“There’s nothing to be sorry for,” a voice whispered, and a hand rested on her shoulder.
At first, she was so lost in her grief that she didn’t fully register the words or the touch. When they did sink in, she turned to gaze at the figure kneeling beside her. The life Avery had recently forsaken filled Karen’s eyes.
Coated with tears, Avery’s lashes stuck together when she blinked at her friend. “Are you a ghost?”
Karen’s laughter was the clear, vibrant sound Avery remembered. No ghost could mimic it so perfectly, but Avery refused to hope that this was real. If she got her hopes up, only to have them shattered, she wouldn’t survive it.
“No, Avery,” Karen said, “it’s me.”
She brushed a strand of Avery’s hair back from her face and tucked it behind her ear. The warmth of Karen’s fingers against her skin caused her to jump, but she still couldn’t bring herself to believe Karen was real.
Is this Regan’s way of making me pay for defying him? He would drive her insane if he used the ghosts of her friends to torment her, but maybe he didn’t care if she was sane or not, as long as she joined him.
“I think you just faced your nightmare,” Reid said as he knelt before her and clasped her hand.
She stared at their joined hands fitting so perfectly together. Wouldn’t a ghost’s hand go through hers?
But they didn’t look like the hands of a ghost, and she’d come to know his hands well during the months they’d been together. Calloused and strong, his fingers slid over hers before he lifted her hand and rested it against his stubble-roughened jaw. Love and concern shimmered in his silver eyes as she hesitatingly stroked his face.
“I’m real, Avery,” he said.
With a strangled cry, she threw herself into his arms with so much force that he rocked back on his heels. Embracing her, he drew her flush against his chest and held her close as she buried her nose in his neck and inhaled the sweat and sandalwood scent of him. She ran her hands over his back as she tried to reassure herself he was really okay, but she didn’t feel a hole there anymore.
“It’s okay.” His fingers threaded through her hair while he kissed her temple and then her ear.
His strong arms and kisses erased the last of her doubts. “I… I hoped it was my nightmare,” she choked out in a hitching breath. “But I wasn’t sure, and I was so… so… scared… I made a mistake after he left.”
She should have known Regan would try something like this against her. Ever since they buried the skull, she’d worried he would find some way to come back. However, she never feared for herself when she considered the possibility but was concerned about what he would do to her friends and family to get at her.
“Well, you didn’t make a mistake.” Sandra stepped forward, and Avery twisted her head to look up at her cousin. Warmth, understanding, and a deep sadness Avery had never expected to see shone from Sandra’s emerald eyes. “We tried to intervene to help you, but a wall of air surrounded the clearing, and we couldn’t penetrate it. We saw and heard everything that happened though.”
And how did they feel about her decision to gamble with their lives? “I’m sorry. I could have saved you—”
“You didn’t have to save us,” Mario cut in. “We were always here; you just didn’t know it.”
“Yes, but if you’d been dead—”
“Then we would have preferred to stay that way!” Isla interjected.
“Don’t ever give in to him, Avery, no matter what he does,” Eric said.
“We’ve fought too long and hard to let him win now,” Karen said. “And you were right. There are way more lives at stake than just ours. You made the right choice; even if the world doesn’t know it, we do.”
Avery scanned their faces for some hint of resentment, but she saw the same conviction in all their gazes. Only Talia stared at her with simmering hostility in her cornflower eyes. Talia would never forgive Avery for her decision and never understand why she made it, but she didn’t care. Their friendship was already over; all that remained was for Avery to get her safely out of here.
“You made the right choice,” Isla said.
Talia rolled her eyes before crossing her arms over her chest and scowling at her feet.
“Yes, you did,” Reid said.
Avery nodded as she wiped the last of her tears away. “What happened to you?” she asked Sandra.
The embarrassed glance Sandra gave the group was a look Avery had never expected to see on her cousin’s face. Sandra didn’t do embarrassed; she was more a “screw what others think of me as I kick the world in the balls” type of girl.
“I panicked and ran into the woods,” Sandra admitted. “I didn’t realize I was alone until I became too tired to run. Two of those things followed me, and I finally turned to face them and used my powers against them. When I did, I sent their ugly, hairy asses all the way back to Hell where they belong.”
“Good,” Avery said.
“We found her and were about to send up a flare when we saw yours go into the air. We were returning to the clearing when we hit the wall of air,” Eric said.
“What happened to you?” Avery asked Karen.
“One of those things grabbed me,” Karen said, “and dragged me away from you. Thankfully, it ran across Reid and Isla.”
“We’d seen your flare and were returning when it ran across our path,” Isla said. “We got her away from it and killed it.”
“Good,” Avery said as she clasped Karen’s hand and squeezed it.
“We just killed two more nightmares,” Mario said. “That only leaves mine.” He frowned as the reality of his statement sank in. Then, he grinned. “I’m going to destroy whatever Regan throws at me. It’s time to end this.”
CHAPTER 28
Sitting on the floor, Avery stared at the red velvet wall across from her. She’d eased the weight from her tortured feet some time ago, but her legs continued to wobble. When her stomach rumbled, she placed a hand on it.
“What time is it?” Mario asked.
“Eight thirty,” Reid answered.
The rest of the group looked as tired, dirty, and disheveled as she felt. Dark circles rimmed their eyes, and the pinched look around their mouths made them look ten years older. Their bloody, torn clothes reeked of death and body odor.
“There’s one soda left.” Sandra dug into her pocket and pulled out the remaining can. She popped the top and sipped it before passing the drink to Mario.
Avery watched as it made its way to her. When her turn finally arrived, she seized the can and winced before glancing at her battered palms. She’d spent the last fifteen minutes trying to dig all the thorns out of them. A stubborn few refused to be expelled.
A flash of light pulled Avery’s attention away from her throbbing hands. Believing Regan had returned to taunt them, she started to rise to confront him, but instead of Regan, a circle of colors materialized in the center of the hall. Avery slid back to the ground as Landon, Rosie, Alex, Shawn, Tina, and Lila emerged from the circle.
The distrust that washed through her astonished Avery. Until today, she never thought she would doubt any of the new arrivals, but Tina and Lila were the only two she trusted.
Shawn broke the awkward silence when he blurted, “You guys look like hell.”
“That’s because we’ve been there and back already, but thank you for your support!” Sandra snapped.
Shawn grinned sheepishly at them. “Sorry.”
“Are you guys all right?” Landon asked.
“Depends on your version of all right. If you mean well rested, fed, hydrated, and not chew toys for a demented evil spirit, then, no, we’re not all right,” Mario said.
The other group exchanged wary glances with each other. “Well,” Rosie said, “we can help with some of that.”
She swung a bag off her back, but before she could hand it over to someone, Talia jumped up and snatched it from Rosie’s hands. Rosie gave her a startled look that turned i
nto a glare. Talia ignored her as she opened the backpack and turned it over. Water bottles, chips, sandwiches, crackers, and packaged cupcakes spilled onto the floor.
They all dove forward to grab the food and water. Avery felt like a frenzied animal as she peeled the plastic wrap from a chicken sandwich and bit into it. She’d never tasted anything as amazing as the mushy bread and dry chicken.
“And it won’t turn into bugs!” Mario sprayed chip crumbs from his mouth as he spoke.
“Bugs?” Tina squeaked as her eyes landed on Avery and Karen.
“Regan’s been playing some fun games with us,” Karen replied in a voice muffled by her mouthful of crackers. “You should be happy you sat this one out.”
Tina folded her arms over her chest. “From the look, and smell of all of you, I am.”
“Bite me,” Karen mumbled before smiling at her.
“What’s been going on?” Alex asked as his onyx eyes scanned the group.
They took turns filling them in on the nightmares and bonus hallways they’d encountered throughout the maze. When someone stopped talking to shove food into their mouth or drink, someone else picked up the story until they too became preoccupied with stuffing themselves.
When they finished speaking, the new group looked at them with a mix of sadness and distress. “It sounds worse than before,” Landon said.
“It is,” Avery confirmed. “What about the skull? Did you find it?”
“No. We tried scrying to locate it, but we uncovered no trace of it. We also cast a couple of locator spells with no luck.”
Avery hadn’t realized how much hope she’d put into them finding the skull and uncovering who betrayed them until Landon’s words caused her hope to deflate like a popped balloon. Lowering her head into her hands, she rubbed at her temples as she tried to think of some other way to stop Regan.
“We searched everyone’s houses too,” Shawn added.
Sandra’s golden eyebrows rose. “You went through my house?”
“We went through everyone’s house,” Landon said.
“And who searched your house, princess?” Sandra demanded.
“Everyone else did,” Landon replied, unfazed by Sandra’s antagonism.
Avery felt the animosity building between the two groups, but she didn’t have the strength to intervene.
“I don’t think anyone would be dumb enough to hide the skull in their house,” Isla sneered.
“We had to do something after scrying for the skull and casting the spells failed,” Alex said.
“Obviously you didn’t do enough,” Eric growled, his amazing eyes becoming more red than brown.
“If you’re so smart, you find it,” Shawn said.
“In case you haven’t noticed, we’re kind of preoccupied!” Isla retorted.
“Enough!” Avery interjected as she finally found the energy to end the bickering. “Fighting is not going to help us. They’re trying their best to find it, and that’s all we can ask for.”
“Or maybe they’re not trying at all,” Sandra said.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Landon asked.
“It means that one, or more of you, probably doesn’t want the skull found.”
“That’s not true!” Alex protested.
“Isn’t it? We’re the ones stuck here, and you’re the ones who conveniently left the fire early and can’t locate the one thing we need to help us stop Regan.”
Landon’s eyes narrowed as Alex took an angry step forward; Rosie gawked at them while Shawn rolled his eyes and folded his arms over his broad chest.
“Stop it!” Lila cried. “You’re letting Regan turn you against each other. This is what he wants!”
Silence followed her outburst while the two sides gazed warily at each other.
“We’ll stay with you,” Landon finally said.
“No!” Isla blurted.
Glancing around, Avery saw the open hostility Landon’s comment had elicited from the others. Only Karen and Reid didn’t look like they would rather eat cow crap than have Landon and the others join them.
“No,” Avery said to Landon. “You should all go back and see what else you can do to locate the skull. There’s no reason for you to suffer through this too.”
“Do our parents know what’s going on?” Eric asked.
“Yes,” Alex replied. “And Karen’s parents aren’t expecting her home until tomorrow, so she’ll be covered until you all make it out of here. Landon called Talia’s parents, and using a mimicking spell to copy Talia’s voice, she told them she was going to spend another night at Avery’s.”
“You can do that?” Talia squeaked.
“Have you not been paying attention to the things we’ve done while going through this maze?” Isla demanded.
“Well… ah, yeah,” Talia muttered. “But that’s kind of creepy.”
Isla looked at her as if she’d lost her mind. “And everything in this maze has been a trip to Disneyland.”
Talia ducked her head and picked off a piece of the cupcake while Isla glowered at her.
“Well, then,” Reid said as he climbed to his feet and held a hand out to Avery, “we’d better go. Time is running out, and we still have Mario’s nightmare to find and get through.”
Avery accepted his hand and climbed unsteadily to her feet as she stared at the group standing before the circle. Earlier tonight, she’d been sure none of them would have released Regan. Now, she wasn’t so sure.
She’d grown closer to the group trapped here with her. She was almost sure none of them would be here, going through this, if they’d known Regan was going to descend on them. She hated her niggling doubt and distrust of the others, but she couldn’t rid herself of it.
“Hang in there,” Landon said. “You will make it, and we will find that skull.”
Some of Avery’s distrust melted, and she pulled her hand free of Reid’s to walk over and hug Landon. Reid, Landon, and Rosie were her closest friends in the coven, and she didn’t like feeling separated from two of them.
“I know you will do everything you can,” Avery assured her.
When she stepped away from Landon, she hugged Rosie before Lila and Tina embraced her. Avery welcomed their words of reassurance and love; she needed them right now. Karen joined them, and they all held each other before reluctantly parting.
Stepping away from Lila, Avery nodded at the beckoning circle behind her friend. “I don’t want you and Tina to come back here. You shouldn’t be exposed to Regan anymore.”
“No way, we are—” Lila started to protest.
“I mean it,” Avery said before looking at the rest of the group. “None of you should come back. If we’re not on the beach at midnight, then you know what happened to us.”
Avery didn’t give them a chance to protest before she turned and strode away from them.
• • •
“It’s ten o’clock,” Reid said.
“We’re running out of time,” Eric said. “We still have to get through Mario’s nightmare and to the end of this maze.”
Hopelessness threatened to strangle her, but Avery refused to acknowledge it. She had to believe they would get through this. Otherwise, she would succumb to her despair. Avery turned a corner in the hall and froze in midstride. When Reid bumped into her, he forced her airborne foot to the ground.
“What the…?” His voice trailed off.
Avery’s mouth went dry as she stared at the glass tunnel stretching before her. Blue ocean water pressed against the glass as an array of sea creatures swam past. Some of the colorful fish darted and danced, while stingrays floated leisurely through the water, and a dolphin swooped down to swallow a fish. It was so peaceful and horrible.
“What is this?” Sandra demanded, her voice a mixture of annoyance and awe.
Avery’s fingers convulsed on Reid’s. “I know,” she croaked, and they turned to look at her. “When I was little, my parents took me to the drive-in for a creature feature. The first
movie was Jaws 3; it scared the crap out of me. We never made it to the second movie.”
“Is that the one…?”
“Where he crashes through the aquarium tunnel,” Avery confirmed when Mario’s question trailed off.
“Are you kidding me?” Eric blurted.
“No,” Avery said.
“I’d rather go back and play with the demented doggies again,” Mario muttered.
Avery laughed uneasily as she gazed at the tunnel that was about half the length of a football field. Under normal circumstances, the distance to the elevator doors at the other end of the tunnel wouldn’t be so daunting, but she felt as if she were staring across miles of open space. Death lay within the serene and beautiful waters outside the glass.
“We should run as fast as we can,” Isla said.
“I agree,” Reid said.
“Count of three,” Eric suggested. “One… Two… Three.”
A gunshot couldn’t have gotten Avery to bolt any faster away from the hallway as she sprinted into the tunnel behind everyone else. Her sneakers slapped against the glass as her arms pumped and her lungs burned. The heavier breathing of her friends surrounded her as it bounced off the glass.
The green button beside the large, silver doors was a welcoming beacon drawing her onward. The metal elevator doors were only a hundred feet away. They were halfway there! She didn’t dare hope they would reach the doors without having a giant, man-eating shark coming after them, but maybe they could get close enough to escape without becoming chum.
The elevator was getting closer…
“Almost there!” Sandra cried.
The second she uttered the words, a massive shadow loomed over them. It blocked out the ocean beyond and threw the once bright tunnel into darkness. Avery’s heart skipped a beat as her step faltered on the glass. She didn’t have to look to confirm what monster belonged to that shadow. Even though they felt like rubber, she pushed her legs to move faster.
“Look out!” Talia screamed from behind her.
CHAPTER 29
Avery whirled as hundreds of razor-sharp teeth bore down on the glass overhead. Jagged chunks of flesh hung from those teeth as the fifty-foot shark picked up speed while it barreled toward the glass. The shark in Jaws paled in comparison to the size of this thing as it crashed into the glass without slowing.
The Maze (The Coven, Book 2) Page 15