A low laugh follows me out onto the ledge. Crouching, Kato steps through after me. “Good point, although they might shrivel up and fall off anyway if I ever hear another rhyme.”
CHAPTER 20
KATO NOT ONLY LOOKS LIKEADONIS, BUT HE HAS THEvoice of a God. He puts the beast to sleep within minutes, filling its tunnel lair with the melodious vibrations of the golden lyre and the haunting, sliding tones of a southern lullaby.
Half mesmerized myself, I gather my blades, pull up the slack in Ariadne’s Thread, and then find the torch, relighting it. Neither of us wants to carry the lyre, so we leave it at the entrance to the sleeping monster’s den. When the torch eventually dies, we stop to eat and drink by the dim light of our cloaks, although neither of us has much of an appetite. Before we move on, Kato ties a new knot around my wrist, and we cut off the excess twine.
“I know what you’re thinking,” he says when we pause again some hours later.
My heart does something unruly in my chest. I’m thinking about Griffin. Loyal, selfless, determined, domineering, overprotective Griffin—a man of action, consigned to waiting. He’s probably aged a decade in a week.
I swallow hard. “What then?” My voice is almost steady.
Kato turns his back to me and then relieves himself against the tunnel wall, probably melting a line down the ice. “That it’s a good thing we’re not eating much because pissing is one thing, but there’s no way you want to share a latrine with me for anything else.”
Expecting anything but that, I burst out laughing. “Gah! You’re such a man.”
Kato turns back around, grinning. “Last time I checked, I had the right parts.”
And the last time I checked, my feet were dragging, and I was missing Griffin so much I was close to tears.
I shove Kato’s fleece-covered shoulder, still smiling. “You go first. Your cloak is brighter.”
We walk, and walk, andwalk. Time moves slowly in cold, dark monotony, broken only by Kato telling me stories, mostly about Griffin, and by my sharing whatever thoughts come into my head. When we stop, we do so huddled together against the chill, taking turns sleeping, although Kato doesn’t get his fair share of rest, and I seem to need more than I ever have before.
Not having any clear sense of the passing of the days, it’s a shock to see the light from the first cavern, not only because it’s so bright to our unaccustomed eyes, but because it means we’re less than a full day’s walk from the exit.
My heart starts pounding so hard it steals my breath. “We’re close.”
Squinting into the light, Kato scans the gallery for Atalanta and her bow. Tension and wariness roll off his big frame. “The archer got me to her bed in about twenty minutes.”
I point to the tunnel we just exited. “She told me to gothatway. So I did.”
“And you have the navigational skills of a four-year-old.”
“We’re inside a mountain! It’s pitch-black! And a labyrinth!”
“True,” Kato concedes.
“You didn’t freeze?” I ask.
“Atalanta had Fire Magic. Kept me warm.”
I’ll bet.I drop another armful of thread onto the frosty ground, cut off the excess, and then hold out my wrist for Kato to retie the knot. With the added light, he can see that my skin has been rubbed raw. Frowning, he reaches for my other wrist. When he’s done tying the knot, I unbuckle my leather armor and then strap it to the bag he’s carrying. I have plans for later today, and I don’t want the extra layer between Griffin and me when I see him again.
I start walking, eager to leave the labyrinth at last. “Let’s go before the archer shows up and starts shooting at us. I doubt she’d hit you. Me, I’m not so sure.”
Kato growls from somewhere deep in his throat. “If she comes anywhere near you, I’ll take one of her arrows and stick it through her eye.”
Well, I guess that’s settled, then.
We walk faster and don’t stop again. The closer we get, the longer the journey seems to take. Anticipation keeps me in an anxious, breathless state. The next time the tunnel brightens, my pulse roars, seeming to pound Griffin’s name through my veins.
“Come on!” I cut the knot around my wrist and then sprint down the tunnel, sliding and bumping into the icy walls at every turn. I don’t even feel the impacts, or maybe I just don’t care. “Griffin!” I shout.
After a terrifying moment of silence, Griffin’s deep bellow answers me back. “Cat!”
He’s there!Relief nearly makes me stumble. His voice is still far away. Always too far.
