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He raised his outstretched hand in the air placatingly and backed away a step. She held out a hand for the paper map he still held, unrolling it after he silently handed it over and backed off to stand beside us.
“Help,” he hissed, making Zeke release a low chuckle.
“No chance, dude,” he answered as I grinned.
“I’m sure the golden boy can dig his own way out of trouble.”
He scoffed at my words, glancing between us in disbelief. “Seriously?!”
We shrugged, quickly wiping the grins from our faces as Cordelia looked back and snapped at us to help her.
“She’s ‘fine’,” I murmured to him as we walked forwards, earning myself a punch on the arm which only increased my amusement.
“Right,” she announced as she gave Zeke the paper map to hold. “I think we should head towards the castle, checking these sections as we go.”
I sobered up as I watched her finger roam across the map, showing us a route that made sense. She touched the entrances marked on Ulf’s map to show us how they matched up and gave us an expectant look as she finished.
“Would you like to check with each other that the lowly female’s plan is acceptable?”
I raised a brow at her, refusing to pander to her mood but not wanting to come under fire. “When have you ever needed our permission to do anything, Princess?”
She huffed but Noah interrupted before she could answer. “It’s a good plan, Cor. Great.”
She rolled her eyes at him as Zeke spoke, placing his finger on a section of map. “This entrance is close to the treaty meeting place. We should go up and get the other stones on our way past. It’s not much of a detour.”
Pain shot through me at the memory of what had happened when we were last there, forcing me to shove it down and away so that I didn’t lose focus. I knew that my grief wasn’t going to disappear; I just didn’t have time for it now. My mate and my pack were my first priorities, and I came last on the list.
Cordelia nodded and walked back to the stairway, raising her hands and starting to gather power between them.
“Let’s go then. Just stand back in case the roof comes down.”
I frowned in concern but knew by now to trust her. Moving over to the tunnel that would take us through this maze, we watched as she built swirling magic in her palms.
With a physical push, she shoved the large orb upwards. It soared up the stairway and out of sight, giving her time to back up towards us before a loud boom sounded from above. The thundering crack and rumble of breaking rock echoed around us as the walls shook. Cracked stone tumbled down the stairwell as I looped an arm around her waist and pulled her back into the tunnel with us.
Her grip on my forearm tightened as the chamber before us began to collapse. The stairway disappeared in a cloud of dust, the roof caving in and plunging us into darkness as we backed further into the passageway.
“Fuck,” Cordelia muttered, her pulse pounding hard enough for us to hear as her panic flowed down the bond.
Tightening my arms around her, I buried my face in her neck as the sound and movement in front of us settled.
“You’re safe,” I murmured at the same time as the others spoke.
“Make a light so you can see, baby girl.”
“It’s over, you’re ok.”
With a shuddering breath, she sparked power in her hand and created another orb of light. Noah cupped her face in his hands with concern on his face as Zeke watched her warily.
“Why the panic, Cordy?” he asked simply.
“I just locked us down here,” she answered shakily. “I’ve been trapped underground in the dark enough times to know how much I hate it.”
Understanding rolled through me as I remembered her past. Noah seemed to reach the same realisation as he rubbed his thumbs over her cheeks and forced her to hold his gaze in the dim light.
“You’re not back there, sweetheart. You’re not alone and you’re not powerless.”
She forced out a shaky laugh. “Thank gods you’re here. The boredom was the worst part. Ever tried having a conversation with a guard? The rats pay more attention.”
