“We’ll go back inside and wait for Wrath to leave the labyrinth,” Corson said. “He’ll be easier to take out now that he’s alone, and we should be able to kill him before he gets close to everyone else.”
Bale closed her eyes before replying, “Yes, that will work.”
“Do you need Aisling and me for that?” I asked.
“Why?” Lix inquired. “What do you have planned?”
I pointed toward the town. “I want to see if the minotaur’s death brought down the barrier. There could also be survivors.”
“I think me, Wren, Lix, and Bale can handle Wrath,” Corson said.
“I agree,” Lix said and rested his hand on my shoulder. “Be careful not to get too close until you know the barrier is down.”
“Believe me, I’m not getting trapped in there again,” I assured him.
“We’ll see you soon,” Corson said.
I nodded before walking away. Nadine had taken Oliver back from her and was sitting against the mountain while he slept on her lap. I stopped to kneel beside her and brushed the hair back from Oliver’s face. He was so exhausted his eyelids didn’t flicker.
“We’ll find some food soon,” I told Nadine.
“We’re okay.” She rested her hand on Oliver’s nape. “He’s free.”
“So are you.”
“So areallof us.”
I rose and walked over to Aisling. Shadows rimmed her eyes, but she smiled when I extended my hand to her. “What about the minotaur?” she asked as she took my hand and rose.
“Dead,” I told her. “The fire was destroying it, and apparently it couldn’t run through the mountain.”
Her shoulders slumped, and she swayed toward me. “Thank God.”
“The others are going to wait for Wrath to emerge, but I want to see if the barrier has fallen and if there are any survivors.”
“I hope there are,” she whispered. “I feel like we abandoned them.”
“They made their choice.”
“I don’t think they expected thewholetown to burn.”
“They knew it was a possibility, and they could have come with us. They were too scared to enter the labyrinth though.”
“Do you blame them?”
“Yes, because one way or another, they were going in there; it was either going to be with us or the minotaur, and they refused to fight for their chance at freedom.”
“They chose to cling to their lives for as long as they could,” she said.
I draped my arm around her shoulders and pulled her close to kiss the top of her head. Her hands dug into my back as she rested her forehead against my chest. I still considered them cowards, but it wasn’t worth arguing over it.
“Do you want to come with me?” I asked.
“Yes.”
She rose onto her toes to kiss me. Her fingers lingered on my cheek before she stepped away. I reluctantly released her before walking over to reclaim my ax. Aisling retrieved her spear and waited for me to join her by the entrance of the cave.
When I glanced inside the cave, I spotted Corson, Wren, Bale, and Lix striding toward the distant glow of the fire. A row of demons stood in front of the cave. Some of them faced outward while the others faced inside the cave. The demons would see any threat coming and alert the others.
