My hand touched down on the hilt of the knife. It took all of my willpower not to pick it up and stake him through the heart.
“Chop, chop,” he said.
In the amplification of the big mirror, I saw my cheek twitching. I looked like I was going to lose it. Begrudgingly, I picked up the light amulet.
“I’m going to kill you,” I mouthed at him when I stepped back in line. I threw the amulet at him and cursed when he caught it easily.
The others took turns choosing. Everybody weighed up picking something that gave them an advantage versus something that would weaken another competitor. I wasn’t surprised when Kai chose the vials of potion. He hardly needed a weapon, but being without the ability to heal must have chafed at him. Nor was I surprised when Chanelle took the other light amulet. Kai latched on to her wrist before she could secure it.
“Drop it,” he said in a low growl. She did so with a guilty grimace.
“Jump,” I muttered under my breath in an imitation of Kai’s baritone.
“How high?” Andrei responded in a high-pitched mocking voice.
I burst out laughing despite myself. Then I had to bite my lips together to remain stoic. In the end, Chanelle picked the silver needles Andrei had discarded.
Storm clouds rolled across Max’s features when she stepped back in line. Silver needles were used to subdue shifters. She had judged him to be Kai’s biggest threat in the games.
Max spent a lot of time at the table. In the end, he shrugged his shoulders and stepped away empty-handed.
“Idiot,” Andrei said. I booted him in the shin.
Bradley took the other light amulet. The vampire girl glared at him so hard I thought he might burst into flame. The crowed descended into a chorus of equal booing and cheering. They just loved the scheming. I wanted to get this over and done with as quickly as possible.
The vampire girl ended up picking the bow. It was a good choice. If she made it through to the gladiatorial round, I could imagine she was thinking about shooting holes in Bradley’s wings.
When we were done, the guards carried the table away.
“From this point on,” Jacqueline said, “you are in the games. You will not be allowed out until we have a winner. The final eight of you will compete in the gladiatorial round. Remember that the Lodge is neutral ground. There will be no fighting inside of it.”
Another portal opened. “One pair at a time,” Jacqueline ordered.
Andrei and I had to wait until the end. As I stood there waiting to go through the gaping mouth of the portal, the crowd cheered the start of the games. A chill spiralled through me. What had I gotten myself into? I was about to step into a brutal battle of strength with supernatural creatures. Finally, it was our turn. Beside me, Andrei threw his head back and gave a maniacal battle cry. It sounded like something that wailed at you from a dark place. Well, at least I was going into this with the monster on my team.
46
There was a rock digging into my butt when we landed on the other side. Another one pushed right into the spot where I had been shot by an arrow. Until now I had gotten by on adrenaline, but I could feel it ebbing away. My limbs felt heavy.
Our surroundings were dim. The only light came from what appeared to be luminous fungi growing from between the rocks. I had to squint to see in front of my face. I almost squeaked when I saw the stalactite hanging from the ceiling. It took me a second to reason that it was unnaturally warm in here. Therefore, it couldn’t be the Hell cavern.
Angus’s voice rolled through the cavern. “To win a war, you will need a weapon. You just gave up yours. Go find new ones.”
I heard Andrei sniff the air. I did the same. It stank like sulphur. My heart raced in my chest. Andrei moved closer. I froze, remembering too late that he could hear my heartbeat.
“What is this place?” I asked aloud. My voice bounced against the walls, too loud in such a small space. The air was seriously warm. I placed my hand on the rocks and almost came away with blisters. What the heck?
“There’s a slight breeze coming from that way.” His voice came out barely above a whisper. I heard it clearly enough with the echo. He pointed to a space up ahead that grew darker as it got farther from the light.
We couldn’t blunder ahead in the dark. Then something occurred to me. “How well can you see in here?”
Andrei shrugged. “Well enough.” It took him a second to realise why I was asking. And then a grin split his face. “May I have your hand?”
I hoped he could see the evil eye I was giving him. Instead of reacting, I grabbed onto the hem of his T-shirt. “Aww, you’re no fun.”
“Just start walking!”
I didn’t even know why he was bothering to terrorise me while Kai wasn’t here. An ominous feeling pressed around me as we walked deeper into the gloomy cavern. The smell of sulphur grew stronger. Luckily it wasn’t the bitter death-coated smell of the stuff I had choked on in the Hell dimension. This sulphur had an almost charcoal aftertaste to it.
Vampiric sense of smell wasn’t as good as a shifter’s, but it was better than a human. “What do you smell?” I asked Andrei.
“Para-human stink,” he said.
I wanted very much to punch him in the back. His shirt bunched as I curled my fingers. “Oh calm down. I don’t have a problem with them. But you asked.”
There was no point arguing with him. “What do you think that means?”
The words had just come out of my
