Kingdom of the Wicked (Kingdom of the Wicked, #1)(43)

Steady breathing indicated the beast was now in a deep slumber, a gift from the goddess. I exhaled. Now I just had to find the amulet and sneak back out the way I’d come. The Viperidae faced the opposite direction, and its head was easily twice the size of our biggest oven. I didn’t have to see its fangs to know they’d skewer me with one bite.

I scanned the nest and almost whooped with victory when I spotted a familiar horn-shaped object. My sister’s amulet glinted on the ground next to the beast. As luck would have it, the cornicello was on my side of the tunnels. It seemed like it should be fairly easy to sneak over, grab it, and retreat without waking the demon. I looked around, cataloguing every exit I could make out in the dim light. Two more tunnels formed offshoots in a Y layout. Easy.

And it would have been, if it wasn’t for all the pebbles and debris littered on the ground. One small misstep and, regardless of the sleep spell, the Viperidae would be on me in an instant. I gave one last prayer to a goddess I hoped was listening, and took the first step into the tunnel.

I didn’t so much as breathe too deeply, fearful of making the slightest sound. Unnatural silence blanketed the chamber like freshly fallen snow. Once, when we were little, Nonna brought us to a cabin in northern Italy where we met one of her friends. I was too young to remember what the exact circumstances were, but I never forgot the smothering quiet of snow.

I was more than halfway to the amulet when I noticed the beast had stopped breathing evenly. I paused, foot midair, and waited for death. The trouble with sleep spells was, there was no way to prevent someone or something from waking normally.

When the Viperidae didn’t move, I decided to finish what I’d started. If it was lingering somewhere between sleeping and wakefulness, it wouldn’t remain that way forever. My attention split between it and the ground, careful to not make any noise. I didn’t so much as allow one pebble to skitter out of place.

Finally, after what felt like a thousand cursed years, I reached the amulet and slowly, painstakingly, bent to retrieve it. I kept my eyes on the demon, which turned out to be a terrible mistake. The instant my fingers clasped the cornicello, the chain swished across the ground.

The Viperidae struck.

Its tail whipped out, knocking me off my feet in one quick blow. I gripped Vittoria’s amulet with one hand, and a handful of dirt and pebbles in the other. I waited until the demon was almost on me before tossing the debris in its eyes. The Viperidae released a multilayered scream that sent chills racing down my spine.

Holy goddess above . . . I’d really pissed it off. The snake-like demon coiled in and around itself, screeching and thrashing. Chunks of stone fell from the walls in an avalanche of chaos. Dust clouds filled the air, choking me. One tunnel was now completely sealed off. I had to get out of there immediately, but couldn’t.

I huddled as far away from the demon as possible, trying to crawl along the wall. It was moving too quickly, and I couldn’t chance getting hit with its tail.

It wouldn’t be long before it worked the grit from its eyes. The Viperidae’s powerful body crashed into the tunnel on the right, and I didn’t waste my only opportunity for escape. I shot past it, heart hammering, praying it didn’t swing back around and clip me. I took my first step into the tunnel I’d used to get here when it happened.

A fang the size of a sword pierced the fleshy part on my lower back. The bite was lightning fast—over and done with before I could scream. I stopped moving, my whole body prickled and went ice cold. I knew enough of herbal folk medicine to know the signs of shock. Major trauma sometimes took a few seconds to catch up to nerve receptors in the brain. Just as I’d thought it, the pain hit me a beat later. Hot, searing, all-consuming.

I dropped to the ground and turned in time to see the Viperidae closing in for the kill. I rolled a second before it tore out my throat. The sudden movement made my wound split wider and throb. Blood splattered around me, and I did my best to not focus on the possibility that the demon had already struck a death blow. It came for me again, and this time, I let it get close enough to see my reflection in its slitted eyes. I shoved the screaming pain aside, heart pounding. I waited . . . waited . . . it lowered its head, ready to sink its fangs—

I struck hard and fast, shoving Vittoria’s amulet into one of its eyes. Warm liquid gushed over my hands, as the Viperidae shrieked one last time. I shoved harder, until I was almost certain I’d pierced its brain.

I didn’t wait to see if it was dead or badly injured—I turned and fled.

For a little while, anyway. The venom had other plans for me.





Twenty-One

Everything spun wildly—like the few times I’d mistakenly had too much wine with Claudia and Vittoria. I staggered back down the tunnel and collapsed under the grate I’d snuck in through. Escape was so close, yet impossibly far. I needed to gather my strength and drag myself up; and vowed to do just that . . .

. . . once my head stopped spinning and the nausea passed.

A soft thud landed near me, followed by a series of exquisitely foul curses. If I wasn’t convinced opening my mouth would bring on the vomit I was barely suppressing, I’d have laughed over the colorful litany. I couldn’t exactly remember his name at the moment, but I recalled he wasn’t normally prone to such outbursts. For some reason, the situation struck me as funny when it was anything but.

My head suddenly ached—the pain sharp and vicious. It felt like a thousand needles were pricking my brain simultaneously. I groaned, which only made it worse.