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“Grey, run!” he called, twisting his dagger from its sheath and swiping at the grotesque, spindly hand grasping at his leg. It screeched, and he scrambled to his feet, sprinting toward Grey in his panicked backpedal into the hall. The shock of Grey’s hand slipping into his gave him that boost of extra adrenaline he needed with a mimic nipping at their heels.
“Are you okay?” Grey called over the pounding of their soles hitting the rough stone and echoing through the corridor. “Did it get y?—”
A yelp, and his hand ripped from Noel’s grasp, pitching him forward with the counter momentum. The flashlight busted against the floor, the light spasming as Grey flailed in the grip of some towering, twisted tree-like humanoid.
Spriggan.
Grey wrestled his iron key free from the folds of his clothes and the creature screamed in pain, letting go of him. He hurtled toward Noel and fell face-first into his chest with a gasp as the flashlight rolled backward underfoot. Noel yanked him back to his feet and ran.
His pulse whispered go with each thump and Grey’s wild panting at his side. Everything faded to black at the edges as they sprinted back through the conservatory, dodging Spriggans peeling themselves from the walls and emerging from the faux forest. Through the hall, where they fumbled over trinkets and baubles.
Don’t take my finch from me, came a venomous threat digging into his skull.
Noel gritted his teeth. Fuck you. He squeezed Grey’s hand tighter as they flew through the main hall and with large spider-like creatures casting undulating shadows along the domed ceiling in their menacing descent.
Faster.
Over the downed trees and weaving through the broken hovels, they made one final push to the stream. The sound of its calming trickle was music to his ears: safety. Like a barrier between them and the fair folk. And all they had to do was hop across.
“Almost there,” Noel panted, slowing only once they reached the edge. He let go of Grey’s hand and ushered him forward on shaky legs while Noel looked back at the horrific creatures closing in behind them.
A scream. A splash. Noel turned back to see Grey’s hands clapped over his ears as a cry pried from him. “Stop! Leave me alone!”
Noel quickly laced his arm around him and pulled one of Grey’s hands away from his ears to wrap around the back of his neck. He hoisted him up, half-dragging him to the other side. “You’re okay. We’re okay. We need to get to the bike, and we’ll be safe.”
Grey’s sob cracked his heart in half.
“I won’t let that faerie bastard touch you,” Noel hissed, glancing back at the creatures now halted a mere meter away from the bank. They swayed and paced from side-to-side like Noel might come back and submit to them. His fingers dug into Grey’s ribs as they shambled over to their ride, and then he sent them flying through the woods.
17
NOEL
“I am so sorry,” Noel finally said as they passed the tree marked with a royal blue ribbon tied around the most prominent branch—a sign that they were almost back to Ivywood. He wasn’t sure if the silence had finally gotten to him or if it’d been the realization that he’d have to say something before they wandered back into the city to bargain for the only goods that might be able to free them. But he knew that guilt had carved into him the longer Grey leaned against his back.
“It’s okay,” he breathed.
“No, it’s not okay. I should’ve realized that damn fair folk would find a way to mess with you, and that it was too much of a risk.”
“You act like we’re not destined to die anyway, Noel,” he mumbled. “I should’ve been more careful.”
A scoff slipped from Noel, immediately regretting the dismissive way it sounded as Grey started to pull back. “This isn’t your fault. We just keep getting screwed in all of this.” He shook his head. “We’ll get back to Ivywood and bargain for some of the items those looters had. There’s got to be an alternative form of payment?—”
“I’m not sure they’ll be willing to part with any of it for anything that’s not money, and if they do, I don’t… I don’t…” His voice dropped to a trembling whisper as he tightened his grip on Noel’s jacket.
He had to resist the urge to cup one of his hands over Grey’s in reassurance. “I’ll get it worked out. Relax. I’ll take care of this for us.”
“Maybe we should just try somewhere else? Somewhere further away? I feel like the news has to have made it to the Grand Capital by now, which means that it’ll start to spread. If we waste too much time here trying to convince…”
Grey’s voice faded away as Ivywood came into view, and Noel took in the sight of the gate in the midday sun. Old, rusted, and holding back a small crowd of people—one of them turning to reveal a familiar face that made Noel’s stomach drop. “Oh no.”
“What?”
“Hey!”
Noel hit the gas, whizzing around the crowd as that hulking macharomancer Daz and his creepy Doctor boss sprinted to climb into their van. Screeches from bystanders leaping out of the way almost drown out the adrenaline-inducing boom of the Doctor’s shouted order for them to stop.
Like hell he would.
