Total pages in book: 151
Estimated words: 147649 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 738(@200wpm)___ 591(@250wpm)___ 492(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 147649 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 738(@200wpm)___ 591(@250wpm)___ 492(@300wpm)
It was a threat.
A very nicely worded, tightly controlled, polite-as-he-could-make-it threat.
“What is going on here, Tomas?”
“What does it look like, Pell?” His voice is normal now, and he pans a hand to the rubble that’s starting to pile up around us. “Things appear to be coming apart.”
“But what does it mean?”
“Might it be that the curse is coming apart as well?”
“But Pie said we can’t break the curse or the sanctuary won’t protect us anymore.”
Tomas sighs, then looks at the shadow in the corner. “Didn’t you ever wonder what it might be like when your curse was lifted?”
I shrug. “I dunno. I guess. Long time ago, when I still had hope that it might be broken.”
“Well, it appears that breaking the curse involves breaking the sanctuary. Don’t you think?”
I swallow hard. Because I don’t want to break the sanctuary. This is the only home I’ve ever known. I have some memories of my origins—unreliable ones, apparently. But I’ve been here for so long now, I’m not sure I want to leave.
“What did you think would happen, hmm?” Tomas is being kind, his voice soft and low. “Did you think you’d just walk out those gates and then come back when you got tired of your freedom?”
I let out a sigh, absently looking at shadows of flickering light on the dungeon walls. I squint, trying to understand what I’m seeing, then the room brightens again and I realize there are gemstones embedded into the walls. Huh. I shake myself out of it and get back on topic. “Well, maybe, I guess. I didn’t think it would just… crumble away and disappear. I thought maybe—”
“You could stay here forever? Just come and go as you please?”
“Yeah.”
“Do you really think that’s how it works?”
Another sigh from me. I’m so tired of all this drama. “Probably not. But… my tomb, Tomas. And your dungeon?”
“We’re going to lose them, Pell. We’re going to lose it all. So I guess we had better decide where we go from here, don’t you think?”
I don’t answer him. I can’t even picture a life outside this place.
“I cannot give you that door, Pell. I can’t. I need it. Look around. We’re almost out of time. I need to get Madeline and the babies out of here. And that door is how I do that. You understand, right?”
We’re staring into each other’s eyes. His are a bit glassy. I’m not sure if he would really give up the door if I insisted. Perhaps he would because I am the master of Saint Mark’s. But he would not want to. And if that’s the case, there’s no way I would be able to compel him without feeling like a complete shitbag later. So I nod. “I do. You keep the door. It was a gift.”
And then I turn to leave.
“Well, I didn’t say I wouldn’t help you, Pell. I’m happy to help you get back to your tomb.”
I turn back to him. “How?”
“Why don’t you use a hallway?”
“You mean… the ones upstairs?”
“Well, they’re not all upstairs, are they?”
“Oh. Right.” I glance over to the winding stairwell that leads up to the main level. “But those hallways are different, aren’t they?”
Tomas shrugs. “Why would they be different?”
“I dunno. I just assumed their only purpose was to rearrange the route to get to your dungeon.”
“I think the hallways are based on expectations. Why don’t you try expecting more of them?”
He’s got a point. I really have no expectations of the hallways. I just thought they were… I dunno. Something to placate me. To keep me occupied. So he could be right. It could be that I have low expectations of them.
Or no, not them. Me. I have low expectations of me. “Still, I don’t understand how this will get me to my tomb. I can find it in the hallways, I’m sure of that. But it’s just a memory.”
“Maybe you can command it to be more? Maybe that voice of yours just needs a little spelling to pop it into place. And you might try adding in some fire.”
“What?”
“Fire, Pell. You’re made of fire. Your horns are burning as we speak. You’re practically lighting up the room.”
I shift my eyes so I’m looking over my shoulder, trying to see my horns. They mostly go down my back, so I can’t see much of them. But I can see enough. They’re glowing. I’m the one making the room brighter. And this happened without my input when I perceived him as a possible threat. Like maybe it’s a defense mechanism.
“Useless magic.”
I look at Tomas. “What?”
“The hallways. It’s all so… stupid, don’t you think?”
I shrug. “I dunno. It’s kinda cool.”
“Cool? Do you really think that’s what magic’s about?”
My exhale comes out tired. “No. Of course not. It’s about power.”
“Exactly. And you’ve been given quite a bit of it. You have always claimed to be the master of Saint Mark’s. You have bellowed about this for thousands of years. But you have never really explored what that means. It’s time for you to grow up a little, Pell. It’s time for you to take some responsibility. It’s time for you to take back your life. Do you want to know what I’ve learned over the centuries?”