Page 37 of Kiss of Embers
They widened now, and Illusion Zara angled her body, exposing the gravesite behind her. “Oh, you thought you could win a magic potion and wish all your problems away?”
She wasn’t real. She couldn’t hurt me.
Illusion Me’s lips formed a pout. “Poor little baby, losing mommy and daddy in the same year.” She moved closer, the toes of her shoes nearly touching mine. “I bet you worry you’ll die too.”
My heart thumped painfully. Some part of me knew what was coming, but advance notice didn’t soften the blow.
Her eyes lightened to gold. A growl rumbled in her throat, and her mouth stretched wide—and then kept on going, pulling in an unnatural shape. The tendons in her jaw snapped. Her fangs sliced through her bottom lip, and drool spilled down her chin. Angry red splotches spread over her face and neck. The whites of her eyes yellowed. Bubbles of skin bulged from her face as moon sickness ravaged her body.
“What’s wrong?” she demanded, her words mangled by her ruined jaw. “You don’t like how it looks?” She lunged forward. I staggered back, my heart trying to pound from my chest.
Not real.She couldn’t hurt me.
My doppelganger flashed a gruesome grin. Then she grabbed my throat.
Chapter
Ten
STRUAN
Ijogged down the corridor, ignoring the visions that tailed me.
After Zara entered the catacombs, Finn and I had descended the marathon staircase together. When we finally reached the bottom, Finn had given me a pitying look.
“I’ll wait for you at the finish, love.”
My snort had echoed off the stone. “You’ve got that backward,love.”
He’d channeled behind me, nipping my neck with his fangs before I could blink. “Jealousy is a bad look on you, Struan,” he’d murmured. Then he was gone.
And the competition was on.
Amusement and affection flooded me now. Finn really thought he could beat me. It was cute, actually.
The corridor forked ahead. I maintained an easy, casual pace as I approached it. The netherlights in the skulls flickered as I passed. Just as I veered toward the corridor on the right, Finn staggered from the left.
Blood poured down his chest, soaking his shirt. His throat was slit, the wound forming a gruesome smile across his neck.
I ignored him and kept moving, my eyes peeled for the next puzzle. The first two had been child’s play—an alchemy riddle and an enchanted chess match that burned the blazes out of my hand every time I blundered.
“Struan!” Finn cried behind me. “I need your help!”
The visions were getting repetitive. But I had to hand it to the catacombs for having a decent lock on my fears. I’d seen Finn in various stages of injury and death. Finn falling under an opponent’s blade. Finn sprawled on his back with sightless eyes. Halfway through the chess match, Finn’s head had replaced one of the skulls on the wall.
I pushed the images from my mind. Unpleasant though they were, they were ultimately ineffective. For one thing, Finn was too fucking wily to let himself get injured. More importantly, I’d know if he were hurt. The mate bond made it so.
Finn’s cries faded as I navigated the labyrinthine corridors. Where was that damn puzzle? The sooner I got through the catacombs, the sooner I could rub Finn’s nose in my win—and then enjoy the hell out of myself when he made me pay for it.
A woman’s shriek stopped me cold. I spun around, my heart pounding.
Zara?
I hesitated, doubts swirling. The catacombs had yet to show me Zara. But I’d expected those visions. Now they were here—and ready to lure me into a trap or dead end. The catacombs obviously played on emotion. No matter what I heard or saw, I had to resist the temptation to investigate. Just keep my head down and stay focused. Solve puzzles and get the fuck over that finish line so I could focus on the second challenge.
Another feminine scream ripped down the corridor.
I moved without conscious thought, racing toward the sound. As I rounded the next corner, an impossible scene confronted me. Two Zaras grappled in what appeared to be adeath match. Zara pinned herself to the wall of bones, her teeth bared in a grimace. The Zara against the skulls clawed at her doppelganger’s hand. Her face was a brilliant shade of red, her eyes bulging as she clearly fought for air.