Stress bounced off him in stronger waves at each wrong turn.
The ghosts might let them move forward, but only one could show them how to find Tristan’s sister and the Alterants.
Evalle called out, “Tristan, wait. I have an idea.”
That he stopped immediately confirmed he had no clue where he’d been going. He strode back to her, breathing hard. “Make it fast.”
Who did he think he was to order her around after she’d just gotten him out of ghost jail? But she couldn’t afford to waste time straightening him out. Storm had given her ninety minutes and they were down to the last thirty of that.
She held her patience in a tight fist. “What made the soldier talk to you the first time?”
Tristan huffed a breath that clearly said he didn’t have time for twenty questions, but he also squinted, thinking. “I’d only sensed that the area was benign when I originally left the Alterants there—I hadn’t met any spirits. When I couldn’t find any sign of the three Alterants, I returned to the chamber and walked around, talking to myself.”
“Really?” she asked, hiding a smirk.
He shrugged sheepishly. “Sometimes I think better out loud. That’s when I actually met the spirits inhabiting that space. An old guy showed up first playing checkers, then a little while later the soldier appeared.”
“What happened then?”
“The soldier asked me why I was unhappy. I explained that I’d lost three people down here. That’s when he told me about Kizira and her protectors holding the Alterants.” Tristan’s shoulders drooped in defeat. “I know I was on the right path to find that chamber until I pissed off the soldier and he disappeared.”
She’d noticed something else about the maze while they’d been walking this time. “The tunnels have changed behind us and around us. I’m thinking the spirits are just showing us this is their territory. They removed the wall so we could move forward again as long as we weren’t a threat. I think they’re now changing the maze constantly to stop us from going forward or backward.”
“You’re probably right, but how does that help?”
“Let’s give talking to them another shot.”
“I don’t have time to stand around talking to ghosts.”
“I don’t either, but we can either lose another minute or two running through endless turns of this maze, or we can take a stab at finding your soldier again.”
Time whispered by while he made up his mind. “What have you got in mind?”
“My empathic skills are picking up everything from anger to frustration to the urge to maim and kill from you.”
“All that and no crystal ball? Want to guess my weight next?”
“I don’t want to hurt you, but that’s still on the table for getting me into all this.”
“You got yourself into this by sucking up to the Beladors.” He hooked his thumb in the waistband of his jeans and shifted his weight to one leg.
“You’re an asshole. You know that?” Evalle expected an airslap for the curse, but none came. Sadly, that just confirmed no Belador could reach her here. “I’m trying to help you save your sister, and you’re not helping.”
That silenced him. He drew a deep breath and ran his hand through his hair, scratching his head. “You’re right.”
“Why are you fighting me at every step?”
“Because I don’t want you here.”
“Tough.”
He shook his head in wonder. “If I’d had your deal with the Beladors, I wouldn’t be in this situation, but you have this screwed-up sense of honor instead of hardened survival skills, or you’d have turned me in as soon as you got back to Atlanta.”
Did that mean he felt guilty? Had he been screwed over so many times in his life that he fought everyone like a wounded dog? “I meant what I said about giving all of us a chance. You ready to do this or not?”
He squared his jaw and nodded.
“You taught me about healing from what you learned while in the jungle. I’ve spent my time in the city dealing with Nightstalkers. They might be dead, but the spirit still has emotions and feelings. The ghosts down here responded to me a few minutes ago, but they’re not responding to you and I think it’s because you’re generating aggressive energy.”
