“Thelake?It’s a mile away in the other direction.”
“That noise…” Merimoth, the other stormer, said. “Were theydrillingup into it?”
Leaving the musing to them, Vorik strode through the water to the chamber door, where Lesva and the Kingdom woman both lay barely conscious.
With blood streaming from Lesva’s wounds, she tried to push herself up, but she struggled to support her weight. The lady issued a confused groan as the water washed her face, but she must have received a blow to the head or something to keep her from regaining full consciousness. There was a moon-mark on her hand, and Vorik realized she had to be Lady Abrya, the woman he’d originally been assigned to kidnap.
“Help me carry them,” Vorik told the men, using his firm command voice, hoping they would forget that they’d witnessed Lesva calling him a traitor and him sliding his sword into her.
They glanced at Syla, then hurried past her to join him.
Vorik lifted the lady over his shoulder, leaving Lesva for them. He’d never met the lady but regretted that she’d beendragged down here so Lesva could force her way into the chamber. He was starting to hate this war, hate all of this.
“I can walk,” Fel grumbled as Syla led him up the tunnel, but he had to lean heavily on her. He must have tangled with Lesva before Vorik arrived.
Ignoring him, Syla said, “Thank you,” to Vorik as he joined her with Abrya slung over his shoulder. Tems and Merimoth came behind, carrying Lesva between them.
“You’re welcome, my lady queen.” For her sake, Vorik tried to make his tone light, though his heart was heavy. “It’s always a pleasure to be in your presence, but do tell me. Is it my imagination, or has this water already risen in the forty seconds since its arrival?”
“It’s been longer than that, but it may be rising, yes. I wonder if Lord Oyenar’s men succeeded in sealing off the lower levels. That banging…” She peered into the darkness ahead and walked more quickly.
Vorik didn’t usually fear much but caught himself eager to match her pace if not start sprinting. If the tunnel filled completely, they would drown. Was that a possibility?
“You planned this?” he asked.
Syla hesitated. “We thought if we flooded the mine, the shielder wouldn’t be accessible to your people.”
“Toanypeople, I’d think.”
“We don’t need it to be accessible for it to continue working.”
“Better if itisn’t,” Fel said. “Will that wagon operate in the water?”
“I’m not sure.” Syla glanced back.
Tems and Merimoth weren’t injured and shared the burden of carrying Lesva, so they were keeping up easily, and Vorik could tote Lady Abrya without trouble. Syla and Fel were setting the pace, slower than they probably wished, but there was a hitch in the bodyguard’s step as he leaned heavily on her. Vorikwalked beside Syla in case they needed help. As they traveled farther up the tunnel, the water grew deeper, rising over their knees, and striding against it became more challenging.
When the wagon Vorik had passed earlier came into view, the mine opening up beyond it, Syla gaped. Though the wheeled contraption had to be heavy, it wobbled slightly, then shifted a few inches, bumping against a support.
“Is that thingfloating?” Fel asked.
“I don’t think we’re driving it anywhere,” Syla said glumly. “We’ll have to walk.”
“If the water gets much deeper, we’ll have toswim.”
“Maybe that’ll be easier on your injuries,” Syla said. “At the temple, we have—had—a pool for water therapy. It’s gentler on the joints than land-based modalities.”
Fel looked balefully at her. Vorik managed a smile, always glad that Syla didn’t fall apart during calamities.
The thought that she might have intentionallycausedthis calamity alarmed him, though maybe it shouldn’t have. She would do almost anything to protect her people. Except betray him. For whatever reason, she’d never done that. He’d meant the words about love he’d spoken when facing off against Lesva, and he’d been touched when she’d called the same to him. He would help Syla get her relative out of the mine and stand by her against the rest of his people if need be. Jhiton had said Vorik had to choose, and he chose Syla.
Syla slipped in the water and lost her footing, ending up clinging to Fel instead of assisting him. Taller and heavier, he remained on his feet and steady. Vorik shifted Abrya so he could reach out and help Syla back to her feet. With the water above his thighs now, he worried none of them would be able to keep their footing much longer. The distance to the cage lift felt farther and farther. At least, now that they were in the open part of the mine with the high ceilings and great pyramid pillars thatsupported them, Vorik felt they had time, that the cavernous space wouldn’t flood that quickly.
But when he glanced at one of those pillars, water streaming past, an alarming thought popped into his mind.
“Salt dissolves,” he blurted. “The water will erode it away, won’t it?”
“Eventually, yes,” Syla said without surprise. The thought must have already occurred to her.
