“No. Everyone is terrified of her. She’s a hard ass, in the truest sense of the words, Lark. There is no room for softness in her. If you’re useful, you’re good in her eyes. If you aren’t, she has no room for you.” He draped an arm over his forehead.
“And what is your use for her?” I reached up and touched his fingers. I wanted him to look at me. His voice wasn’t giving me any indication as to how he was feeling.
Cactus learned to hide as well as I had as a child in the forest. “Cactus, what are you afraid of? Because if it was just a matter of the queen, you’d leave.”
He was silent for a good minute before he answered, his voice carefully neutral.
“Because of my connection to the earth, I can do more damage than most Salamanders. Within the fire are particles of rock and granite so my blows are a double hit if I’m defending our people against the firewyrms who lurk below us.” He finally turned to me. His green eyes held more than a measure of pain. “I’m not an Ender, Lark. Not like you. I’m just a tool used at her discretion. I’m the threat behind her words and that is why escaping her is going to be so hard.”
I reached out and smoothed the lines between his brows. There were no words I could say, nothing to make it better. But my heart ached at the thought of losing not only Ash, but Cactus too. No, I couldn’t let that happen.
I wished I knew exactly how I was going to stop both men from being lost to Fiametta.
CHAPTER 7
aying on Cactus’s bed, I closed my eyes and breathed in the green scents, letting them soothe my mind and body, the strength of them flowing through my bruised and battered arm and hand. Somewhere in that spot between wakefulness and sleep, I floated, recharging all I was. Cactus curled his body around me and I held onto him like I’d done more than once as a child. We had to wait on Peta anyway, so the guilt I felt at lying quietly and resting while Ash lay in a dungeon, eased.
As children, Cactus and I had clung to each other in the dark of the night as we shared stories of monsters creeping out of the Deep or the Pit, of winged beasts flying from the Eyrie to steal bad Terralings away. Now, those stories seemed more possible than ever and it was in that moment the image flickered through my mind of the massive doors leading to the throne room and the dragon carved into it. No wings, a sinuous body, and all the gemstones around it, the malice just the image gave off.
Firewyrms were the stuff of legend, even in the Rim, yet even as I thought of the creature, I dismissed it. There was no way firewyrms were here. Not a chance. Cactus had to be joking as he so often had when we were children.
The soft give of the bed under weight brought me around and I slowly opened my eyes. Peta’s green eyes stared into mine. “The Ender you’re looking for is nowhere to be found, Dirt Girl.” She pushed herself under my jaw, curling into the space between my chest and chin, her head resting in the crook of my neck. “Perhaps he is one of the Enders you killed.”
I reached up and touched her back, the calming energy on either side of me allowing me to think clearly. “No, he was part of the group that brought me and Ash in. I wouldn’t have seen his memories otherwise, so he has to be here somewhere.”
What would I do if I couldn’t find the traitor to hand to Fiametta to in turn buy Ash time? The only other person I could ask was Brand, but despite the fact he was Ash’s friend, I wasn’t sure how much he could do bound to Fiametta. Only one way to find out, and that would be to ask him who was with the posse to get us from the Rim.
Holding Peta to me, I sat up and then stood. “Cactus, I have to go.”
“I’m coming with you.” He scrubbed a hand through his hair making it stick up in a riotous mess. “I couldn’t help you much the last time you were here. The queen was watching me closely.”
“Why?” Peta asked before I could spit it out.
He gave us a lopsided grin. “I turned down her invitation to her bedroom.”
Peta made a sound that was a mix between a hiss and a snort that I thought might have been a gasp. Spluttering, she managed to spit out, “How are you still alive?”
Cactus shrugged, but his lips twitched. “I told her my heart was broken by someone from the Rim, and I’d sworn celibacy to the mother goddess.”
I lowered Peta to the floor where she glared at Cactus, her thoughts all but written on her face. She didn’t believe him.
My turn. “And she believed you?”
“I told her the princess I loved still held my heart and I could never be unfaithful to her, even if I could never be with her.” Cactus’s tone was light and teasing but in the depths of his eyes I saw the yearning. The truth behind his words. I was the one he wanted. I was the princess sworn to another.
I looked away. “Peta, why would Fiametta buy that?”
“I’m surprised she did,” Peta said. “But that doesn’t mean it can’t happen. The queen keeps things close to her chest and lets no one in. Not even her children.”
I walked out of the room and down the hall. “You can come, Cactus. But if for one instant Fiametta starts to pay attention to you—”
“I’ll back out. Don’t worry so much, Lark. This will be slick as slug spit.” He jogged to catch up to me, swatting me lightly on the ass with an open palm. I arched an eyebrow at him.
“Cactus.” Just his name, a simple warning. Peta was less subtle.
“Keep your hands to yourself, prick.”
The three of us stepped out of Cactus’s place and into the open cavern and just for a moment, disorientation flowed over me. Going from the green, cool, and flowering place that Cactus had created to the stark rock of the inner mountain I had to take a few breaths and get my bearings. The heat picked up with each step we took, like being inside a tiny box, we couldn’t escape the closed in air and for just a moment panic reared its head.
I wanted to run, to get to Brand as quick as possible and ask him who was with us when we’d Traveled; just to get this over with. But if Cactus was right and the queen had her spies watching everyone, listening to everything, I had to be careful.
Walking swiftly, I headed back to the bridge. I stepped onto the arched structure and bolted across. The heat from the lava flowed through the rock that made up the bridge despite how thick each piece of stone was.
Peta trotted across, her tail flicking in the air and Cactus sauntered, smiling at me the whole way. I shook my head and spun, stepping right into the chest of a well-endowed woman. Bouncing off her, I took a couple steps back. “I’m sorry.”
She was almost as tall as my six feet, which was unusual. Her hair was so dark a red, it was almost a purple tone, and her eyes were a pale gray. Other than her large chest, it was difficult to tell she was a woman. Her shoulders were incredibly broad and her hips narrow but between hips and shoulders she had a monstrous gut.
She arched an eyebrow at me. “Terraling. What are you doing wandering around?”
Peta strode between us, shifting into her full leopard form, her black spotted thick white coat rippling. “I’m watching over her, Fay. Leave the Dirt Girl to me.”
Fay let out a low laugh. “Oh, then she’ll be dead within the week. Well done, bad luck cat.” She patted Peta’s head and strolled away, still laughing. I took a step forward and touched Peta’s head.
“Don’t listen to them,” I said, knowing what it was to be the one your people looked down on.
Peta let out a low growl. “We are not friends, Dirt Girl. Not by a long shot. I do this because I must.” She shrunk back to her housecat form and stiff legged, stalked away from me.
Cactus was at my side a second later. “She’s . . .touchy. In all the four families, Peta has lost the most charges. They always die on her, and the mother goddess doesn’t seem inclined to stop handing her off to people.”
“Lovely. And now everyone will think I’m next on the list.”
“Why do you think Peta hasn’t told anyone she’s your familiar unless she has to?” Cactus arched an eyebrow at me and I realized he had a point.
As long as Peta kept quiet, no one would make the connection between us and when I died, it would be one less death on her.
Damn, that was a tough row to hoe.
“I hate to disappoint her, but I don’t plan on dying anytime soon,” I muttered as I walked after my familiar. My familiar. That had a nice ring to it, even if Peta hated me. Maybe I could get a new familiar once this was all over. One that could tolerate me and would be nice.
Peta waited quietly outside Smoke and Brand’s house. She sat and stared past me, her green eyes unblinking, and she said nothing. Fine by me.
I put a hand to the edge of the door and peered in. “Smoke?”
Not Smoke but their youngest boy, Tinder answered me. “Hi, Terraling. My mom isn’t here right now.” He grinned up me, two front teeth missing on the top of his jaw. I smiled back.
“Actually, I was wondering if you knew where your dad was?”
He bobbed his head several times and for just a moment I saw Cactus as he’d been as a child. Always eager to be a part of whatever was going on. “Yup. He’s down by the edge of the Pit. But I think that’s too hot for you. You’ll burn up.”
I forced myself to smile, because he was right. I had no protection from the heat and flames. “Thanks, I’ll be careful.”
“I could take you there. I was just swimming there with my brothers.” He slapped a hand over his mouth and I remembered Smoke told him specifically not to swim at the Pit. I shook my head. “It’s okay. I’ve got Cactus here to take me.”
Cactus gave the boy a wink. “Besides, you wouldn’t want your dad seeing you find your way to the Pit on your own when you aren’t supposed to even know where it is, right?”
Tinder nodded, his eyes solemn. “You’re right.” He spun and ran back into the house before I could say goodbye.
Beside me, Cactus chuckled. “They all find their way to the Pit before they’re supposed to.”
I glanced at Peta. “You coming?”
She flicked an ear at me, stretched and sauntered out in front of us. I lifted an eyebrow at Cactus. “You still want to come with me? I’m sure Peta can take me there with no problem.”
His green eyes sparkled. “You’re going to need me, Lark. I just know it. So yes, I’m coming with you.”
I wasn’t arguing with him. He had gained strength in his abilities in our years apart and now was the queen’s threat against whatever they were afraid of. Not a bad guy to have on my team while I attempted the impossible. We walked the length of the cavern, and at the far end, a cut in the rock opened. Stairs led downward, and the same light reflecting in tunnels that I’d seen in Cactus’s home and the main cavern were used to illuminate the darkness.
“How far down?” I put my foot on the first step, the rock warm under my bare feet.
“Long,” Peta said. “It will take at least half an hour to get to the bottom.”
Damn, that was a long ways down. But if I hurried, I was sure I could cut the time in half. Jogging down the stairs, I easily kept pace with Peta who was running ahead, the white tip of her tail twitching side to side as she leapt down each stair.
“Lark, slow down.” Cactus caught up to me and touched my arm. I glanced at him.
“What are you talking about?”
“You’re running as if you’re in a hurry,” he said, his own pace slowing, his hand dragging at me.
Frowning, I didn’t slow. “We are in a hurry. Ash’s life is on the line and I was just lying on my back in your room as if there was nothing in the world to—”
“Easy, easy. I know. But you had to heal and that was as good a place as any to let your body pull together while we waited for Peta. The thing is . . . if you look like you’re in a hurry, people are going to notice you more. You don’t want that, Lark. You don’t want to be noticed here.” He stared straight ahead, his thumbs hooked into his belt as he walked slowly.
Painstakingly slow. Peta turned her head and let out a sneeze. “He’s right.”
Damn it, I just wanted to get to Brand before the day was over. That was the other part of being in the Pit that weighed on me. How many hours had gone by? How would I know when I had only a day left? The lack of sun was fouling my ability to gauge time.
And I said as much to Cactus, but Peta answered.
“Everyone goes to sleep when night falls; that is how you know the day is over. And when you wake, the new day has started.” She slowed and I bent to pick her up, only touching her when she gave me a bob of her head.
Placing her on my shoulder, I kept walking, forcing my feet to go slow even as they itched to run. “That seems . . . odd.”
“It’s how the Pit has been run for as long as I can remember.” Peta wrapped her tail around my neck as she perched on my left shoulder like some sort of oversized bird that was currently purring. I chose not to point out she was obviously enjoying my company; the connection between us was growing in leaps and bounds.
In the back of my head I sensed her emotions and general thoughts. Nothing specific, but more of an overview of where she was in her feelings and mindset. Already I could tell she was secretly pleased I had listened to her, and while she was far from happy that I was her new charge, she didn’t really hate me.
I forced my thoughts back to the whole sleeping business. “So what makes everyone fall asleep? Or is there like a gong that sounds and everyone just goes to bed?”
Cactus shook his head. “No gong, a bell. First the bell chimes, then you get a warning that sleep is coming from a tingling in the spine that spreads through your body. Enough time to get to a bed and lie down.”
“And if you don’t?”
He answered, “You fall asleep wherever you are. Sometimes people get caught in the tunnels and sleep the night on the hard stone.”
The bottom of the stairs flattened out into a large chunk of quartz smoothed and polished to a high sheen under our feet. The rock protruded out into open space all the way around the edge of the cavern we were in. A platform if I ever saw one. Cactus pointed past me toward the flickering sparks of fire that rose up from below. “This is the Pit. You sure you want to go in?”
“No choice,” I said. And there wasn’t, not if I wanted to save Ash.
CHAPTER 8
he platform was warm under my feet as I stepped onto it, my toes curling against the stone. Heat waves rolled up in rippling shadows that filled the air. I couldn’t see the lava, but I heard it burping and plopping as it boiled far below. Swallowing hard, I forced myself to step farther onto the platform. The smooth rock ran a good twenty feet deep all the way around the edge of the Pit and it reminded me all too strongly of the Deep and their mini coliseum. Was this a platform to watch people fight to the death within the lava? Mother goddess I hoped not.
At various and seemingly random points along the edge of the platform, stairs curled downward to the main floor where a few Salamanders walked. One was swimming in the lava. My brain still struggled to comprehend how that was possible.
I took another step and a tiny set of claws dug into my right shoulder.
“Lark, do not walk to the edge. Go to your belly. If you get a waft of fumes, you could pass out and fall in,” Peta said.
Worm shit, I hadn’t thought about that. I nodded and dropped to my knees, slid down to my belly, and then scooted forward. Cactus did the same, inching up beside me. I peered over the edge of the rock, and Peta scooted across my spine to sit on the back of my shoulders. But that was a distant sensory to what I saw.
Lava indeed. The Pit was one monstrous magma pool that stretched several hundred feet across with tendrils reaching out; rivers that spread through the mountain. Orange and reds, yellows and golds so intense that my eyes hurt looking at the pool. Waves of heat wafted off the surface, curling into the air, bringing the smell of burnt things and sulfur.
“Hypnotizing.” I scooted a little farther forward to get a better look and Peta’s claws tipped into me again.
“No swimming,” she said.
I shook my head, but Cactus still grabbed my hand, his fingers lacing tightly with mine.
“Just in case.” He winked at me, a grin tugging at his lips.
Leaning over the edge, I gripped his hand. Something was pulling me, urging me to get closer. The soft whisper of words barely spoken, teased my ears. Someone was close below us and something about the voices made me think it would be worth listening in on.
I looked at Cactus and pointed at my feet. I barely breathed the words, “Hold my ankles.”
“Lark don’t—”
But I didn’t give him a choice. I wriggled over the edge, forcing him to grab me.
He shimmied back and grabbed my ankles even as he grumbled, helping me slide over the edge. Peta said nothing, but clung to my back, digging her claws into my leather vest like a burr tangled in my hair.
Even those few inches closer to the lava, the increased heat made sweat pop out over my body in a vain attempt to cool my temperature. The heat dried the sweat as fast as it slid down my sides.
Gripping the granite cliff, I dug my fingers into the rock, imagining it softening enough to get a better hold. The rock gave under my hands and I stared at the granite, swallowing my surprise. I quickly shaped the rock into perfect handholds. Peta grunted, her voice in my ear, a bare whisper. “We need to discuss this later. You shouldn’t be able to mold rock like that.”
As interesting as that little tidbit was, I had more pressing things on my mind.
Using my handholds and trusting Cactus, I slid a few more inches until I could see underneath the platform toward the whispering I was sure I heard.
The shadowed overhang made it hard to make out what was going on.
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