Enchanting Wilder (36 page)

Kai bends on one knee, his eyes squinting shut in pain, the blood seeping the ground.

“We’re getting close,” Kai says, his voice quivering. “Get ready.”

Linking our hands together, McKenna and I stand our ground, watching as the earth below our feet opens up. It begins to split, the screeching of hundred-year-old roots breaking.

“Come on!” Kai pushes himself off of his knee, massaging his arm from his elbow to his wrist.

Finally, the ground opens up, revealing a staircase leading down into the earth.

Kai smiles and falls to a heap on the ground. We rush to him, our knees hitting the dirt as we surround him.

Eyes determined, McKenna grabs Candy’s arms. “We have to help him.”

Kai convulses, his body reacting to the loss of blood.

“Healing spell,” McKenna orders. “Now.”

“A vulorilous tus san,” they chant, their eyes closed. Their hands dig into each other’s arms, engulfing Kai in flashes of white light. It swirls around him, moving in and out of his body. He thrashes against the spell.

Then, what feels like only a moment later, the white light dies and Kai blinks awake.

“You okay?” McKenna asks, a little out of breath. She releases Candy’s hands and steps back.

Kai gets to his feet and brushes off his pants. “Yeah…I think so. Thanks, girls.”

Candy winks. “Don’t mention it.” She smiles. “Actually, please remember this as we’re beating demon ass.”

Kai laughs. “You got it.”

McKenna moves to Kai, engulfing him in a hug, he oomph’s at the impact. “I’m glad you’re okay. You did it.” She pulls away. “We can get in.”

Looking over her shoulder, bewildered, Kai swallows and then walks around McKenna.

I squeeze McKenna’s hand as she walks by me and she flashes her radiant smile. It’s the one I know is her proud smile. The one she wears the least, but is the most beautiful.

Taking a deep breath, we walk down the stairs. They’re made completely of earth. All rocks, dirt and dead grass. The hallways are thin, allowing only one of us at a time. Kai heads in first, followed by Wood, then Candy and McKenna, and me holding up the rear. The moment each of us descend on a step, the stairway closes, keeping us hostage.

“Was that supposed to happen?” McKenna asks, a little panic in her voice.

Kai shushes her. “Yes.”

She turns back to me to roll her eyes and I allow myself to grin.

The farther we make our way into the entrance, the darker it becomes. Soon, we’re feeling our way down, hoping we don’t trip.

“Illuminet,” Candy and McKenna say together, and the hallway lights up with dim, hardly noticeable light, though it helps us tremendously in the pitch black darkness.

Kai makes it to the last step, and turns to us, edginess and tension rolling off of him. We halt to a stop.

“This was far too easy. They have to know we’ve made our way inside by now. There isn’t a thing that happens down here Maker doesn’t know about.”

McKenna turns around, her lip in her teeth. She pulls on it and leans against the dirt wall. “Maybe Maker wants us here?”

Kai shakes his head. “I don’t know, but something feels off.”

A shiver breaks out on my back. “I agree. Something isn’t right.”

Producing my weapon, the holy knife, I nod to Kai. “If you see demons, dissipate and get the hell out of here. We’ll find you.”

Kai squares his shoulders and nods.

“Let’s keep going,” I command.

Slowly, step-by-step, we continue. Each time my foot hits the soggy pavement, I feel my heart thump more shakily in my chest. Warning me, but I force the caution away and keep pushing on.

It’s hot down here, the air thick. My lungs strain to take in the heavy air.

Eventually, we come to a fork in the hallway.

“Which way do we go?” Candy whispers.

“Left,” Kai and McKenna say in unison.

My eyebrows downcast and Wood’s jaw tightens.

“Okay.” Candy points.

Heading to the left, our feet shuffle against the now dry dirt, each of us careful. We’re aided by gas lanterns that line the walls, making it much easier to see.

Kai and McKenna stop in front of two red doors at the end of the long corridor.

“This is it,” McKenna says, a tremble in her voice. “This doesn’t feel right. Where are the demons? Where are the spells Sally told us we’d need?”

Wood quirks his mouth. “Maybe the demons aren’t here?”

“Like they’re on vacation, Wood?” I deadpan.

“No.” His eyes narrow, pulling out his gun. “They could be on assignment and the Maker didn’t think anyone could get in.”

I huff and push the end of my knife with my finger, causing it to grow in size.

Placing a hand on the door, Kai jiggles the handle and it immediately opens. He pushes the door inward, cautious as to what’s inside.

“You can enter, Kai,” someone says from inside the room.

Kai straightens up, his eyes bulging. He brings his hands behind him and stands at attention.

“What are you waiting for?” The voice drones, “Come in already. We’ve been waiting for you.”

My stomach drops, but I know I have to stay strong for the group. Candy and McKenna clasp hands, looking at each other one time. With determination, they nod, walking through the door.

Wood turns to me, his eyebrows creased in worry, but I give him a curt signal, letting him know I’ve got his back. He drops his gun to his side, still holding onto it and makes his way into the room.

Disengaging my knife, I place it in my jacket pocket.

Willing my feet to move, I cross the threshold into the colossal room. So unlike the hallway outside, the walls are covered in shiny and pristine rich stone. Granite, it looks like. The floors are the same material, though a different shade. It’s speckled with gold and black colors, while the walls are white and cold. A contrast so unlike the other, yet they flow together with little effort.

Two guards stand just inside the door, dressed in all black. The man to my right, has dark skin and blue eyes, he looks downright lethal. Watching me closely, he follows my every move. His lips curl over his teeth in a warning growl. That’s when I see the werewolf underneath the demon-slash-human suit. Menacing, yet, he stays in his place.

“Gerald, keep calm. They aren’t here to fight,” the voice promises, though I don’t know how it came up with that conclusion. I’d kick anyone’s ass to protect my group. Fighting is very high up on my list of priorities.

“Where is that voice coming from?” Wood asks under his breath, turning to me just slightly as he follows McKenna and Candy farther inside the room.

I shake my head, the goose bumps on my arms rising to attention.

There’s a long, twelve-person table on the far side of the room with demons talking around it. They stare and snarl at us as we pass them, their red eyes blazing in the low light.

More Thayans.

My knee-jerk reaction is to shove my blade so far into their spines they won’t feel their tattered and disgusting souls leaving their bodies, but I don’t. The Declan from hundreds of years ago wouldn’t have thought twice about taking out a demon. Hell, Declan before McKenna would have reveled in it. Now, I know all it’ll do is make McKenna question if I’d do that to her, and I couldn’t even wrap my mind around causing her harm.

Even if she did give in to the evilness inside…I couldn’t.

I grit my teeth and keep going.

Kai leads to the left, farther into the room where someone sits on a throne-like chair. Though, I’m not close enough to see who it is.

Who sits in thrones anymore? God doesn’t even do that nowadays.

I shake my head and stare at the curtain in front of the elaborate chair is shielding the person behind it. The silhouette of long legs and a tiny body moves behind it, shifting in the seat.

Is it a woman?

Kai stops in front of the sheer drape, the rest of us lining up next to him.

My feet planted firmly on the ground, my eyebrows crease as we watch the woman talk to someone behind the screen.

A demon, dressed all in black like the guards at the door, moves to the side of the room, pulling on the rope attached to the curtain.

Slowly the fabric moves to the side, showcasing a woman with long, curly red hair and a narrow face. Her red lips purse as her eyes scrutinize us standing in front of her. Superiority flows through her onto us and she juts her chin up, tapping it with her finger. Tilting her head, she uncrosses her legs only to cross them again. Her top teeth pull at her bottom lip, a sly smile crossing her face.

Kai gasps. “M—Maker?”

My head snaps to him.
Maker?

McKenna steps back a foot, covering her mouth with her hand.

Maker pulls her chin down slowly at Kai, her eyes lighting up with anticipation.

McKenna moves back another step, her hands now holding her stomach. Her face has turned an odd shade of white and I move to her instantly, grabbing her by the waist.

Maker appraises us, not saying a word.

“What is it?” I ask, holding McKenna’s weight up.

Candy and Wood turn to look at us, but Kai stays cemented in his terrified stance.

“She’s…” McKenna starts but then abruptly stops, shaking her head in a jerky motion.

“She’s what?” I probe.

“I can feel it,” she admits, tears falling down her eyes. The hot liquid pours out of McKenna’s eyes, the little droplets falling onto her shirt.

I shake my head, holding her tighter against my body. “I don’t understand.”

McKenna hiccups, sobs forcing their way up her throat and out of her mouth.

She shakes her head again, moving away from me. She puts a few feet between us, rubbing her eyes harshly with the pads of her hands.

Tears still falling with force down her face. “That’s why?” She laughs, her voice shuttering. “That’s why you took my parents?” she shouts at Maker, pounding on her chest.

She’s angry now. Her tears no longer fearful, instead, they’re made of hate. Her cheeks are red and her stance is strong. I step toward her cautiously, the way I’d approach a wild animal.

She must see me in her peripheral, because she skirts away a few inches when she notices me moving toward her.

“Don’t,” she warns, putting a hand up.

I step back, my hands up in surrender. “What’s happening, McKenna?”

With terrified eyes, Candy’s feet shuffle toward us but Wood puts a gentle hand on her shoulder and she stops.

Angrily swiping at her face, McKenna’s hands point to Maker. She sniffles.

Maker sits up straighter, her eyes animated with happiness. “So, daughter, you’ve returned.”

My jaw falls open just as McKenna collapses to the ground.

It’s like a magnetic attraction…or a string connecting us both. Attached to her and me, it tugs as I pull away and it yearns longingly for me while I loathe it.

I can’t make myself believe.

All I see is blackness. The black of her eyes, the cold of her stare, the familiarity in her grin. I try to close my eyes, but I can’t stop the images from hitting me in the face.