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But I don’t say any of those things, for obvious reasons. He stares at me, the fading sun highlighting the indigos in his hair, the hint of steel-blue in his eyes. His Adam’s apple bobs low as he swallows.
Then he jerks to his feet and stares into the setting sun. “We should probably head back now. The others will all be done.”
I sigh. “You haven’t been listening at all, have you? There is no raverous snake. At least, not here.”
His eyes narrow. “This game grows old, Princess.”
The sharp edge in his voice tells me it’s time to explain. That plus it’s almost dusk. “We need the venom from a raverous snake,” I begin, hoping it sounds more logical aloud than it does in my head. “But the raverous snake can only be found in a tiny region of the Spring Court.”
“So . . . there is no raverous snake?”
I glance down at the hemlock swamp below, a grin lifting my cheeks. “It’s like this game they play where I live called snipe hunting. They take the fool into the woods looking for the snipe, but the snipe doesn’t exist. It’s a fool’s errand.”
The way his eyebrows gather says he’s not convinced. “Then where do we get the venom? It must be possible since there have been prior winners.”
A roar comes from near the waterfall, the sound making every hair on my body stick straight up.
“From him,” I say, grabbing the flute from my pocket. “The chimera. He comes out at dusk to hunt.”
Wow. Saying that aloud sounds way worse than in my head. Comes out to hunt . . . and there’s only one thing here to hunt currently.
Us.
I can see the wheels turning behind the prince’s eyes. When the truth hits him, he smiles, the first true smile I’ve seen from him. “Chimeras are made up of a lion, a goat . . . and a snake for its tail.”
I could swear his voice sounds impressed.
“Yep. The textbook doesn’t say what kind of snake, but there’s mention of the serpent’s milky white venom being used for powerful spells . . . just like the raverous snake.”
“So, you brought us to the den of a chimera, the most dangerous mythological creature in the Summer Court, armed with only a flute?”
Okay, maybe I was getting ahead of myself when I thought he sounded impressed. There’s definitely anger in his voice now, and major judgement.
Another ear-splitting roar cracks the air. It’s closer than before. Probably only ten feet away.
Technically, the prince can’t use his powers, but that doesn’t stop him from pushing me behind him as the largest lion I’ve ever seen comes prowling around the trees. He’s the size of a horse, with a mane of shaggy wheat colored hair two shades darker than his pelt.
I thought I was prepared for the chimera. But there’s nothing that could have readied me for his immense size, the predatory power oozing from his graceful body. Muscles ripple beneath his golden fur like living things trying to escape.
From his back, a white goat’s head bleats at us.
As the beast pads lazily toward us, his tail whips back and forth behind him, hissing. I spot the snake head at the end, the retreating sunlight glancing off the dark green and yellow scales.
“There’s our snake,” I whisper, shoving my way to the front. I retrieve the vial from my pocket and slip it into his hand.
Before the prince can stop me, I approach the creature, the golden flute pressed to my lips. My heart spirals into my belly. The sound of my gasping breaths drowns out everything else.
“Hey, kitty-cat,” I coo. “Listen to this pretty song and don’t eat me, okay?”
In my head, I walk up to the chimera playing the flute like the badass I am, and he falls asleep at my feet. It’s supposed to be the defining moment of my life, a cool story to brag about for eternity.
But that’s not what happens at all.
40
The chimera growls, and I can feel the vibrations from that low rumble inside my bones. Closing my lips around the flute, I blow—
I don’t see the chimera’s paw until it’s too late. Claws snag the flesh of my shoulder, the force of his swat sending me tumbling toward the cliff. The flute jerks from my fingers. The prince calls my name.
