This waslifeand death. Or death and life. One or the other—but life was on the table. And I remembered Thalassa’s words:
The way out is more straightforward than you’d think.
Straightforward.
My gaze locked forward, past Dorian’s shoulder, into the distance. It couldn’t be. Not this simple. Not this easy.
I could see Theo doubled over before me, tears coming out of his eyes as he held his belly.You’d drown in a puddle trying to figure out how deep it goes, Eury.
Dorian kept moving, step by careful step. He hadn’t seen it yet. I followed, lighter than I’d ever moved.
Then—stillness.
Beside me, something shifted. My breath caught.
A pair of liquid black eyes stared from the hedge.
I didn’t blink. Neither did it.
Slowly, as though materializing from the wall itself, the creature emerged—long-limbed, black-furred, claws as long as my hands. Slender. Predatory. Taller than me. Camouflaged even as it moved.
A word formed in my mind:
Thornstalker.
It seemed to hear my thought. Its mouth opened, two rows of sharp teeth parting?—
A blade sang. Dorian’s sword came down in a perfect arc and took the head clean off. Before it could hit the ground, he caught it. His fingers threaded through the fur as he turned to me, his eyes reflecting my question:Just the one?
It wasn’t.
The headless body thudded to the earth. A heartbeat later, another pair of eyes blinked open past his shoulder.
Dorian followed my gaze, dropped the head, and spun. The second thornstalker leapt. His blade caught the underside of its belly midair. The creature slid halfway down the steel, claws slashing, mouth snapping. Its shriek echoed like a scream dropped into a well.
He rammed the blade—and the creature—into the dirt. It died thrashing, arterial blood spraying the hedge.
Then came the noise.
The hedge came alive—scratching, growling, claws in the dirt, dozens, hundreds of thornstalkers waking from camouflage. This was more than a nest. More than a hive. This was their home.
If we stayed and fought, we’d die here.
“Dorian,” I said, my words low and careful. “This is the maze’s center. The end—I think it’s down there.” I pointed forward, into the endless corridor. “Life and death.Life and death.”
He yanked his sword free, eyes darting everywhere. “What?”
“‘The way out is more straightforward than you’d think.’” I grabbed his arm. “It was literal.Straight forward.”
He stared at me like I’d gone mad—wide-eyed, unblinking. But I felt it, a certainty blooming in my chest. The same feeling I had when Theo’s riddles snapped into place.
“If we fight, we die,” I said. “If we run, we might live.”
A long beat passed. I gripped his arm harder.
“I’m not ready to dieyet. Are you?”
Something shifted in him. A decision settled behind his eyes.
