Page 51 of Kiss of Embers
Water. I’d found the next element.
Pushing to my feet, I brushed sand from my clothes and started forward. The shadows persisted, as if I walked through twilight. Instinctively, I searched for the moon only to rememberI wasinsidethe temple. But the full moon was out there somewhere, its pull stronger by the minute.
More splashing sounds drew me forward. The chirping of insects filled my ears as I stepped over vegetation. I pushed aside a curtain of vines and found myself on the shore of a vast, still lake. Lily pads floated on the surface. Here and there, stone statues thrust from the water, their crumbling pedestals covered in moss.
Movement drew my gaze. On the other side of the lake, Galen of House Baudelaire emerged from the water and climbed onto the shore. He stopped, his back to me, and shook his head. Water flew from his hair.
My pulse picked up as I stared across the lake. This was the next challenge—and it wasunderthe surface. As with the shifting sand geysers, I was probably walking—wading—into a total shitshow. For starters, how the fuck was I supposed to breathe?
Then again, Galen was a fire witch. His magic didn’t give him any special advantages when it came to water. If he could survive the lake, so could I.
Something brought my head up. Galen stared at me. Water plastered his dark hair to his head. Several strands had escaped the knot at his neck to trail down his chest. Slowly, deliberately, he tapped his wrist, his finger striking the spot where someone might wear a watch. A smirk played around his mouth as he turned and continued ascending the shore.
Without another look in my direction, he disappeared into the jungle.
Dislike seared my gut. His taunt was clear. He was already ahead of me in the Games, and now he was ahead in the challenge. But I’d dealt with far bigger assholes than Galen of House Baudelaire.
Striding to the edge of the water, I drew a deep breath and waded in. Something grabbed my legs and yanked me down.
The breath rushed out of my lungs as I screamed, twisting to grab at the shore. But it was useless. Whatever had hold of me tugged harder, sucking me downward like I’d been flushed down a toilet. Bubbles swarmed around me, obscuring my view as I kicked and thrashed. My lungs burned. The urge to suck in a breath pummeled me, pressure and panic growing in equal measure. My ears popped as I continued descending. It was like being trapped in an underwater elevator. I was going to drown.
Abruptly, the bubbles cleared, leaving nothing but turquoise water. The clamping around my legs disappeared, and my feet touched a hard surface. A glance down revealed the rocky bottom of the lake. When I looked back up, a beautiful woman hovered nearby, her red hair floating around her like a cloud. The upper half of her body was nude. The lower half was a long, shimmering tail that flared into a broad fin. Several long, beaded necklaces nestled between her bare breasts.
Mermaid.I tensed, my lungs screaming and fresh fear coursing through me. Mermaids were known for their viciousness—and virulent dislike of the Firstborn Races. Of course, they also despised humans, gleefully enticing sailors and then dragging them screaming from their boats.
But how the hell had a mermaid ended up in a lake in the middle of the Amazon? Then again, how had the Amazon ended up in the middle of the temple? Maybe I shouldn’t overthink it.
My lungs ached. Bending my knees, I tipped my head back and kicked hard against the rocks. I shot upward, hit an invisible barrier, and quickly sank back down.
Trapped.
The mermaid tilted her head as she studied me. Her necklaces shifted, and I realized they weren’t beads, after all. They were human teeth.
A second mermaid darted from somewhere and stopped beside the first mermaid. Her long blond hair was arranged in elaborate braids threaded with teeth necklaces. She folded her arms under generous breasts and gave me an assessing look. After a second, she spoke in a clear, melodious voice.
“Do you think she’ll figure it out?”
The first mermaid wrinkled her nose. “No. This one doesn’t look very smart.”
“The witch and those dragon halflings figured it out.”
My heart skipped a beat. Dragon halflings? That meant Struan and Finn had conquered the lake. Unexpected longing gripped me, the force so powerful I couldn’t hold back a gasp. Bubbles spewed from my mouth, taking the last of my precious oxygen with them.
The redhead pursed her lips as she turned to the blond. “See? This one is stupid.”
“Mmm,” the blond said. She cupped her hands around her mouth. “Hey, dummy! You can’t breathe underwater!”
The redhead turned to her with a horrified look. “Don’t do that, Muriel! We’re not supposed to help them.” For a second, the blond looked cowed. Then the pair collapsed in a fit of giggles.
Their laughter rippled around me, mocking me as my vision blurred and unconsciousness threatened. But as they leaned against each other, something behind them caught my eye. A structure wavered in the water like a mirage. Maybe itwasa mirage. But, suddenly, the need to reach it possessed me.
With the last of my energy, I pushed off the rocks and swam around the mermaids. The structure was a small castle, complete with turrets and a draw bridge. Six-year-old me would have squealed with delight and moved right in. Battlements topped the walls, which looked about six feet tall. Aquatic blooms spilled from flower boxes under the windows. I couldn’thave said why, but I suddenlyknewI had to reach those flowers. I stretched a hand out, but I was too far away.
The mermaids’ laughter swelled behind me. Maybe it was my imagination, but the peals started to sound more like growls…
Blackness slid over my vision. I couldn’t hold on. Pain seared my lungs. I had to take a breath.Had to.The urge to open my mouth overwhelmed me. I couldn’t hold out?—
A strong arm clamped around my waist. Bubbles eddied around me as I shot toward the castle. Struan appeared before me, his face determined and his black hair waving around his head as he yanked a flower from one of the boxes. He stripped the fuchsia-colored bloom off the stem and held the tube to my mouth.