The Bottom Rung (In the Lap of the Gods Book 1) by Sam Hall

Author:Sam Hall [Hall, Sam]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2019-08-30T16:00:00+00:00

I landed lightly on the grass, my head swivelling around, looking for my brother as I did so. There he was! He walked out from between the ruined buildings of Ground Zero, weaving a little as he crossed the torn-up road, taking step after dragging step towards the cliffs. “I need to run there, super-fast,” I said and off I went, the surroundings becoming a blur.

“Whoa!” Marley said, rearing back and blinking owlishly. His head craned towards me, eyeing me with one blue iris, then the other. “Zat you, Lethe?”

“Yeah, and what the fuck happened to you?” Bruises spread in a messy sprawl from his temple down his neck and disappeared under his t-shirt.

“Vamps, fuckers. Wanted to take Anastasia away, just when we were having fun.”

“Didn’t you start having fun a week ago?”

“Yeah, my last week.” He let out a sigh, hanging his head. “Last one until Lethe and I… Lethe! It’s you!”

“You said that.”

“No,” he stood up straighter, blinking furiously and then his face lost its dazed blindness. He turned his gaze on me and paused, really seeing me now. Slowly, his beautiful wide smile spread. “Hey,” he said softly, reaching out and drawing me into the curve of his shoulder. “It’s nearly time. You scared?”

“Um…about that. Look, can we sit?”

“Sure, let’s go sit on the grass by the fence,” he said, steering me with a protective hand. We sat down cross-legged facing each other.

“Gods, I really need something to eat and drink. You look like you could use it too. Oh!” In my hand was a tall glass of something fruity, condensation forming on the sides, Marley held the same. Around us was an array of food and drink, some I had no idea what they were, and we were sitting on a picnic blanket.

“Somethings happened to you,” Marley said, taking it all in, then a hefty sip from his drink.

“Yeah, I kinda climbed the Ladder.”

“The ladder, or The Ladder.”

“The latter.”

“Whoa, and what, you found the magic wishing tree?”

“Nooo, not quite.”

He looked up at me, half smiling, shaking his head, “You found the gods, didn’t you?” He looked away, over at the sun that was beginning to drop lower in the sky. “Un-fucking-believable.”

“A goddess.” He picked up a sandwich from the nearest plate, sniffed at it and then tossed it back, rubbing his hands on his jeans. Then he laughed, throwing back his head. “I used the last bit of persuasion… This big grand… You’re not going to die, are you?” I pulled my shirt from my shoulder to show him the unmarred surface. He reached out a thin finger, letting it trail over my skin before dropping it to the ground.

“Can’t you see,” I said, hunching forward, “we’re free now. I can do anything. I can get us out of the Quarter, we can go anywhere. You can be strong and happy, just like you were.” My heart beat wildly at the thought of it, of all the possibilities. My voice sounded odd like I was speaking through a pipe or my ears were clogged up.

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