The air was thick with the pungent smell of damp earth and wet rocks. Down, down, down they went, until they finally reached a large circular chamber at the bottom. An arched doorway was carved into the far wall.
“Look, there’s a tunnel.” Callie shone her flashlight into a long, stone passageway.
“Do you feel that?” Lewis asked.
“Feel what?”
Lewis held his hand out in front of him. “Air. There’s a breeze coming through here.”
Callie lifted her hand and felt it brush over her skin. She didn’t need Lewis to explain what it meant; she remembered it from science class. If there was air coming through the tunnel, it meant there was something generating it at the other end.
“Wow,” Lewis said, stepping toward the mouth of the tunnel. “Look at these carvings, Callie. This is incredible!”
As they stepped into the tunnel, torches on the walls lit themselves, the orange flames softly illuminating the ancient structure before them.
Callie and Lewis walked slowly through the tunnel, taking their time, marveling at the intricate carvings which decorated the walls.
Several scenes showed magical beasts-winged horses and lions, huge herds of unicorns prancing through thick forests, fire-breathing dragons, frightening serpents, and even stranger creatures which Callie and Lewis had never seen before. There were scenes of clashing armies, royal hunts and processions, kings and queens adorned in all their finery, with jeweled crowns upon their heads and scepters in their hands, sitting upon magnificent thrones.
They were deep in the tunnel now, so deep they couldn’t see either end. It was a bit creepy. But what was even more creepy was the next panel of carvings. Callie saw a woman, her face obscured by a veil but wearing a crown. Obviously a queen.
But instead of subjects before her, there were birds. Ravens. Hundreds of them. One in particular was perched upon the queen’s shoulder, and looked like it was whispering in her ear. One of her arms was extended, and her hand was stretched out over the ravens before her, who all seemed to be waiting for her command. In the other hand, the queen triumphantly held aloft a small round globe. The letter ‘T’ adorned the top of it.
Lewis stepped closer. “What a weird globe. Whoever they got to carve it certainly didn’t know geography very well. I don’t recognize any of these continents. Hey Callie, isn’t that the lady from your dream? The Raven Queen or whoever?” Lewis asked, pointing.
A cold shiver passed through Callie’s heart. “Yes, I think it is. But how could I have dreamt about this? I’ve never seen any of it before.”
“That’s a good point,” Lewis agreed. He stopped for a moment, getting that special look he always got when he had a particularly brilliant thought. “Maybe you didn’t dream it after all. Maybe it’s precognition.”
Callie frowned. “What’s that?”
“In layman’s terms, precognition means knowing something is going to happen before it actually does happen.”
“If that’s true…” Callie didn’t want to think about what that might mean. She had dreamt she was a princess, but she had also dreamt she’d lost an important battle, people had died, and the Raven Queen and her army were trying to kill her.
“I think I like the dream scenario better,” she said, turning her attention back to the carvings. Then she saw something that made her heart and stomach do a flip flop at the same time. “Lewis, look at this.”
They both peered at the next panel in wonder. It was a detailed carving of a young woman who looked like a princess. She wore a long, flowing gown and an extravagantly jeweled tiara. In one hand she held a sword. The other hand rested on the back of an enormous throne covered in strange writing. Around her neck she wore the pink diamond necklace and key that was now around Callie’s neck.
“Callie,” Lewis said slowly. “She looks like—”
“Me.” Callie stepped forward and touched the carving. Something traveled through her fingertips, like a series of tingly, electric shocks.
“Me, me, me.” A voice said from a few feet behind them. “Is that all you ever think about?”
Callie and Lewis turned in horror to see what terrible creature had snuck up behind them in the depths of the secret tunnel. But they already knew who owned that voice.
It belonged to Wanda Morris.
http://www.daisypiper.com/
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Table of Contents
Prologue
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-one
Chapter Twenty-two
Chapter Twenty-three
Chapter Twenty-four
Chapter Twenty-five
Chapter Twenty-six
Chapter Twenty-seven
THE COLOR OF HEAVEN—Excerpt
THE REBEL—Excerpt
About the Author
Books by Julianne MacLean
THE LOOK OF LOVE—Excerpt by Bella Andre
PRINCESS CALLIE—Excerpt by Daisy Piper
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