Mothman had stuck close to me the entire time in the cave, his clawed fingers drawing lines down my arms and his fingers brushing lightly across my shoulders and back. It was as if he couldn’t help himself. As if he were enamored in some way with me.
In the cabin, I’d thought it was because he wasn’t familiar with humans. That hadn’t been correct. It wasme, not humans; so now when those strange eyes of his settled on my body and when he reached out yet again to touch me compulsively, my cheeks heated and I felt strange.
Mothman massaged my shoulders and Caspian watched him do it without comment. Brandon stood there, looking over the monstrous men on either side of me, apprehensive tension in his eyes.
I wrapped my arms around Caspian and squeezed him tightly. He relaxed under my touch. This situation was causing me to have anxiety. I had no idea what was going on in Caspian’s head anymore, if I ever had. And now he was throwing out mixed signals, making the situation even more unclear.
There were clearly some unresolved issues we all had to deal with but now wasn’t really the time. Also, I had no idea what would happen after we left the cave. I wasn’t sure if Mothman would just fly off, leaving me. The idea almost made me hyperventilate.
I let out a breath and hugged Caspian tighter, feeling his hard body in my arms. If I had to be the peacekeeper between these two then I would. I didn’t want them to fight again. The idea of them potentially hurting each other made me feel almost sick. Plus, we had other things to deal with right now. Climbers to rescue and then a curse to figure out. Perhaps my mom or aunt would know what to do.
“I love you, Caspian,” I murmured, looking into his oversized eyes. Caspian’s hand pushed into my hair, causing Mothman’s hat to tilt to the side. He cradled my head, bending over and pressing his mouth to mine. Sharp teeth scraped my bottom lip as he sighed against me in contentment.
Mothman stuck close, his jacket brushing my arm. As Caspian began to quietly moan against my mouth, opening it up and pressing his tongue in languidly, I felt Mothman’s taloned fingers slide across my back, shoulder to shoulder. My breathing picked up and my blood pumped faster throughout my body.
I was so overwhelmed it took me a moment to question the situation. If Caspian was being possessive, why keep kissing me when he knew the other man was touching me? It was almost like he wanted Mothman close. I couldn’t understand it.
My head swam in confusion as I felt them both around me. Caspian’s loving, languid kiss and Mothman’s consistent, sweeping touches of affection. Something was happening between all three of us. Something that started off very bumpy but was starting to become more comfortable.
My breath hitched when Caspian’s fingers began inching into my shorts. Mothman noticed and encouraged him, pulling the fabric from my body to give him more room.
The sound of Brandon sighing in annoyance was the only thing that brought me out of it. I pulled away, mumbling an embarrassed apology that everyone ignored.
3
We were stopped in front of two paths andThomas—if that was really his name—couldn’t remember which way he’d taken.
“I’m sorry. I think I’m dehydrated. I’m confused,” he called. Caspian and Brandon leaned into the entrances, trying to determine which way the voice came. Despite walking a few feet down each tunnel, the climber’s voice seemed to come from both.
“Maybe they connect back?” Brandon suggested.
“Maybe,” Caspian said warily. I wasn’t really paying attention. I was staring behind us. The movement was still following us. I kept seeing it, a shadowed shape jerking away when I looked too closely. Now I peered at the darkness behind us, willing myself to see what was there. And therewassomething there. I just knew it.
Something was following us. There was someone else in this cave. My eyes bore into the darkness, the lantern’s dim light flickered on the rough edges of the rock wall. The tunnel was smaller now—cramped. It was growing thinner, squeezing us together.
Sometimes I looked down the tunnel and it almost seemed to spin, corkscrewing in a way that made no sense with gravity. As we kept going, it felt like we were spiraling downwards, going in endlessly.
“Ava?” Caspian asked, I heard him move closer, stepping up to my side.
I didn’t look away from the darkness. I could almost sense the shape inside it, almost trace the lines of it if I stared hard enough. I imagined a person standing there, staring at us bathed in light while they stood hidden entirely—standing there watching us.
Caspian’s hand settled on my shoulder—large, warm, and comforting.
“There’s nothing there,” he said softly and I realized he thought I was imagining things. My hands formed fists of frustration.
“I’m not imagining things,” I said.
“I didn’t say that,” Caspian started.
“You didn’t have to,” I whispered under my breath. His hand moved, sweeping from my shoulder up to my nape, his fingers stretching to hold my neck firmly.
“Are you okay?” He asked and I let my fists relax. He was worried. I shouldn’t be annoyed with him but I was so frustrated and tired. I didn’t feel well and a curse was inside me. A haunted house splinter that could be killing me. I blew out a breath and tried to calm my thoughts.
“I really think there’s someone here with us.” I looked up into his eyes. Big black pools stared at me, pupils too big to be human. Still, he was a handsome man, perhaps even more so in this state. He looked alluringly alien, like a predator watching me closely, ready to pounce.
He turned and looked where I’d been staring. My eyes trailed down, looking at his blue skin, free from tattoos in this state. His limbs were long and his muscles were viciously carved from relentless swimming.
“I haven’t seen anything,” Caspian said. “I haven’t felt anything either. I can sense movement. Not as well as in water, but the air still ripples slightly in response to movement.”
