Tale of the Heart Queen (Artefacts of Ouranos #4)

Chapter 69

C HAPTER 69

NADIR

W e tumble out of the back of the cave and roll down a tunnel, bumping against its jagged surface. My hand smacks against the rock, and I grunt at the impact before we land in a heap.

“Gods, what now?” Lor grumbles as we both become aware of our new surroundings. We’re inside a massive soaring cavern lit only by a few lights suspended over the crowd and a single hole cut into the top.

“You’ve done well so far!” booms a voice, echoing through the space. I exchange a look with Lor as we slowly climb to our feet.

“You’re so close to your goal,” Herric adds. “But not quite yet.”

I scan our environment, noting we’re once again surrounded by the dead. The sound of their laughter and chatter is hollow and cold. Herric stands inside a box adorned with swaths of black fabric and silver accents hovering in the air.

Next to him is my father, who stares at me with an enigmatic expression. What does he feel about doing this to Lor? About dragging us both down here for his own gain? Probably nothing. He’s probably enjoying watching me scramble and suffer. After all, my suffering has always been one of his greatest pleasures.

Lor takes a few tentative steps as she peers into the darkness. Once my eyes adjust, I make out several more platforms floating in the air around us. At least, I think they’re floating, but it’s hard to be sure.

Another light flares, revealing a platform in the center of the cavern. It’s a few feet across and dangling above it is a ladder that stretches up and up, disappearing into the opening far above our heads.

“We’re under the mountain,” Lor says, and I nod.

We’re under the mountain, and all we have to do is climb that ladder to reach our goal. In theory.

Lor approaches me, and we whisper to one another.

“We have to run and jump, maybe?”

“Or there’s another way,” I say.

“Come now!” Herric shouts, interrupting us. “Don’t keep secrets from everyone. That is so very rude.”

I look up and glare. Gods, how I wish I could incinerate him to a crisp. If I ever get my hands on the bastard, I will beat him with my bare knuckles until he’s nothing but a puddle of blood. He grins back, enjoying himself. I know he made a deal with Lor, but I don’t trust for one moment that he plans to honor his promise. I’m just not sure when he plans to double-cross her.

Lor inhales an angry breath and blows it out slowly before she turns to face me, determination written into the fabric of her expression.

“Which is the closest one?”

We walk along the edges of our tiny perch, trying to gauge the distance.

“That one,” she says. “I think if we take a running jump, we could make it.”

“It looks big enough for only one of us.”

She nods. “Then I’ll go first before I move to that one.” She gestures to the left and a platform that hovers nearby. “I can also ensure it’s stable enough for you.”

She gives me a preemptive look that dares me to argue, but I don’t bother. I see the logic in allowing her to use herself as the test, but I hate it. I hate that she has to put herself in danger for my sake.

“When this is over, I will find a way to make this all up to you,” I swear. “I’m supposed to be the one protecting you. I was supposed to save you .”

“Nadir,” she says softly. “You’ve protected me over and over. You did save me. But it’s my turn to protect you. And this isn’t your fault. We’ve both been the victims of everyone else’s desires.” She takes my hand and kisses my knuckles. “When this is over, we’re going to spend the rest of our lives making all of this up to each other, not because either of us did anything wrong, but because we deserve happiness.”

I nod, my throat too tight to speak as I marvel at this woman who’s chosen to love me. Who deserves so much better than the man that I am. But I’ll take it and hope she doesn’t realize it eventually.

Then she backs up and leaps. My stomach sinks to my feet, and I stop breathing. I swear everyone in the stands does the same.

She lands safely in a crouch, and I let out a whoosh of air. Then she prepares to leap to the next one, and I see her pause. But she runs anyway and jumps, sticking the landing.

“Come on!” she calls, and I follow after, clearing the first jump before I see what made her hesitate. The perspective from the previous platform is off, making this next landing further away than it looks.

I hate not having the use of my magic, and I hate that I’m so vulnerable right now. But the fierce look she gives me bolsters my confidence. She wants to protect me, and I . . . Gods, what a lucky asshole I am.

I run and leap to the next platform, and we continue in the same vein, drawing closer and closer to the center. There are a few near misses, backdropped by the crowd’s oohs and aahs and screams. It’s distracting, but I try to shut it out. I think of when Lor described her time on the gauntlet in the heart of Aphelion, and I watch her carefully for signs of distress. It can’t be easy to be reliving the same shit yet again. But she is resolute. Nearly unshakable.

“That one,” Lor says as she leaps for the next platform, where she waits a moment before I follow her. We make slow progress, the experience now bordering on tedious. I can tell even the crowd’s interest is waning as their chatter dies to a muted hush .

But I remain on alert. I’m sure this is intended to lull us into a sense of complacency.

Be vigilant , I say to Lor. Something is up.

Her jaw hardens as she stares around the cavern, her gaze skirting over the spectators. She rubs her face with a hand and then uses the back of it to wipe away a bead of sweat. We exchange a look filled with so many things we can’t say.

I take stock of myself. My limbs feel shaky and hollow from the lack of food and sleep, and I pray we’re almost at the end. We continue leaping between the platforms, some of them further apart than others, as we wind our way towards the center. My aim feels off every time I jump, and what I wouldn’t give for some water right now.

We stop on a larger spot to catch our breath, using each other for support.

“You okay?” I ask, holding her in my arms and murmuring into her hair.

“I guess,” she answers, burying her face into my chest. I can feel her trembling, and again I slide into the simmering pit of my blood-soaked rage. Pulling her tighter, I listen to her heart as it beats in tandem with mine, using it to calm myself. I won’t do us any favors if I lose my temper. A clear head is the only way we win this.

The sound of a loud crack has us jumping apart. We both spin around, scanning our environment.

In the distance, I see movement in the dark, and it takes me a moment to realize the platforms are starting to crumble.

“We need to move,” I say, taking her hand.

This is the true test .

“Go!” I say, and she leaps onto the next platform and then the next as I follow.

More cracks and rumbles shake the cavern as everything around us starts to disintegrate.

Finally, we reach the middle, and Lor leaps onto the larger platform. The one under my feet starts to crumble, and I run before I’ve really gauged my distance. I fall short, my stomach hitting the edge of my target.

Lor leaps for me as I start to slide, snagging my wrist as I slip.

Our hands snap together just before I fall, so I’m dangling beneath her.

“Lor!”

“Swing your arm up!” she shouts. She grits her teeth, her face turning red as she hauls me up inch by inch. Slowly, she drags me up. Just as I’m about to reach the top, we both hear another loud crack. The far edge of our platform is starting to crumble.

“Come on!” she screams, and then she heaves on my arm, and my shoulder pops with the force. I ignore the pain that radiates down my limbs and lurch for the edge.

Lor keeps tugging on me and then grabs the back of my jacket, hauling me up.

“The ladder! Go!” The platform disintegrates around each edge, herding us into the middle.

I leap onto the ladder and start the climb. I peer down over my shoulder and watch as Lor grabs the bottom rung just as the platform disappears in a falling shower of dirt and stone.

“Go! I’m fine! Go! ”

Keeping one eye over my shoulder, I watch her swing herself up and then start climbing.

“The ladder is disappearing!” she cries, and I pick up my pace.

Hand over hand, we scramble up the rungs as that same cracking and crumbling follow us. The crowd is awake now, screaming and shouting as I aim for the top. It seems like a hundred miles away as I keep climbing, my muscles and my aching shoulder protesting with the effort.

“Faster!” Lor shouts just as I clear the top and look back. The ladder melts out from under Lor, and she screams as she begins to plummet, but there’s no fucking way I’m letting her go. I leap out and reach down to grab her, hauling her up by my good arm just as the ladder completely evaporates.

She collapses against me, our breath heavy and our hearts pounding. I’m shaking all over, and I can feel her trembling against me. A breeze cools my cheeks, and I look up, exhaling a choked breath.

The forest spreads in every direction below, and we’re once again under the mirrored dome, although the screeching crowd is also under it this time. I shake my head, attempting to understand how any of this is happening.

Lor’s gaze meets mine, her dark eyes pooling with uncertainty before we both look up.

We’re on a rocky plateau with a single red rose spinning slowly above us.

We did it.

We’re on top of the mountain.