A Kingdom of Ruin (Deliciously Dark Fairytales Book 3)(77)

I paused as we reached the squat doorway that led toward what Finley called the Bridge of Doom. I still didn’t know how we were going to get over the thing. I’d had a hard enough time getting across on the way in, and that was with the guards practically dragging me.

Breath held and heart in throat, we jogged through the doorway. I immediately looked right, in case no one else had. There was a little hidey-hole back there that someone could crouch in. I knew this because I had contemplated trying to break free and running back and hiding there, hoping they’d just forget about me. It was in a moment of cowardice. I’d had a lot of those on this trip. It was a little embarrassing how many, actually.

Nothing jumped out, though. Nothing moved or even flickered. My wolf didn’t smell anything, either.

Continuing on, wondering if I would have a heart attack before we hit the surface, I finished what I was saying.

“We’ve compared notes and found they matched. We know the way. And this is the only way we can make it out.”

I didn’t know if any of that comforted him, but at least it shut him up. We couldn’t afford dissenters right now. What we were doing was perilous enough.

Our footfalls were too loud for my taste as we made our way, but nothing jumped out at us. Nothing stabbed into us from behind. It was the calm before Doom.

We went around another turn, down a corridor I didn’t actually remember because I’d been too freaked out by the bridge crossing, and the orange glow finally reached through the doorway up ahead. It seemed to throb, beckoning us closer. Laughing at us, maybe.

“I hated coming across this,” Leala said quietly, tucking her whip into the back of her pants. She was readying for an internal battle.

She hadn’t needed as much violence to get across as I had, but she’d also been dragged a bit. Shoved a bit. Carried a bit.

Fucking bridge.

Tension rose as we shoved in and pushed to the side, leaving room for Finley at the front, standing beside the rope bridge that moved at the slightest misstep and tore at your eyes and sanity.

I squeezed Leala’s hand. “If I don’t go down in history as the best fucking butler who ever lived, going above and beyond the job, I’m going to slap a bitch.”

She squeezed it back. “You can slap me. Multiple times. Anywhere you want.”

“You always have to ruin things.”

She laughed, and it made me realize how much I’d needed that sound.

In a moment, all humor would be sucked out of us, along with the will to live.





TWENTY-TWO





FINLEY





Urgency rode me as I faced off with the bridge. This would be the hardest part of our escape, but if we made it across, we’d be home safe. I felt it.

“Calia, can you help with this?” I asked, standing beside the suspension bridge secured with rope. The lava below moved and shifted. Dizzying heat rose from the toxic stew.

“Only for my sister and myself. The magic is too immense. It’s built into the foundation.”

“Can you carry someone across who might be kicking and screaming?”

She eyed me dubiously. Probably not, then.

“Fine. Head across if you’d like.”

She nodded and grabbed her sister’s hand, stepping onto the bridge.

Let the animals cross the bridge, my dragon thought, desperate to break free and take over. She hovered right near the surface, giving me more strength and determination. Animals don’t think about throwing themselves to their deaths. That’s a human thing. It’s a brain malfunction. Animals rely on their survival instinct. They’ll know not to veer to the sides.

It was worth a shot, I supposed. Though I would absolutely blame it on her in the event it went tits up.

“My dragon thinks the animals will have a better shot of making the crossing,” I announced to the group at large, gripping the end of the rope to keep from shouting for everyone to just run across so we could get this moving. I still worried Dolion might send for me. We needed to be long gone before that happened.

“What about those of us who can’t change?” someone asked from the back.

“Or those of us who aren’t shifters?” The male faerie’s eyes were tight with worry.

“I can carry people across,” Hannon said, Jedrek still unconscious (or playing dead) across his shoulder. “This bridge doesn’t affect me.”

Micah turned to look at him with a hard stare.

“What are you?” Lucille asked, narrowing her eyes.

Hannon shrugged. “Maybe I’m a demon, I don’t know, but I can run people back and forth.”

“Big stone balls on that guy,” Vemar murmured with a grin. “I like that. Could be a demon, doesn’t give a shit.”

“I completely missed that he wasn’t affected the first time we crossed it,” Hadriel muttered.

“He’s not a demon,” I said, exasperated though curious as to what sort of animal didn’t succumb to the Bridge of Doom.

Tamara looked skyward. “There should be enough room to…sorta fly-hop over. My dragon is confident she can handle this.”

“Mine too,” said Micah, immediately echoed by the other dragons who were capable of shifting.

Weston gave a soft yelp and moved closer to the bridge.