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Levet silently wondered if all minotaurs were so obstinate. Of course, it wouldn’t be easy to admit that his decisions had condemned his people to certain death.
“It no longer matters what you believe. The damage has been done.”
“No.” The male abruptly stepped toward the edge of the balcony, waving his hand toward the minotaurs below. “You simply need the proper motivation.”
Levet watched the creatures scurry back into the fortress, his heart dropping to the tips of his toes. The minotaurs had no one to blame but themselves for the terrifying darkness, but he didn’t want to watch them being sacrificed in a futile attempt to change their destiny.
Still, he couldn’t reveal his weakness. The only way to stop this useless game was to refuse to play.
“You can allow the darkness to suck up as many screaming minotaurs as you want….” Levet grimaced. “Although I wish you would not; it is a horrible thing to witness. But it does not give me the power that is needed to close the hole.”
The male turned to face Levet. “I have a different motivation in mind.”
“More ale? Dancing girls?” Levet guessed, his wings drooping when the minotaur reached into the back pocket of his leather pants. Was he reaching for a weapon? Probably. “Is it torture?” Levet heaved a deep sigh. “I hate torture.”
“There’s no need.”
Surprisingly, the minotaur didn’t pull out a dagger. Instead, it was a round silver hoop the size of an orange. At first it appeared to be empty inside, but as he held it toward Levet there was a strange shimmer, as if an image was being formed. Was it some sort of scrying device? Levet had never seen anything like it.
About to snatch the thing out of the male’s hand so he could more closely inspect it, Levet felt his heart stutter to a halt as the image came into focus and he could see the large female attired in a bright lime muumuu lying unconscious on a grassy field.
“Inga,” he breathed in horrified shock. There was no mistaking the red tufts of hair and the solid body that could walk through a brick wall. Not to mention the Tryshu clutched in her hand. The large trident was the symbol of authority among the merfolk and only the true king or queen could touch it. “Where is she? What have you done to her?”
“She is my insurance that you will fulfill your destiny,” the minotaur informed him.
Levet’s gaze remained locked on the image even as he promised himself he would skewer the minotaur and roast him over an open fire if something happened to his beloved. “Is she hurt?”
“No. She’s simply asleep.” There was a tense pause. “For now.”
“Where?”
“In the labyrinth.”
Levet forced himself to lift his gaze to study the minotaur’s face. He needed to determine if the male was telling him the truth.
“How did she get there?”
“We created a gateway into the merfolk castle.”
“Impossible.” Levet shook his head.
Inga had opened the castle to visitors and encouraged her own people to travel and explore the world, but there were still thick layers of magic that protected the merfolk. Including spells to keep gateways from being formed without the approval of the guards. Not to mention that the Tryshu that Inga carried was capable of destroying entire cities. Perhaps the world itself if she was mad enough.
“The magic of the labyrinth came from our goddess. Nothing is impossible.”
Levet scowled. Perhaps they had managed to open a gateway, but there was no way they could force Inga into the labyrinth.
“That doesn’t explain how she got there.”
“Actually, it was easier than we expected,” the minotaur confessed, a lingering surprise in his voice. “We created the opening and expected to have to battle to capture her. Instead, she walked in. I assume she wanted to discover what it was and if it was a danger to her people.”
“Sacrebleu. Of course she did.”
Levet didn’t doubt Inga had willingly walked straight into disaster. She had many fine qualities. She was kind and loyal and beautiful. At least to him. But she refused to accept that her position as queen meant that she should do everything in her power to keep herself safe. Instead, she regularly plunged headfirst into trouble in an effort to protect her people. And she had the audacity to callhimreckless.
“Now will you help?” the male demanded.
Levet wanted to lie. He wanted to assure the male that if the labyrinth would release Inga, he would close the stupid hole and everything would be hockey dockey. Wait…that wasn’t right. Okey dokey? Whatever. But as hard as he tried, the words wouldn’t form.
