Page 149 of In Between Death and the Devil

The bridge shook violently, nearly knocking me off my feet, but I managed to stay standing. A tinkling sound to my right set my teeth on edge as the windows cracked, bulging inward. Opening my arms, I grabbed Bea and spun, letting her momentum pull us forward as I light-stepped us off the bridge, landing not far from Fen.

A deafening crack rent the air, and we were thrown forward several steps as the bridge shattered into pieces behind us.

CHAPTER 39

All the breath left my lungs, and it felt like every bone in my body shattered as the pieces of the bridge seemed to hover in place for a brief moment before plummeting into the swirling black below.

“No.” Death’s scream was filled with an echo of the pain that ripped through me.

I saw Fen stagger with a grunt, grabbing his chest as I doubled over.

My eyes widened as sparkling darkness rushed to fill the space where the bridge had been.

With a weak wave of his hand, Fen formed a wall of shadows in the gaping opening to keep the void out. It bulged slightly as it settled into place.

My vision whited out as our Death Chord pulled taut, stretching tight enough I thought it would snap. I felt like I was being torn in two as the In Between groaned, the two castles tilting dangerously in opposite directions now that they were no longer connected by the bridge. I couldn’t sense my body. I was everywhere and nowhere at the same time.

Everything stilled, a moment of quiet before a lightning strike. The pressure was so immense I thought it was the end, that the realm would shatter just like the bridge and we would be no more. Part of me prayed for it, because then this interminable torment would end.

And then everything settled. The pressure faded, and I landed back in my body with a throbbing ache. I could feel the absence of the bridge in the In Between, a give and constant shifting as the realm rearranged itself to hang on our Death Chord instead. The bridge had served as a fulcrum, holding them together. Now the center had shifted and it felt wrong, off kilter, as if everything now slanted in one direction, but we were still here.

“Fen.” I gasped as his knees buckled. Daphne rushed to support him. His knuckles were white where he gripped her hand while he bent over, panting.

Bea stirred next to me, pushing herself into a sitting position.

“Are you alright?” Marcus asked, his voice near my ear.

“I’ve been better,” I croaked, trying to push up off the floor. To get to Fen. Marcus moved to help me, but I closed my eyes and moaned as the floor seemed to tilt and roil underneath me.

“Easy.” Marcus’s hands were gentle on my back as I tried not to vomit. “Tell me five things you can feel.”

“Is the floor moving?” I swallowed, but managed to get the words out.

“No. And I don’t mean what you feel inside. I mean external physical sensations.”

Gritting my teeth, I curled my fingers into the stone tile to ground myself. “The floor is smooth.”

“Good, what else?” Marcus stroked my back as I named things I could feel, then see, hear, smell, and taste.

I heard Daphne murmuring the same thing to Fen a few steps away.

My nausea receded until I was able to sit back on my heels. I felt raw and exhausted, but the sensations from earlier had faded enough that I could function again.

Fen leaned against the wall, Daphne at his elbow. He looked as tired as I felt, but his eyes roved over me, looking for injuries.

Marcus offered me a hand and hauled me to my feet. I stumbled directly into Fen’s arms.

“I’m okay.” I spoke into his chest as his hands stroked my back, my arms, as if reassuring himself that I was still here. “Are you⁠—”

“I’m fine.” He wasn’t. His voice was strained and our bond was an aching mess of emotions, but I let it go with a nod.

We stood like that for a few breaths, basking in the solidity of each other, before Fen let me go and started giving orders. Daphne and Marcus headed off down the corridor to gather people to conduct checks on the castle and the souls in the Dungeon.

I took Bea up to the dining room in Fen’s quarters. With a scowl, I conjured a stream of water and sent it into the grate to douse the fire. At this point, I didn’t care if Death figured out we knew about her spies. We had bigger problems to deal with.

Collapsing into a chair next to Bea, I turned my glare on her. “What in Death’s name possessed you to run across the bridge like that?”

“They knew I was working for the Devil.” She held her head up, but I saw her chin wobble. “They came to my room right after I got his message and took my ring. Confined me there. When everything started shaking, I saw a chance to escape and I took it.”