She’d taken the ominous warning to heart. She’d been on her guard since the royals dropped them off, and doubly so after passing under the arch.
The air around the once-expansive structure hummed, and the kiss of magic grew stronger with every step. Snow dusted piles of rocks that had probably been an integral part of the home at one time. Now, they were a collection of broken walls, memories of times that had long since passed, and fragments of a once beautiful building.
The ruins were vast, and some parts looked like they were in better shape than the rest. It was mostly destroyed, though.
Something that probably used to be a door rose from the broken foundation. The only reason it was distinguishable as such now was the frame supporting a semi-collapsed pile of stones on the right. Vivienne would be hard-pressed to call it a wall, but then again, most of this place was in the same condition.
Three other piles of stones marked the structural outlines of what looked to have been a foyer. Crumbling stones that might have been stairs rose halfway up one pile of shale before falling into nothing.
In a show of intelligence and rare self-preservation, the prince slipped behind Vivienne as she led him through the door into the ruin. The moment her feet landed on the other side, the air shimmered, then darkened.
Vivienne’s heart pounded, and dread crawled over her. She held out her free hand. “Wait.”
Something was wrong. She could feel it in her bones.
The prince did as she asked, bumping into her extended arm as a fog made of shadows descended upon them. The blanket of night was so thick that even with her Isvana-blessed sight, Vivienne could barely see through it.
“Damn,” she breathed.
Behind her, the prince cursed.
Vivienne hadn’t expected the ruin’s namesake shadows to be real. This would make things exceptionally more difficult… not that they’d been easy before.
“Can you see anything?” she asked, tightening her grip on her sword.
“Nothing at all. It’s like a wall of blackness.”
Vivienne had expected that answer, but it didn’t make things any better.
“Stay here,” she ordered. “Let me explore.”
Maybe the darkness was temporary? She passed her sword to her left hand and placed the right on the wall, tensing at the cold stone. It was smooth and worn by time, but she couldn’t feel any traces of magic other than the hum in the air. She moved slowly through the darkness, cataloging as much as possible.
The foyer was large, which she’d seen from the outside, but it seemed even bigger now that she couldn’t see.
Several minutes passed as she explored the space, confirming her worst fears.
The blanket of darkness was all-consuming, and it covered the entire ruin.
“Viv, look up.” Marius’s concerned voice came from behind her, pulling her out of her thoughts. “The sun.”
She drew her hand away from the wall and tipped her head towards the sky. A curse slipped from her lips. The strange, nearly opaque fog covered the ruins, but the sky above was still visible. Darkness was slowly fading, the final warning before death came in the form of sunlight.
“I see it.” Urgency pulsed through her veins. “We need to find shelter.”
There was no roof in the foyer, nothing to protect her from the sun’s deadly rays. She quickly decided that going right would be the best option. Of all the walls she’d explored, this one seemed the sturdiest.
She returned to the prince and relayed her plan.
“Hold onto my shoulder,” she directed him.
He did as she asked, warmth spreading from his fingers through her. She fought to ignore both the weight of his hand and the way that her entire body yearned to lean into him.
She was here to protect him, nothing more. It didn’t matter thatshe’d enjoyed their conversation while walking to the ruin, nor did it matter that her entire body reacted every time they touched.
She had to keep him safe. King Sebastian hadn’t done her the disservice of making her vow to protect the prince again, but he’d explained in no uncertain terms before he and the queen left that should the prince return with even a scratch, she would pay for that with her flesh and blood.
The prince had saved her from the king’s wrath once, but nothing would protect her if she failed again.
