Mal stroked her face, gently wiping away her tears. “That’s it,” he said, encouragingly. “We need to get out of here. Hold on.”
She wrapped her arms around his neck, holding tightly.
With a tight twist and flip of his stomach, they obscured to the outside of the cave. Maeve bent forward and vomited as he supported her.
The storm had died down.
He settled her against the stone, cradling her head back against the rock. He pulled from her coat pocket two small vials of potions they brewed for their journey.
“I don’t want-” she sniffled with a shiver.
But he was already pulling out the glass stoppers. He placed his free hand under her chin. “Drink,” he said, placing the rim of the first vial at her lips.
She obeyed.
And Mal poured the contents into her mouth. She grimaced and her jaw tensed against his hand. The sedative hit her quickly. Her face fell into his hands. He quickly assisted her with the second vial for the pain, but Maeve’s eyes were already fluttering closed as she swallowed the smooth liquid.
He pulled her to his lap and brushed her hair out of her face, cradling her head against his shoulder. Her body was still cold and wet. He placed his hand on her chest, drying her clothes and hair instantly.
Warmth was another issue. Creating heat had been one of his only struggles in Charms Class. Fire was nearly impossible, at least one strong enough to help her body get warm.
She shook against him.
He held her close.
“Maeve,” he hummed. “Give me warmth and I’ll sustain it.”
She groaned. She was barely conscious.
“Maeve,” he said again.
“Take it.” Her voice was hoarse and quiet.
She sighed, and he felt it a moment later: the walls of her Magic slipped open for him completely. Her magic lay there for the taking. Completely vulnerable. Unprotected. Alive. Deadly.
And massive.
She hadn’t harnessed a fraction of her power, he knew at once. She merely had a toe dipped in her pool of Magic.
He closed his eyes and willed her fire. At once they were toasty warm. Mal leaned back against the cave wall. The walls around her Magic weaved up the open seam, closing him out.
He looked down at her. Her mouth hung slightly open as her chest rose and fell in an even rhythm.
“You have no idea do you,” he whispered. “No idea what lies waiting inside of you.”
His hand traced along her jawline.
“I will show you.”
Chapter 41
Their journey into the second cave was not as easy. Maeve’s ribs were severely bruised from the Grindylow Water- Demon attack. The bright side was that the second cave was not flooded at all. They illuminated their path and began the journey deep into the mountain side. Maeve’s lux charm was enough to light their way. The second cave system was tighter, with a low ceiling. Mal ducked many times under the low stones.
Within the hour, they found signs that Alian Sinclair had used this cave to store some of his treasures. There were numerous wooden chests shoved in smaller caves, all of which were empty.
“I wonder if they were filled with gold or rubies,” said Maeve. “And someone, or something, ransacked the cave.”
“Let’s hope they had no attraction to a broken obsidian stone,” said Mal, as they continued deeper into the cave.
