The Kingdom Cursed by Iron by Zara Storm

Author:Zara Storm [Storm, Zara]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2024-06-05T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 20

We’re heading deep underground. I can tell from the way the normally warm air begins to cool. As we walk in silence, I’m keenly conscious of my nearness to Ruskin. The silence gives me too much room to dwell on the time we were last together. It ended disastrously, but before that…the feel of his lips on mine and his hands on my skin were so intense, so perfect, that I haven’t been able to stop thinking about them. I’m angry at him for manipulating me under any circumstances, but if I’m honest, a part of me is especially mad that we couldn’t enjoy that moment—couldn’t give in to our desire. He had to go and spoil things.

“What makes you think I can move this iron?” I ask, looking to distract myself. “I couldn’t do it in the gallery before.”

“It’s not a lot. And you’re stronger now. You proved that much the other day.”

I did, in the valley, right before we…

No. Not going there. I turn my neck, squinting at the passageway around us, dimly lit by faerie lights. I look for something to distract me.

“How old is this place, anyway?”

“Millenia,” Ruskin says, his voice hushed with reverence for the space. “We don’t know who built it, but when they laid the foundation for the palace, they dug deep. We still have a bit of a walk yet.”

I try to wrap my head around that amount of time and fail. I’ve been around for two decades. To me, even a century seems impossibly long ago. It does for most humans. But the fae are a different matter.

“How old are you?” I blurt out, suddenly realizing I don’t have any real idea.

Ruskin glances at me.

“Three hundred and twenty-two.”

My jaw drops, but I quickly clamp it shut again. I knew he had centuries on me, but hearing it said so casually kind of puts it into perspective.

The passageway levels out, then splits into several directions. Remembering Cebba’s labyrinth in the Emerald Forest, I shudder. Hundreds of available paths but only one way out.

“So this is how you keep the stone’s location hidden?” I ask.

Ruskin nods. “You could wander these corridors for years and never find it unless you knew where you were going.”

“But you definitely do, right?” I ask as he strides ahead.

He lets out a low chuckle. “Yes. Since I was a child. The monarch’s family is taught early. We don’t just use the stone to rule, we’re supposed to protect it too.”

I keep close behind him, still not convinced I won’t get lost in this maze. I hate the part of me that wants to reach out to him for comfort and protection. I’m still haunted by the ghost of how he made me feel—safe, loved.

I keep my hand down at my side.

Eventually, the passage we’re in widens and we approach a circle of stone columns. A figure paces the perimeter, and as we get closer, I see it’s Evanthe, looking magnificent in a silver dress, the bodice sparkling in the faerie lights like it’s covered with stars.

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