“It can fucking try,” Bina said, her eyes flashing.
“Vasuki can kill with a look,” Thanil said. “You will not go into that cavern, Bina.”
She glared at him. “Excuse me?”
“No one is coming inside with me.” I sighed. “I have to do this alone. I’ll be fine. Yudh and Dhoona are going to train me.”
“Nah,” Blue said. “You ain’t going in alone. I’m coming with ya. I’m your anchor. I’m a part of ya. That snake can’t touch me.”
I looked down at him, warmth blooming in my chest. “You’re right. You are a part of me. But you’re also my anchor for a reason, remember…”
His dark eyes flashed. “Feck this!”
He would have to stay behind in case something happened to me so they could bring me back, not that it would matter if my mortal shell was completely destroyed, which was probably what they were hoping for when they set the huge snake on me in the labyrinth. And now, once again, they were sending me to face a serpent, one which they claimedwouldn’tharm me. Either they were lying, or the dangers in the cavern were lethal enough to destroy my body.
The thought of navigating the inside of the mountain made my stomach hurt.
Blue scampered up my torso, balancing on my collarbones to grip my cheeks. “Don’t ya even think it.” His dark eyes bored into mine. “I might not be comin’ with ya in the flesh, but I’ll be with ya in spirit. I promise ya.”
My eyes misted, and I blinked to quell the tears. “I know.”
“And we’re coming on the journey with you,” Bina said. “Even if we can’t come into the mountain.” She speared Thanil with another glare, but to give him credit, he didn’t flinch.
Dharma and Joe echoed her sentiment, and their drohi agreed.
It looked like I had an entourage.
“Now this iswhat I call a room,” Blue said, bouncing up and down on my bed.
“I know, right? And the view is amazing.” I headed for the balcony, pushing open the glass doors and stepping out. Blue joined me, scrambling up onto the railing and balancing easily to look out over the gardens.
“And there’s the nest,” he said. “Dunno why I can’t jus’ sleep ’ere with you.”
I looked down at him. “I don’t know either. They never really explained why. Something about anchors needing to recharge.”
Blue frowned. “I recharge here with you…” he said softly. “I feel it here…” He lightly touched his chest, then shook his head. “Déjà vu.”
“What’s it like inside the nest?”
“It’s…warm, and there are these symbols that glow and…we sleep. We just sleep.”
“I’ll ask Chandra about it. Find out if there’s some way you can sleep here with me.”
“You will?” He stood straighter.
“Of course. I want you close if possible. Now we have a few hours till sunset. What do you want to do?”
“Explore!” Blue said. “We’re in a fucking palace, chickadee! Let’s scope it out!”
His enthusiasm was infectious. “Okay, let’s go.” He scampered across the bed and leapt onto me, clambering up to sit on my shoulder. “Let’s check out our new home.”
Our new home…Yes, the palace would be just that to us, and it was time we familiarized ourselves with it.
We discoveredthat we didn’t have to go outside to get into the main castle. A narrow corridor connected the wing to the main structure, and after that, Blue’s excellent sense of direction was the only reason we didn’t get lost. How he knew which corridor to take, and which staircase to climb, was beyond me.
“I’m a rat, chickadee. We’re built for exploration.” He tapped his temple.
We passed through hallways and arches, from room to room, each more luxurious and sumptuous than the next. Thick velvet drapes hung from tall, arched windows, and stunningly intricate tapestries clung to walls. The floors were either polished hardwood or patterned marbles buffed to a shine.
