You’re probably right. It’s got the feeling of a faerie solution.”
“That means that the cavern will be some kind of obstacle course or proving ground,” Nathaniel said.
“Of course,” I said. “Nothing is easy, especially when faeries are involved.”
“Hey,” J.B. said mildly.
“You’re only half-faerie,” I said. And nothing is ever easy with you, either, I thought, but I didn’t say it aloud.
We walked back to the others and explained what I had found.
I’m willing to try it, Samiel said.
“Sure, why not?” Chloe said. “It’s not like I’m claustrophobic or anything.”
“You’re claustrophobic and you work in that little room every day?” I asked.
“I have all the light I want in there,” Chloe said, her breath visible in the cold air. “That’s not going to be the case in here.”
We all paused at the mouth of the cave. A current of warmth came from the interior. It should have felt comforting, especially in the bitter cold, but it didn’t. It felt like standing near the mouth of a dragon that’s about to make you his dinner.
“This could be a trap,” J.B. said.
“I’ve already considered the possibility,” I said. “The only other option is to go back, and we know there’s nothing for us in that direction.”
“Heigh-ho, then,” Beezle said. “No time like the present.”
I stepped into the darkness.
13
AS SOON AS I STEPPED INSIDE I FELT SOMETHING inside me go black, like it was being smothered, and I realized it was my magic.
“Wait!” I said to the others, but they were already beside me. “Am I the only one who can’t access their powers?”
“No,” Nathaniel said, his voice grim.
His answer was echoed all around, Jude included.
“I’ve turned back into a human,” he growled.
The darkness was absolute, and the sounds of the wind howling outside had ceased as soon as we entered the cave. I could hear a drip of water, and the harsh breath of everyone else.
“Okay,” I said, thinking hard. “I’ve got my sword, and so does Nathaniel. Does anyone else have a weapon?”
“I’ve got the little knife, and some bobby pins in my pocket. Somewhere,” Chloe said.
“I’ll take that as a no,” I said. “We can’t make nightfire to see. And I bet we can’t get out of the cave now that we’ve gone in.”
“No,” Jude said. “I already checked.”
“So we’ve got to go forward,” I said.
Part of me had expected something like this. Faeries loved their games, and they didn’t like you to have advantages. It was more fun for them if you lost.
“I don’t want to lose anyone in the dark,” I said. “So everyone chain up. I’ll go in front, and Nathaniel in the back since we’re the only ones with weapons.”
“I will go in front,” Nathaniel said.
“Don’t try to be a man,” I said. “I can swing a sword just as easily as you can.”
“I’d prefer if Nathaniel went in front, too,” Beezle said. “I don’t want to be the first in line when some slavering monster appears out of the darkness.”
“Then go sit on Samiel’s shoulder,” I said. “Because I’m going first.”
“I would, if I could find Samiel,” Beezle said.
There was no way in hell I was letting anyone else take the fall. That had happened twice now. First Gabriel had taken the sword that was probably meant for me. And then J.B. had taken Titania’s abuse. No one was standing in front of me anymore, no matter how much it hurt their masculine pride.
“Madeline,” Nathaniel began.
“No,” I said. “You will trust me.”
“There’s no reason for…”
“There’s every reason,” I said, and my tone said that we were done discussing the matter.
I groped in the darkness for the hand of the person nearest me, and Jude was there.
“I’m right next to you, Agent,” he said to Chloe.
There was a rustling as everyone formed in a line. I drew my sword carefully and found that the darkness was not absolute. There was a very faint silver gleam as the blade was revealed.
“It would be helpful if you would light up like you did in the Maze,” I said to the sword.
Nothing. Not even an answering wiggle from the snake tattoo on my palm.
“Who are you talking to?” Jude asked.
“My sword,” I said.
“Don’t ask,” Beezle said. “You’ll just get an answer you don’t want to hear.”
I slid forward as quietly as I could, my hand slick with sweat in Jude’s grip. The others followed.
There is nothing quite like moving in the dark. Your eye creates shadows and movement where there is none. Your mind fills in the black space with nightmares. And all around you, the darkness is like a living thing, pressing on you, making you fear, making you doubt.
I’d spent more than my fair share of time in darkness lately. Maybe one day I’d go to the Caribbean and lie in the sun until all of the dark was burned away.
Do you think Lucifer will ever let you do that? I thought. Do you think he’ll let you go now that he has you so close to his grasp?
I already knew the answer to that. The darkness would be with me forever, and no amount of sunshine would ever light those shadowed places again. That was Lucifer’s gift to me—the power of the stars and the universe, cloaked in the black emptiness of space.
We had been walking for some time without incident when I heard Chloe. Her breath had been coming faster and louder gradually, and now she sounded like she was hyperventilating. Samiel must have tried to comfort her because she said, “Not helping. Not helping at all.”
“What’s the matter?” I said.
“I can’t breathe,” she said, sounding strained. “I can’t get enough air in here.”
“You can,” I said, trying to cut through her panic by being firm. “There’s plenty of air.”
“There’s not,” she moaned. “I can’t breathe. I can’t breathe!”
“She’s having a panic attack,” J.B. said, and there was the sound of a struggle.
Jude let go of my hand.
“Hey, don’t let go,” I said.
“I have to get out of here, I have to get out, I have to,” Chloe said.
“Hold her still!” J.B. said.
Sheathing my sword so I wouldn’t accidentally stab anyone in the dark, I turned on the spot and reached out in front of me, trying to find the others by sound.
“Get ahold of yourself, girl,” Jude growled.
Jude, J.B., Nathaniel, Samiel
and Chloe were nothing but shadows moving in the dark, formless, indistinct. My hand touched someone’s shoulder, but before I could figure out whose it was, I was decked in the face by Chloe’s flailing arms. I staggered backward, hearing J.B. grunt as Chloe hit him, too.
Chloe seemed to lose more control as the moments passed. Her words ceased to have meaning and instead turned into a low keening noise. None of the men was able to get hold of her. A second later, she bolted.
I felt and heard her go by rather than saw. Her boots crunched in the dirt of the cave floor, and her moan trailed behind her as she ran.
“Chloe!” I shouted, and scrambled after her.
“Don’t go haring off after her, idiot!” Beezle said.
Samiel shot past me, nothing more than a sense of a body moving in space. I knew it was him because he didn’t call her name. I ran behind both of them, deeper into the black.
“Maddy, wait!” J.B. cried.
I should have waited. That was the whole point of the chain, so that we would not lose one another in the darkness. But all I could think was that Chloe was panicking, and Samiel couldn’t call us if he needed help.
Then Chloe screamed, and my blood ran cold.
“Chloe!” I called, running harder. Beezle dug his claws into my shoulder so he wouldn’t fall off.
She screamed again, and it sounded farther away—much farther than she should have been able to run.
“It sounds like something’s carrying her away,” Beezle said.
“I know,” I said.
The rest of the guys were running behind me and soon caught up. We were sprinting together like a pack, me in the center, J.B. and Nathaniel on each side, and Jude behind. The cave tilted downward, and there was a faint illumination ahead.
“Chloe! Samiel!” I called.
“Samiel can’t answer you,” Beezle said.
“I’m hoping he’ll come back to us,” I said.
“He won’t come back if his woman is in danger,” Jude said.
“What’s that ahead?” J.B. asked. “I can see some kind of halo.”
“The walls of the cave are lit,” Nathaniel said.
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