Garden of Serpents (The Demon Queen Trials #3)(48)

About halfway down the row of cells, I went still. Through a tiny crack in the stone wall, a pinprick of light shone near the ceiling. It looked familiar somehow, the exact image of it seared on my heart. I’d seen that little crack before.

Under it, the warm light of my fire illuminated elaborate carvings in the dark stone walls.

My breath went still when I saw what he’d marked in the stone—three queens with spiked heads like crowns. He’d carved them three times, the markings violent and desperate, like the little Orion was trying to bring her back to life through the rock.

After the three queens, some of the carvings became more sophisticated. He’d rendered the Asmodean clocktower, frozen in time at six, the way it looked now. He’d carved a snake that seemed to writhe back and forth in the guttering light of my fire. Odd, given his terror of snakes.

There was the word Vindicta—revenge—carved with what looked like thorns jutting from the letters’ curls. And next to that, the carvings reminded me of the old Puritan gravestones—the skulls and crossbones, the words Memento Mori—Fugit Hora.

Remember death—time flies. I was sure that down here, time didn’t exactly fly, especially for an immortal. But that phrase wasn’t about Orion, was it? Even as he was trapped in here, he was reminding himself that the mortals who’d crushed the Lilu would be dying in Osborne. A comfort to him, maybe.

And above it all, he’d carved stars—the shape of Orion’s constellation. Beyond the tiny pinprick, he had no real light in here, so the stone stars were all he had.

I didn’t want to stay in here a moment longer. But as I turned to leave, the real horror of this place hit me. His cell stood directly across from the execution room, where the noose still hung from the ceiling.

Right before she was killed…

Orion had been locked in here with a perfect view of his mother’s death. And that was where he’d stayed, trapped for centuries right across from the gallows. No wonder he felt like his soul had died. They’d wanted to crush his spirit completely.

As I took another step, a vision slammed into my mind—the same one I’d seen when Orion and I had first agreed to a blood oath, and we’d pressed our bleeding palms together.

In my mind’s eye, I saw a crystal-clear vision: stone walls, cracked to expose a bit of the stars. Then a shadow swinging over the stone—the bloodied, swaying feet of a hanged body. Wood creaked above, and a pain pierced my heart to the core.

The vision cleared again, and I pressed my hand to the stone, steadying myself as I caught my breath. My heart pounded against my ribs.

Holy hell, how had he managed to stay sane at all in here?

I rushed out of the corridor, sick to my stomach. Desperate to be free, I hurried out of the dungeon, back into the tunnel.

And there, I discovered I wasn’t alone.

One of the shadow figures cleared his throat, and I summoned a burst of fire to get a better look.

The flame in my hand illuminated the smiling face of Amon, his hands raised to placate me.

“Sorry,” he said. “The king wished me to ensure your safety.” If I had to guess, Amon was just about one of the only people Orion trusted now.

“I’m fine, Amon, thanks.” Physically, I was. Emotionally? Not really. But Amon didn’t need to know that. “I was just heading back.”

But what I really wanted to do was find Orion and help him forget everything that had happened down here.

My throat constricted.

So much for my determination to keep him at arm’s length.





26





ROWAN





By about three a.m., I gave up on lying in bed, because every time I rolled over and closed my eyes, I saw that noose swinging. And those three carved queens…

Maybe it was because I was a Lilu, or maybe it was the nightmarish visions I’d seen in the dungeon, but trying to sleep tonight was like trying to catch fog in my hands.

Orion was just on the other side of the door, fast asleep, and I couldn’t keep my mind off him.

From my window, I stared out at the garden, watching the wind rustle the apple blossoms. My eyes locked on the bench where Orion had given me the wooden queen—the birthday present that never made it to the birthday. I plucked the figurine off the desk and ran my fingertips over it. My heart gave a sharp flutter.

Tomorrow, I’d be meeting with my team of teachers, and I needed them to help me stay focused on the trial. I had nothing to lose by having the crown on my head, the decisions in my hands.

But I glanced at the door, feeling claustrophobic, like part of me was still trapped in the cell. Restless, I opened the window, then climbed back into bed, curling up under the sheets and breathing the scent of the sea.

With the sultry night wind floating in my room, I managed to sleep, dreaming of the stars.





*



I woke to the room on fire. Flames surrounded me, engulfing everything.

Oh, fuck, I was going to burn alive…

From the confused haze of sleep, fear had a tight grip on my heart. It took me several terrified moments to remember that fire could no longer burn me, and by the time I’d recalled that very important fact, my brain was still lagging behind.

So when a cloaked man jumped from the fire onto my bed, I reacted more slowly than I should have.