Midnight's Kiss (Elder Races #8)(53)

Julian’s broad hand came to rest on her back. He didn’t try to say anything or attempt to make things better, and she was glad for that. Sometimes things couldn’t be made better.

Instead, he gave her what she needed, which was time. Rubbing her back, he waited until she was finally able to straighten up again. With the back of one hand she wiped at her wet eyes.

“Are you okay?” he murmured.

She would not let the gentleness in his voice break her down again. Gritting her teeth, she nodded. Her voice was hoarse as she said, “I’m fine.”

“I count four other tunnel entrances that open into the cavern,” he said. “And we know one thing for sure – the way out isn’t going to be back the way we came.”

She glanced at him. The slanted beam from the flashlight distorted how everything looked, including his face. The crags and the hollows of his face were accentuated, and he looked tired and angry.

He met her gaze. “We have to go through. We can’t go around.”

“I know.” Bending, she snatched up the grocery bag, and when she straightened again, she stiffened her back. “Let’s go.”

He hesitated long enough that it brought her attention back to him. “What?”

With a quick shake of his head, he said, “Never mind, it will wait.”

But he had caught her attention now, and she cocked her head. “You can’t bring something up only to drop it again like that. Tell me quickly, and if we have to, we can discuss it in more depth later. What is it?”

At that, he shook his head and gave her a small not-quite smile. He told her, “No big discussion necessary. I just realized, there isn’t anybody else I would have wanted at my back down here, aside from you.”

Rough and outspoken as he was, his quiet statement hit her all the harder because of it. Despite the silent horror of what waited for them in the cavern, she felt her spirits lift, not a lot, but just enough.

She said softly, “I feel the same way. Julian, thank you so much for coming to get me. I’ll be grateful to you for the rest of my life. Now, let’s get the hell out of here.”

Inclining his head, he strode forward. She followed as close as she could on his heels without actually treading on him.

In order to see where to walk, he had to keep the flashlight trained on the floor. She tried not to look down, but after she stumbled twice, she was forced to watch where she put her feet as well. The images burned into her brain.

The cavern was so large, filled with tragedy and implacably silent. It was the hardest walk she had ever taken, and she felt sick and saddened to the bottom of her soul.

Julian said gently, Okay with you if we start with the left tunnel? If it doesn’t lead to the way out, we can work our way around the cavern clockwise.

For some reason he had asked it telepathically. Maybe he felt the weight of silence was what the dead deserved. If so, she couldn’t argue with that. Breathing through her mouth, she nodded then realized he couldn’t see her.

Yes, she said shortly.

He adjusted course, and she followed. After a moment, he held one hand behind him, fingers open in invitation.

“I told you I’m fine.” She spoke out loud, but if she had known how thin and strained her voice would sound, she wouldn’t have.

“Maybe I’m not,” he said very quietly. “I’ve seen horrible things before, and some were just as bad if not worse than this. But none of them makes this any less horrible.”

She grabbed his hand, and he squeezed hers so tightly she felt the blood pound in her fingers.

“It’s not right that they’ve been thrown aside like this,” she whispered. “They were people.”

“I’ll make sure each one gets identified so they can go home to their families.” Like her, he kept his voice low. “If they don’t have families, I’ll see they get proper burials.”

“Thank you.”

After what seemed like forever, they finally came close to the opening of the first tunnel. Julian came to a stop, which meant she did too, but she didn’t stop until she had walked right up to his back. Then she leaned against him, burying her face between his shoulder blades. She had no idea why they had stopped but trusted that Julian would let her know when they could move forward again.

“All right,” he said. “We’re moving on to the second tunnel now.”

She lifted her head. “Why?”

“There are a couple of bodies across the mouth of that entrance,” he told her. “They’re pretty decayed. It looks like the passageway isn’t used very often. We can come back to it if we have to.”

“That makes sense. Maybe we can be quicker if we check out the entrances to all the tunnels.” She tried to reclaim her hand, but his hold on her was like iron. “You can let go now. I’ll work from the right, and you can work from the left.”

He turned to face her, keeping his body close in front of hers. “As quickly as I want to get out of here, and I know you do too, I would rather we stay close. I don’t want to have to get all the way across the cavern to you if something happens.”

When she tilted her head back to look into his face, she found herself nose-to-nose with him. His proximity, along with the force of his personality, helped to push back the rest of the scene. Again, not much, but just enough.