Whereas sweet scents and soft lighting had no effect on me, the environment in front of me is truly cruel.
Because my mother is not in it.
She remains out of my reach.
And it’s because of Emil.
“And I warnedyouthat I would have my revenge,” I snarl softly.
He responds with a dark smile that belies his silvery-bright hair. “As you like.”
Halle has ventured farther inside the space than I have, her hounds staying close to her heels now.
“Well, this is certainly interesting,” the goddess announces.
She stops right beside a rosebush, where her stiletto heels sink into the grass, one of them impaling a rose that has dropped to the ground.
For some reason, she fixates on the keeper as she breaks into a broad smile. “Would you look at those apple trees? So delightful!”
As she speaks, the last of the sunlight fades, and the trunks of the trees within the orchard light up from their bases to the tips of their branches, glittering, sparkling light gleaming from within them. The brightness mutes the color of their fruit, leaving it looking as black as the roses instead of red like it appeared only moments before.
It’s a sharp contrast with the cold shadows beneath the trees that form the forest up ahead.
Beside me, Emil is as silent as stone, his expression hardening in the face of Halle’s exuberance.
“That orchard is very intriguing,” she persists, and, even though I’m not sure why she’s so focused on the apple trees, it’s clear to me that she’s poking hard at the keeper. “Wouldn’t you agree, keeper?”
“Emil,” he snaps back. “Remember what I am: your enemy.”
She doesn’t appear at all perturbed, her bright smile remaining plastered on her face. “Such a clever evasion of my point. Please do continue to hide your true feelings,Emil.”
Without missing a beat, she turns to me. “As you’ve probably guessed, this part of the Underworld adjusts itself to the needs of the person whose blood was taken at the door.”
I rub my left palm, remembering the sharp prick even if I can’t see a wound.
“I’m pleased to see, Veda, that you’ve given your pack and yourself everything you could possibly need,” Halle continues as she gestures to our surroundings. “A forest in which you can hunt. A cottage to accommodate various sleeping arrangements. Black roses to remember your mother by.” Her eyes glitter at me as she continues. “And an apple orchard to torment the keeper.”
I return her gaze without flinching, as if the apple orchard had been a deliberate choice on my part, but for the life of me, it’s the only thing thatisn’tthe same as my dreams.
“Well,” she continues, her bright smile never wavering. “I’ll leave you to rest for tonight. But I’ll be back in the morning. And then, if you’re ready, Veda, we can take a journey to the truth.” She glides toward the door but pauses beside Jonah. “I don’t suppose you’ve decided to tell me where my brother is?”
The fire jotunn scowls back at her.
“Very well.” She shrugs. “Maybe Veda will wrangle it out of you.”
James Vanguard’s whereabouts are the least of my concerns right now, although I haven’t forgotten my vow to bring him to account for his part in my father’s crimes.
Halle pauses when she reaches the outer door. “Oh. I should have said: to exit this place, all you have to do is walk through this main door and you’ll find yourself in the external tunnel once more. From there, you’re free to leave.”
She holds up a finger. “But please be aware: transportation magic does not work withinthisspace. You must step outside into the tunnel and, better yet, proceed to the mouth of the Underworld again.” She gestures to our surroundings with a firm nod. “I mention it just in case you were to try to translocate yourselves from here and you find it doesn’t work. I don’t want to be accused of trapping or tricking you.”
I acknowledge her with a nod. “Understood.”
“Good.” With that, she opens the door and sails on through it.
The hounds silently follow her out, but as they pass me by, one of them shifts into full humanoid form. He’s the one who was eyeing Strife.
The hellhound loses some of his height but is still a solid six feet tall. His skin becomes a reddish-brown color while his eyesare now brown with darker rings around his irises. Dark-brown hair sits in waves around his face and his jaw is shadowed with growth.
