I sat on the fountain’s edge, dipping my hand into the cold water and letting it rush through my fingers. If we didn’t find anything, I would be forced to marry the king tomorrow. My determination had dwindled more with each day unearthing nothing—no sign or hidden door.
No way out.
Shade pulled my hand from the water, cupping it in the warmth of his. “Do not give up, my Solis.”
That name again, the one he hadn’t used since the first time, the day after Terym’s proposal.What did it mean?
I opened my mouth, ready to ask that very question, and a breeze brushed over us. What caught my attention was the fact it hadn’t come from the sole entrance to this cove, but rather a section of the vine-covered wall.
Or at least, what I had assumed was a wall.
I rose and walked toward it, staring intently. The leaves fluttered, and the vines swayed in a gentle rhythm.
“Adelia?” Shade asked, voice filled with confusion.
“I think there’s a gap in the wall here.”
He followed my gaze, and when I pushed against the thick foliage, it gave way slightly. I repeated the movement farther along the wall and met resistance, stone underneath.
I rolled back and forth on my feet, meeting Shade’s gaze. This could be it, the secret entrance, our escape. “There’s definitely a gap in the stone.”
His eyes reflected the same anticipation building in my chest. We pulled against the tough vines, making a gap big enough to peak through.
“There’s definitely something on the other side,” I said when I caught sight of the dimness beyond the thick brush. We pulled again, leaves and long vines showering us from the top of the archway. Shade’s smoke joined in, the thin tendrils stronger than I thought possible as they tugged the foliage enough to make an opening we could fit past. We forced our way through, the vines falling back into place behind us.
We stood inside a stone pergola, and unlike the one in Ferveem Forest, it was entirely overgrown. The weeds poking through stone were worse than around the fountain, and vines draped the space like a blanket, dirt smeared along the stone and hiding it from view. In the center sat a small bench, only large enough to seat one. It faced an alcove built into the wall, a carving in a slab of vertical stone depicting a king and his queen, most of the details worn away with age.
“This has to be it,” I breathed, taking it all in.
“I agree,” Shade said, stalking forward and brushing away the dirt and debris covering the bench, searching for the trigger.
I inched closer to the alcove and the carving inside. The king gazed down at the woman at his side, and even in its aged state, the devotion on his face was breathtaking. This king had cared for his queen enough to ensure she had an escape from the castle if they were invaded.
I pulled at the vines covering the stone, clearing enough to see the queen holding a hand aloft, a bird resting against her palm. It was different to the rest of the stone, its edges more refined.
The vision was so similar to the window in my room that flashbacks assaulted me, my chest constricted, an attack threatening. I counted, as my father had taught me, forcing my mind to focus on the present.
One. Two. Three.
“I can’t find anything,” Shade said, dragging me from the fog of my impending spiral. I stared at the bird again, digging my nails into my palm to ground me further.
“Here,” I murmured, my heart pumping adrenaline through my veins as I reached out to the small carving.
Shade hovered behind me, his warm breath dusting over my neck building the anticipation even more. I pressed against the small bird, and with enough force, it gave way. There was a muffled click from behind the stone, then it shifted back.
“We found it.” Tears pricked my eyes and relief flooded my body like a torrent of cool rain. “We actually found it.”
I turned to Shade, and he hauled me into his arms, smothering me in his warm embrace. “You found it, Adelia. It was all you.”
I beamed up at him through watery eyes. We could escape. I wouldn’t have to marry the king. Eleanor would be safe.
“We should check the tunnel to make sure its passable, then come back tonight with Eleanor,” he said, and I nodded, wiping away the tears spilling onto my cheeks.
Together, we pushed against the stone, and the slab swung open. The area beyond was dark, but the doorway allowed enough light to filter through to see it was indeed a tunnel.
“How will we see where we’re going?” I asked, standing just beyond where the light reached, everything past it utterly black.
“There should be something here. The queen would have needed to see if she was to escape.” Shade shuffled along thewall, then made a small sound of victory. Sparks flashed and a flame ignited, casting shadows along the narrow path.
