“Everyone ready for the moon?” I ask as he sits beside me.
“I hope so. Slightly and Nibs are disguising all the entrances that are too wide to brace, and Coy and Foy are shoring up everything else.”
If the moment when the moon is high in the sky is any indication, a full moon at full height might make the entire island go haywire. A flash of fangs and claws races through my mind and disappears into the dark recesses.
“Don’t worry.” He wraps an arm around me. “Nothing can touch you down here.”
“What about the shadows?” I ask.
“Those aren’t real. Geo just got spooked by the beasts that roam on nights like this. That’s all.” He points to my coffee. “Is it good?”
“It’s a delight. I’d offer you some, but I refuse to waste a drop.”
He laughs, the sound rich and deep. “Fair enough. That’s one of the things I love about you, Moira. You’re honest to a fault.”
“There’s a lot of things to love about me.” I take another sip.
“I can’t dispute that.” He rises and kisses my hair again. “I’ll make one final round, and then we can all settle in for a story, all right?”
“Sure.”
“I really want to hear more about the one you told about the miners who find something evil in the deep ground. It’s been my favorite.”
“Dark.” I smile into my coffee. “That’s one of my favorites too.”
“Then we both have good taste.” He raps his knuckles on the table then leaves.
I finish my coffee slowly, then head toward the map room. I’ve been curious about a few things—like if it shows how the Nevertree is connected to the rest of the island. Peter and Coy have mentioned that its roots go all the way to the sea on all sides. Is that on the map? Or did they somehow figure it out.
When I get there, a low fire is still burning, as if someone has been in here a while ago. Then I see the small daggers on the map, all of them in configuration around a carved wooden ship. The Jolly Roger. Peter must be waiting for it to be moored here so he can make his play to kill Hook. I make a mental note ofthe location, then look around at the rest of the map to see if the Nevertree is detailed on it. It isn’t, at least, its roots aren’t.
I trace my finger along the coastline and try to memorize the details of the map that might be of interest to me. It’s not as if I can tell directions here, but maybe if I can get some landmarks into my mind, I’ll be able to navigate if I’m ever caught out again.
My gaze flits back to the wooden ship. I wonder when they realized my pirate wasn’t coming back to the Jolly Roger. I instinctively look down at the wound on my leg, the one the pirate treated with gentle hands despite everything. Even though Hook wants me dead, that pirate didn’t harm me. In fact, he saved my life. Now he’s dead.
I rub my eyes again and realize I’ve been in here for a while. The small fire has died down to just embers now. Where’s Peter?
When I turn to leave, the embers spark and spit. I watch them and wonder if I should try to put them out. Then again, it’s not as if the cave can catch fire. They spark more, and that’s when I realize it’s because something is dripping onto them.
I stare and move closer. “What is that?” I see a few more drips of some dark liquid. “Water?”
One more step toward it, and I hear a ringing between my ears. Acid rises in my throat, and something inside me, something primal, tells me I need to get the hell out of here.
Backing away, I gasp when a black shape crushes the embers beneath it. Then it rolls from the fireplace and rises, coalescing into the shape of a boy.
“What the?—”
It screams, a high-pitched screech of terror and pain, and then it runs toward me.
I sprint into the hall, my leg aching but my fear in control. “Peter!” I yell for him as I run as fast as I can. Another scream echoes through the cave, and I can’t tell if it’s from the shadow in the map room or if there’s another in here somewhere.
Something darts out of a side room in front of me, and now I’m the one screaming.
“Moira!” Coy grabs me and scans the dark hallway at my back. “What is it?”
“A shadow! Behind me!”
He steps past me, keeping me at his back, and puts his fists up.
