Dream of the Goddess (To Darkness Bound Book 4) by Zandria West

Author:Zandria West [West, Zandria]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Independent
Published: 2020-02-21T16:00:00+00:00

18

LANA

Darkness and a bitter taste on my tongue. Pressure, like rocks weighing against my chest. Cold. So cold. Silence.

How can it be silent?

My eyes blink open, but I see nothing but impenetrable black surrounding me. I take a breath. Cool, stale, ancient-tasting air enters my lungs. I’m not underwater.

Where the hell am I?

‘Ah, Lana, at last…’ I hear a cold, harsh voice. The sound reminds me of a snake, coiled and deadly. I know that voice. I had hoped never to hear it again.

Garenda. Fucking Garenda. But how could she be here? And why?

Scratch that. I know why. To finish what she’s tried to start at least twice now. To kill me. It’s become a kind of madness, I think, an itch under her skin that she just can’t bear not scratching. It’s not about the enchantment, or the Barrier, or her power anymore. This is personal. I have wounded her pride, so she is determined to end my life.

I look around blindly. My eyes are adjusting to the darkness, but ever so gradually. There’s a faint ice-blue glow that has the strangeness of something magical. I make out vague shapes, nothing more. If my senses are correct, I’m deep underground somewhere. A cave?

A trap.

I’m naked, just like I was when I jumped off that goddamn cliff. I shiver from the cold.

‘How did you find me?’ I ask.

Garenda laughs. ‘I have some old friends among the Circle…’

‘Graciela’s nearby,’ I say quickly. ‘She won’t let you harm me. She’ll kill you –’

‘Where’s your amulet, Lana? Such a pretty piece. And a powerful source of protection too. I do hope you haven’t lost it…’ I can hear her smiling.

I swallow, icy dread growing inside me. I reach automatically for the place where the amulet usually sits against my collar bone. Of course, it’s not there. I’m naked. Unprotected. Alone with a vengeful, powerful witch.

Help me I send the thought urgently. Alex will hear. The men will know that something is wrong. The moment I fail to surface, they will come after me. Surely it won’t take them long. But where the Bond normally hums with energy and connection, now it feels empty.

‘Didn’t Graciela tell you about the final stage of Izushi’s prophecy? The Jaws of Death?’

I frown and don’t say anything.

‘Funny how ancient tales are often twisted until they lose their original shape, isn’t it? The Jaws of Death is one of the entranceways to the Land of the Dead. A place where no earthly power can act. It was once the domain of the Dark God, but since his banishment it really is a kind of limbo. Call for your men all you like, Lana. Gabriel’s magic has no power here. They won’t hear you. And they won’t find you, unless they’re willing to cross into the Land of the Dead themselves and never return. Do you think they love you enough to do that, Lana? To die for you? Is the pull of the Binding that strong? I do hope so…’

I try to control the shivering that’s taking hold of me.

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