Dark Descent by Nicole R. Taylor

Author:Nicole R. Taylor [Taylor, Nicole R.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Nicole R. Taylor

12

I was falling into darkness.

My limbs were lead and invisible quicksand coiled around my ankles, sucking me down into a bottomless chasm. I cried out, clawing at the nothingness, searching desperately for something to hold on to.

Out of the gloom, a hand reached out and grasped me around the wrist. Instinctively, I locked my fingers around my unknown saviour’s forearm. I was pulled upward, farther and farther until a face came into focus. Warm eyes and dark flowing hair materialised before me.

“Mummy?” I whispered.

“We’ll always find you, Scarlett.” Her mouth opened, revealing rows upon rows of sharp teeth.

My eyes flew open.

It took me a moment to realise I was in a soft bed, my body practically fused to the mattress.

Above, the skylight was back-lit, the image of the woman in a flowing robe became more and more familiar each time I saw it. She was clutching a sword with an elaborate hilt, the point resting by her feet. Arondight.

Turning my head, I was surprised to see Wilder sitting beside the bed. He was leaning forward, his elbows resting on his knees while he tossed his fancy little knife over and over in his hand. It went tip over end, his fingers catching it around the hilt before flipping it again. He didn’t miss… not even once.

“You said I didn’t have any chops,” I rasped, declaring my return to consciousness. “Well, I chopped that demon into oblivion, so ha!”

“You used your Light and almost lost yourself,” Wilder shot back, catching the knife without even looking. “It was reckless, not heroic.”

His gaze met mine. I stared at him, not understanding. He spoke like I’d broken some sacred taboo without knowing, but that’s what they got when they tossed me back unprepared.

“Light shouldn’t be used without proper training,” he went on, scowling at me. “It doesn’t make you immortal.”

“Duh,” I said, rolling my eyes. The movement made my head ache and I winced. No, ‘hello, how are you’ from Wilder, just straight into the chastising.

“It’s attached to your life force. That’s why you feel like you’ve got a brutal hangover.” He leaned back in his chair with a sigh. “Ramona boosted your vitality and brought you back. You’ve been out for a few days, most of them spent in the infirmary.”

“How did I get here?”

“I carried you.”

“Gross, I meant the Sanctum.”

“Your nerdy boyfriend brought you here. And a nurse wheeled you here on a gurney. I wouldn’t carry anyone anywhere.”

“You carried Jackson.”

“Your boyfriend was different. The Codex demanded it.”

“He’s not my boyfriend,” I drawled. “And all I wanted to do was go home.”

Wilder’s eyes narrowed and he declared, “You were attacked by an Infernal, you used your Light to mark it, you passed out because you drained too much of your life force, and here you are. The other option was an irreversible coma in a hospital. The end.”

That didn’t sound like fun, but verbally sparring with Wilder wasn’t much better.

“Did Jackson tell you that? What happened with the Infernal?” I wondered what Wilder meant that I ‘marked it.

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