“My people don’t live in this area. But frostwargs do.” Wolflike beasts whose saliva had the power to douse a dragon’s fire from the inside. What they’d do to a human, Ididn’t know.
“I’ve battled frostwargs only once,” he admitted, “and I barely escaped with my life.”
When another couple of minutes passed without incident, we relaxed, but only slightly. “Just how often have you ventured into my land?” I demanded.
“Many,” he replied, a little smug.
I needed to learn his tricks so I could finally put a stop to them. Rather than admit that, I challenged him. “Prove you’ve got the skill to do this. Lead the expedition.”
“You mean teach you how I’ve done what I’ve done,” he said, almost smiling. “Fine. Let’s go.” He headed off in the correct direction.
Grumbling under my breath, I followed. So, yeah, he knew the layout of my land as well as my warehouse.
“Rather than invading my homeland,” I muttered, “you should have spent your time living your life. Falling in love. Enjoying your years.”
“Why would I risk falling in love, getting married, and having a son you will one day burn alive?” Bitterness dripped from his tone.
I both flinched and bowed up. “Let me remind you, I have attempted to disable, destroy and hide the Chains of O. Once, I even dropped them inside a volcano after eruption. Always the shackles return to your family, perfectly formed, and always your family dons them. You included.” I huffed at him. “Seems I’m not the only one too weak to resist their allure.”
He worked his jaw. Well, well. Olyssa, finally on the scoreboard.
We reached the opening of the cavern, warmth pulsing from the enclosure, the air thick with sulfur and otherworldly power. Though we both bubbled over with anger,we peered inside as a team, ready to spring into action. Cloying darkness cloakedeverything.
Taron dropped his pack and dug out two sets of earplugs, then handed a set to me. “If I recall correctly, the slightest noise can mesmerize anyone who dares enter. Better to hear nothing.”
And he knew this too. Whatdidn’the know about my world? “According to our legends, any sound heard here does more than mesmerize. It warps minds.” As a child, my mother told me stories of those who entered and never exited. “More than that, allegedly the warping traps a victim inside themselves, reliving an illusion of their greatest desire, so that they wish only to stay in the cave, uncaring as some dark force sucks the life from their bodies.”
He looked inside the cave, then at me. The cave. Me. “Shall I spearhead this mission too?”
“Why don’t we work together?” I grumbled. As much as I hated to admit it, he’d more than proven himself capable.
Stillness came over him, his gaze locked on me. He hadn’t expected my concession? Or was it the word “together” that made him hesitate?
Warmth spread over my cheeks as his stare heated. My breathing quickened, and I fought the urge to saunter into his personal space. “Quick. Tell me something terrible about yourself.”
He thought for a moment, never pulling his gaze from me. “I’ve been working to destroy the traveling stones in Ashmorra. Every door, really. That way, you can never enter my world again.”
I rolled my eyes. “As if I hadn’t already guessed that.” I mean, had the thought specifically occurredto me? Nein. But of course he worked to destroy the stones. “To get them all, you’ll have to grow wings.”
“Not if I can shoot a rocket into the sky.”
Oh. Ooooh. That was bad. Very bad. And smart. Diabolical. Yet my awareness of him only intensified. “Give me something worse.”
A muscle jumped in his jaw. “I acquired an ancient rift cutter and with it, I can create a small opening into your realm, no matter where I am. It only lasts for an hour before I’m pulled out, but I’ve used it to take…” His words trailed.
“Take what?” I swallowed. “Who?”
“Three berserkers. Names Lorik supplied. Their deliveries were payment for certain weapons, but also…” He dragged in a deep breath, then met my gaze. Steady. Unafraid. Unrepentant. “But also practice. Preparation to face off with you.”
Ding, ding, ding. We had a winner. I knew the three men he referenced. Those who had vanished without a trace. I’d deal with the rift-cutter bombshell in a moment. “They were good men,” I grated.
“They were berserkers and dragons. Enemies to all humankind,” he grated back.
At one time, ja. “We haven’t invaded your land since the death of my father. Haven’t been a danger to humankind for centuries.”
“That’s not true. You were a danger to the men in my family every day of their lives,” he stated flatly.
I deflated. He wasn’t wrong. But he wasn’t right either. Maybe we should just address the other shocker, then end the conversation. “Where did Lorik get the cutters?” Something I hadn’t known about. And did the shifter king have another pair? I whipped out my phone to text Adelaide a command.
