The Underworld Crown (Series)

Chapter 22

I jolted upright, trying to get my bearings. The sky was now a deep red; it looked as though the sun was setting, despite there being no sun at all.

I sat alone on Calista, but there was a soft rustling of someone from behind me. A dampness on my cheeks made me realise that the woman in my dreams had been right: I really had been crying in my sleep. I swiped at my cheeks hurriedly and spun in my seat to see Alek removing his belongings from the saddle.

I groaned internally, knowing he definitely would have seen me crying and wouldn't have known how to handle it. To save us both the awkward conversation, I planted an innocent expression on my face and slid from Calista, landing louder than I'd expected. My muscles ached from a day of riding horseback and my co-ordination was sluggish after having just woken up.

"Hey," I said.

He glanced at me as he searched through one of his bags. "Hey?"

"How long was I asleep?" I asked.

"Too long. Your snoring could have woken up the entire Underworld."

Damn it.

The goddess really had been spying on us.

As if she could read my mind, Calista swung her gaze to me and her red eyes burned, making me freeze. I tried to peer into hers, hoping that by doing so I might be enlightened or gain some kind of holy intervention about who this supposed goddess was.

Instead, Calista reared her head back and snorted in my face. I sputtered and stumbled away into no man's land, wrapping my arms around myself as I watched Alek unpack, trying to ignore the strange sensation that the goddess, wherever she was, was laughing at me.

I debated on telling Alek about this woman, but then decided there was no way I'd be able to make him believe me.

I could only imagine how that conversation would go: 'Hey, Alek, I'm having dreams about a woman who can spy on us through Calista and knew that I was snoring and crying. I think we should ditch your horse' – yeah, right.

Alek held up a steel flask in my direction.

"Just have a couple sips," he instructed. "We need to portion our supplies. Normally I'd prepare Calista with more, but I wasn't expecting to leave Sloth City in such a hurry."

I took the flask from him hesitantly, peering into its contents. A clear liquid sloshed around inside. It looked like water, but I wouldn't know for sure if it had been tampered with or not until I took a sip.

Alek scoffed at my hesitance. "It's just water. If I wanted to kill you, you'd be dead already."

Alek leaned back on his heels, his arm muscles tensing as he shifted through bags and pulled out his sword, marvelling at its beauty. The intensity of his eyes was frightening. There was a strong calculation there, like he knew exactly how to use that sword, and longed for when he'd next be able to use it.

He was right – if he wanted me dead, I already would be.

I lifted the flask to my lips and rejoiced as coolness flooded my mouth, providing a fleeting reprieve from the heat. Before I could fully enjoy the sensation, I capped the flask once again, handing it back to Alek with some reluctance.

"Do you think Kadyn and Leo will be okay?" I asked, a pang of concern hitting me. I may have just met Leo, but in many ways he felt like a sibling of mine.

He rubbed his jawline and nodded. "Kadyn will say we took them hostage – they'll be fine, the guards will probably forget they were even at the scene. I'd say we should be more concerned for ourselves." His gaze shot to me, his eyes narrowing. "Why is there a bounty over your head, anyway?"