Page 48 of On a Barbarian World

“I need to go farther inside,” she said.

“I forbid you to go in there.” Kavon’s voice had gone hard, unyielding.

“Kavon—”

“In there is death. It is why the mountain is forbidden, and its existence hidden from the people.”

“How badly do you want the sword?” She turned to face the cave, throwing her arms up, and took a step forward. “We need to take a risk⁠—”

The ground under her foot disintegrated. Off balance, she pitched forward with a scream.

Darkness yawned beneath her.

There was no rocky ground, just a huge hole.

Strong arms grabbed her, as she dangled over the ledge. She kicked, trying to find purchase on solid ground. She had a sense of a vast space below her, and heard the clicking echo of small rocks skittering down into the abyss.

In the next heartbeat, she was yanked up and into Kavon’s arms. She wrapped her arms around him and held on. The dual beat of his hearts was the most comforting sound she’d heard.

“Thank you. Stars⁠—”

“Fool, I warned you.”

“I know, I know. The ground just disappeared under my feet. So go ahead and bask in the moment, warrior. You were right.”

His arms tightened around her, his face pressing into her hair. “I would prefer you alive than to be right.”

She stilled against him, then rubbed her face against his chest. Stars help her, if her warrior started to be sweet to her.

Colm edged past them, peering down. “It’s a long drop.” He bent down on one knee, and lifted a good-sized rock with both hands. He tossed it into the hole.

Aurina spun in Kavon’s arms, waiting to hear it hit.

Nothing.

She swallowed. Right. So a really, really long way down. She pulled back a step, and dusted her clothes off. Then she looked up at her warrior. “We need to go down there.”

His face went a little scary. “Impossible.”

Colm shifted. “This cave could drop all the way through the core of the mountain. We can’t climb down that far.”

“Damn.” Aurina ran a hand through her hair and stared at the dark, yawning mouth.

Suddenly, a distant, deep roar reverberated up from the depths of the cave.

In an instant, the warriors all drew their swords.

Her gut tightened.

“Another good reason not to go down there,” Darroch muttered wryly.

She shook her head. “So what’s next? We give up?” All this had started as a way to get her e-beacon back, but the more she got to know Kavon, the more she realized he’d give it back to her in time. He was honorable to the core. He wouldn’t keep her trapped here against her will.

But she knew how much the sword meant to him. That he was doing this in memory of his father. Now she wanted to find it for another reason. For Kavon.

“We can’t give up.” She spun to face Kavon. “There is something here, I’m sure of it.”

Kavon’s hands flexed on his sword. “We need to mount up and leave. We cannot be on the mountain when darkness falls.”