Feel the Burn (20 page)

‘Why did you put it there,’ Leseach nodded at the tent.

The brisk accusing tone irked and he snapped, ‘It was the most suitable position.’

Leseach made a noise of derision while regarding the tent, arms crossed over her chest.

‘I suppose it will do.’

With gritted teeth Ignatius managed to keep his tone diplomatic.

‘Was there something you wanted, Leseach.’

It wasn’t a question.

She turned that calm gaze with the smug undertone on him, making his blood boil and he pressed his lips tight. Then she turned and sauntered off. A good portion of his being screamed in fury at her obvious desire to anger him and Ignatius stayed rooted to the spot, silently counting to twenty and back until the anger faded.

We cheered when Sito cleared the tunnel. Kerak, Rumal, Daron, and the goblins, all carrying pieces of the dragon’s armor, looked relieved when they entered the cave behind him.

‘Are there any other tunnels like that?’ Sian asked Loi.

Loi shook her head.

‘No, that was the tightest.’

‘Oh good.’
Sito’s relieved thought made everyone smile.

Compared to that tunnel, the next few days felt easy and my vision slowly adjusted to the constant darkness, even if the anxiety it caused didn’t abate. If I ever wondered what purgatory might be like, now I knew. Stuck in this absolute blackness with the constant cold and damp would drive anyone mad. Everyone drew closer to one another in this strange underworld and some of the goblins sang, those funny rasping voices echoing along the line while we edged through corridors and caverns. Now and then, when picking our way through the rocky caves, we spotted the tiny lighted things dancing in the air. None of us girls ever got close to actually see what they looked like though; the Halenine fae swooped on them the instant they sighted them.

They must taste good, I thought, watching Leynorah snatch the last bit from another fae’s claw. Her mother scolded her and ordered that she give it back but the one she stole it from allowed her to keep it. Such a little brat, I thought in amusement.

I liked getting to know the others and now that I had the worst of the grief under control I enjoyed chatting with everyone. When we settled in a cave for the night I helped the Medanga centaurs organize dinner while Ignatius and Leseach rehearsed their daily squabble over where to put the tent. Rashid hovered in the background, observing, and several goblins made bets on who would be the first to die, Ignatius or Rashid. Overhearing the earnest conversation while they debated the offences of either ‘victim’ I chuckled and exchanged a look with the self-appointed head chef of the Medanga centaurs. He grinned while breaking the hard bread into small pieces.

‘My bet is always on Rashid. His attention drives her mad.’

I considered that.

‘Yes. But she’s always hated Ignatius.’

The stocky centaur passed a massive bowl to me and I sat cross-legged with it in my lap, tearing the large strips of dried meat into small pieces. The head chef intended to make something edible out of it all, though I did wonder how.

‘Yes, but that makes sense to her. Rashid’s attention doesn’t.’

I nodded in agreement and held the bowl up.

When we sat down to dinner the meal surprised most. The head chef utilized a variety of boring ingredients to make something akin to a gumbo and the result impressed us all. Tasty, edible and filling; the centaur received a hearty applause for his efforts. After helping with cleaning up I crawled into bed, pleasantly tired and wondered if I’d dream of him again when I dozed off. Not clear like the first times on the ship, Alek had started appearing in my dreams again.

Even in deep sleep I felt my heart race and a smile spread when my gorgeous raven haired guy held me close and whispered words I longed to hear. The images faded as I reached for him.

Then abruptly woke to discover my hands flat against a man’s bare chest.

She gasped and Ignatius froze, horror snaking down his spine at the realization. Doing the only thing he could think of, he feigned ignorance.

‘Ca-catherine?’ he stuttered, not hiding the shock.

‘Oh my god, I’m so sorry!’ The hands jerked back and she whispered the words in a tone of dismay. After a long pause, she gave a nervous giggle.

‘Did I wake you?’

The situation did strike him as funny and he worked at keeping his voice neutral, sleepy.

‘Uuhh, yes. Is something wrong?’

‘No. I was dreaming. Sorry to disturb you.’

He waited until she settled down, then slowly lay back. The shock left him feeling wide awake and he lay there thanking his good fortune that she hadn’t realized.

Must put more of the mixture in tomorrow night, he thought, can’t have her waking.

When the lights turned up, signaling morning, I waited for Ignatius to dress and leave, hoping like mad it had been a dream. The rational voice in my mind cringed.

Nope. Real.

With a silent curse I dressed and climbed out of the tent. Ignatius, naturally, waited outside.

‘Ignatius. Please tell me that was a dream.’

His mouth quivered, lips hinting at a smile while he stared resolutely at something beyond my head.

‘If you like, Your Highness.’

Breathing in through the nose, I considered it, twisting my lips and nodded.

‘Excellent. Pretending that didn’t happen.’

The corners of his eyes creased as he regarded me in amusement.

‘Indeed.’

Ignatius grinned when Catherine’s eyes narrowed to green slits and she pivoted, stomping off to breakfast while muttering a string of unflattering comments. The exchange left him curiously stimulated. About to follow the Princess, he halted at Leseach’s voice.

‘Was there a problem?’

‘No!’

The look of victory on the Northerner’s face caused Ignatius’ jaw to stiffen as he realized she’d overheard. Leseach studied him while slowly crossing her arms behind her back, a hand on either elbow.

‘Perhaps,’ she said in a soft, easy voice, the underlying threat loud and clear. ‘Perhaps I should be keeping a closer eye on Her Highness.’

Holding his gaze for a moment Leseach turned and walked after Catherine. The light sense of joy at teasing Catherine evaporated, replaced with the strong urge to break something.

Or someone, he thought, staring after the tall blond, observing how the fabric across her back created an excellent target and his trigger finger twitched. Silently cursing the alien he turned away, his appetite gone, and went to pack up the tent.

*~*~*

Chapter Fourteen

I walked beside Loushka today with Leseach on the other side of the griffon. Ignatius stayed at the head of the group, which allowed me plenty of time to silently obsess over the silly incident. It would help so much if he were ugly with no resemblance to Alek at all, I thought scowling at a stalagmite. I scratched at the chainmail covering my hand making it even itchier while this strange underlying anxiety nagged at me. I can’t understand why it’s bothering me so much, I tried to talk sensibly to myself before the skin-crawling sensation made me scratch at my hand again.

Why does his voice soothe me at night? I suddenly wondered. The rational voice berated me.

Of course it soothes you, he’s been here the whole time, helping. Don’t over think it, Cat.

Knowing that to be true but still feeling awful about it all I turned to Leseach and impulsively asked, ‘Leseach, would you mind switching with Ignatius for the sleeping arrangements?’ I couldn’t stop the blush that climbed my neck as I explained, ‘I’m having weird dreams and I don’t want to say something inappropriate in front of him.’

Or feel him up again, my rational voice added inwardly and my face turned red making me for once grateful for the darkness.

‘Of course, Your Highness.’

I loved how Leseach stayed so neutral at my requests, not the slightest change in her expression and I breathed out in relief feeling like a weight had lifted from my shoulders.

It’s amazing how such caves form, Sian thought again while she led Sito along and up a narrow ledge. The blue light from the energy she kept extended to see wasn’t enough to annoy the crystal hanging around her neck. The soft blue glow felt soothing against the darkness. Reminded of the lorus crystal, Sian glanced down a moment before looking back up and wondered why she still bothered to wear it. Kassie didn’t bother with hers and Cat’s change to full Elemental meant her energy didn’t trigger the lorus crystals no matter how much she threw out. The only thing the chunk of crystal served as now, was a reminder of the castle and Elena.

Jenviet already knows we’re coming, Sian thought. Alek and Yakov discovered that the hard way.

Knowing that worrying didn’t help, she let the troubling thoughts go. The ledge they edged along was only just wide enough for Sito to narrowly squeeze his feet on and the drop from the ledge sounded endless. The stones that fell took minutes before a tiny ‘chink’ echoed up. No one spoke or sung, Loi had warned them at the start of this cavern that the roof wasn’t stable and Sian could sense Loi’s energy extended and ready, just in case. Her friend stood at the beginning of the chamber they all climbed, with Sabyn and Tomiar at her side, while she waited for them to pass safely into the next chamber.

How you doing, hun?
Sian thought to Loi.

Okay. Be better once I can’t see you lot anymore.

How far do we have to go?

A while yet.

The soldiers in front of Sian stopped and they waited for those ahead to navigate a particularly narrow spot. Sian watched closely when Nesha easily stepped the wide gap. She gestured to those near Sito to climb onto the dragon’s armor and stepped lightly onto one of his front feet, hooking an arm behind the armored plate.

‘Holding on tight?’
Sito thought.

‘Super tight,’
Sian assured.

The moment Sito stepped slowly across Sian leaned out, unable to resist the lure of staring down into that cold, black abyss and a shudder ran through her at the thought of dropping. With all four feet on the other side, Sito stopped to allow her off. She waited until he fully cleared the gap, tail and all, then motioned the others down. At the very back of the line a group of centaurs and Nyjens made the most of the challenge, leaping the gap and silently cheering each other on. Sian let Loi know they’d made it across, now that they were out of sight, and she felt it when Loi started her way up.

The light from the torches ahead continued up and around the massive cavern, like they climbed an enormous staircase. Curious, Sian brightened her hands to stare at the wall while they climbed, looking for some evidence of tools or a clue as to how this staircase came to be. The truth revealed itself to be the one thing Sian hadn’t considered. The walls were smooth, almost like glass and each step looked like the wide lip of a glass jar. Intense heat had created this stairwell.

Holy crud,
Sian thought to the other girls.
This was a volcano!

Is.
Cat corrected in a blasé tone.
But the magma beneath isn’t very active at the moment.

Can you feel it?
Kassie demanded.

Of course,
Cat sounded amused.
I can feel all the hotspots.

Hotspots?!

Don’t panic, Kass. If any are too active I’ll point them out. Promise
.

The rational part of Sian’s mind knew, without a doubt, that they’d be fine. But having a live—okay, so not active—volcano beneath her feet made her want to walk faster. Keeping pace, she began to chant the periodic table in her mind to occupy herself while following the silent train of soldiers.

Going up and up felt strange, I kept expecting to go back down at some point the way you did with tramping, where going up usually always meant going down too, but that wasn’t the intention here. Especially not with the molten rock I could sense beneath the ground.

Pity it doesn’t at least warm this horrid chamber, I thought with a shiver and then retracted that thought when I realized what it would mean. Better to be grateful for the cold.

‘How many days do we have left?’
I thought to Loushka.

‘Loi said twelve, right? That would mean seven.’

‘Ugh. Seven too many.’

The lights of those ahead of us started to vanish and I felt relieved at leaving this ancient chimney while at the same time a sudden pang for sunlight hit. Any novelty of caving felt long gone now; I wanted fresh air and the blue sky. Not a permanent darkness. We followed the widening ledge into a corridor and further still until it opened into a spacious, low cave. The griffons were short enough to clear the ceiling but Sito needed to hunch and creep in. The soldiers and allies made the usual check of the room with the Halenine fae whooping in and out of all the tiny crevices. The sheer number of tiny creatures they found to consume surprised me, the caves felt like dead space to me. However, watching Loi commune with the plants above, and within the earth, showed they weren’t silent to her. More like a giant womb within the planet, protected from the elements. While I mulled this over I noticed Ignatius heading for me, his face stiff with concern.

Crap.

‘Your Highness, may I have a moment?’

From across the cave Leseach paused in the midst of putting the tent up, her vivid eyes assessing me. I made a tiny gesture to show it was fine and nodded to Ignatius.

‘Certainly.’

He bowed graciously at my acquiescence, staying there until I rose from where I’d sat with Kassie. I felt her amused, curious shove through my energy but ignored it and indicated an alcove away from everyone. We walked in silence until we reached the alcove then Ignatius asked in a quiet, mild tone.

‘Have I offended you?’

In the dark corner his eyes looked as deep as Al’s and the hurt expression made my stomach twist.

‘No, not at all,’ I assured him then stopped when I tried to think of how to explain. He stepped much closer than I expected and my heart thudded rapidly, my body responding to his presence. A sense of shame and disgust curled around me and I shook my head, stepping back when I recognized the sense of attraction between us. Squeezing my eyes shut, I mentally berated myself and stepped back again, coming up hard against the cave wall.

How the hell could you let this happen, I growled at myself. He’s not Al. He’d never replace Al and now you’ve projected those thoughts onto him. This isn’t fair, Cat. Think of how guilty it’ll make him feel with regards to his wife.

‘Catherine,’ he said it softly, his voice full of affection as I opened my eyes and stared shamefaced at him.

The ashamed, apologetic expression caused both joy and pain.

‘I’m sorry. This isn’t fair,’ she whispered.

Ignatius reached to cup her face but stopped when she flinched and turned away.

‘It’s okay, Catherine. I don’t mind, I’d never mind.’

Was that too much? He stared, waiting for her to look at him. Staring at the floor she shook her head then looked up and met his gaze. The regret in those green eyes caused more pain than he’d anticipated. Her lips trembled and she shook her head again.

‘I mind. You’ve been faultless in your duties and this isn’t part of them. I didn’t mean to offend you. It seems more appropriate to have Leseach be the one to sleep in my tent.’

Arguments and reasonings jumped to his lips but he resisted them. Instead he stepped back and schooled his expression to one of affectionate obedience.

‘Of course, Your Highness.’

With no more to say she gave him a quick smile and he stepped aside so she could pass, watching her walk to Kassie. Then his gaze slid higher, settling on the Northerner, observing the tall blond as she finished setting the tent up.

Sian yawned and paused to stretch onto tip toe, feeling her back give a satisfying crack, then walked to breakfast. The same food for every meal got old fast; dried meat, gruel and the hard bread to gnaw on. At least dinner felt more bearable with the addition of the nellor to sip on. If only there was coffee, she thought to herself.

A fire burned at the center of the camp, looking remarkably real even though Cat set it there. No risk of dangerous gases killing anyone this way, Sian thought and she extended her hands to enjoy the warmth. Her stomach at least seemed pleased with the food and let out a growl at the smell of the gruel. The Medanga centaur playing head chef laughed at her.

‘You sound like your dragon!’

Sian grinned and accepted the bowl he offered. While she ate she watched the soldiers and allies ready themselves for another day of tramping and climbing. The centaurs liked to shake themselves and then stretch forward, legs far out behind and then back. The goblins stretched their limbs by climbing the walls and ceiling, sticking to them like flies and Sian chuckled at the sight. A Nyjen glared up at a goblin that casually clung with his feet to the ceiling and tossed bits of stalactite at the violet eyed warrior. Red flashes in the glimpses of light revealed the Halenine fae while they hunted amongst the crevices. Occasionally a tiny sound like the chime of crystal glasses sang out and all the other fae would whoop over, blurs of back and red, to kill and consume the find. A hum of energy made Sian twist, eyes searching until she spotted Loi. Her friend stood with Sabyn and Tomiar but her eyes looked distant while she communed with the plants. A twinge of envy hit as she watched Loi utilize that clever, unexpected ability. Then Sito woke and instantly looked for Sian.