Her Dark Reflection (The Dark Reflection Series Book 1) by Hailey Jade

Author:Hailey Jade [Jade, Hailey]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Midnight Tide Publishing
Published: 2022-06-14T16:00:00+00:00

It was quiet. I would hardly have guessed at the chaos beyond the door if I hadn’t just been dragged through it, and the dark was so thick I couldn’t see the stairs, the walls, or the man leading me down into Aether knew where.

I stopped short, and when he tugged on me, I wrenched my hand from his grip and folded my arms. ‘I can’t see.’

The darkness sighed. A moment later, a spark of light flickered and grew until I could see that we were in a tunnel sloping down into the earth. Our shadows loomed large on the dirt walls around us.

I gaped at Draven, my eyebrows climbing my forehead as I realised he hadn’t lit a torch, but was holding a handful of flames. Now, I knew very little about magic. The Druthi Guild were merciless in guarding their secrets—the young initiate burning in the square was a testament to that—but some facets of magic working were common knowledge. I knew it was somehow woven into objects. It required preparation and materials and time.

Druthi didn’t summon flames from nowhere and then hold them in their hand.

‘Let’s go.’ He was already moving, his feet quickly traversing the stairs and taking his palmful of flame with him.

‘I’m coming. Just wait a moment.’ I tripped after him, not wanting to be left behind. Wherever he was going, at least he had light. I didn’t want to be left here in the dark. ‘What is this place?’

‘Evacuation tunnel. There are several of them leftover from the Great War.’

The stairs ended in a level floor of compounded dirt. The air was damp and thick, and the tunnel slithered away into the dark beyond the circle of light cast by Draven’s flame. It felt like we were in the belly of some ancient, sleeping serpent.

Without warning, the light cut out and the darkness crashed down onto me. I shrieked.

‘Calm down, you don’t need to see. Here, keep your hand on the wall and follow it.’ I felt him take my fingers and place them on the damp wall.

‘Why can’t we have the light?’ The last word came out a squeak. I wasn’t afraid of the dark, but the sense of the earth all around me made me feel like I was being buried alive.

‘Because we can’t. Walk behind me. I’ll let you know if there’s anything you’ll trip over.’

Keeping one hand on the wall, I waved my other hand blindly before me until I touched fabric. I sensed him stiffen as my fingers pressed against his back, but he didn’t say anything, and I didn’t remove my hand.

‘Come on.’

He started moving, and I hurried to keep up, one hand pressed to him and one trailing against the dirt. It felt strangely intimate, walking through the dark with my hand on him, resisting the urge to explore this new territory with my fingers. And with no sight to distract me, my mind darted about, imagining things I shouldn’t, like what his skin was like beneath his shirt.

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