A BLOOD Oath

What Almost Happened

The tunnel groaned again. Stone cracked above them. The sound was loud enough to shake dust from the ceiling.

Arielle's heart pounded against her ribs.

Behind them the collapse kept coming. Fast.

Water surged harder around their boots. Pieces of rock crashed into the stream.

“We need another way " Sera shouted.

“There is no way around!" Eamon snapped back.

Kael shoved hard against the fallen stone blocking the tunnel ahead. His muscles tightened beneath his shirt. His jaw was clenched with effort.. The rocks barely moved.

Arielle came to his side.

“What do I do?"

“Step back."

“No."

“Arielle!"

“We don’t have time to argue!"

Another violent c***k echoed behind them. The tunnel shook hard this time that Arielle nearly lost her balance. Kael caught her. He steadied her against him for one second. Then he pulled away again.

It was too brief.

It made her too aware.

The oath pulsed sharply between them.

Lucien crouched near the edge of the blockage. He studied the rocks carefully. Water rushed around his boots.

“There’s a gap " he said suddenly.

Eamon blinked. "A gap for what? A rat?"

“For Arielle."

Everybody looked at him.

Arielle frowned. "Excuse me?"

Lucien pointed toward an opening between the rocks near the bottom.

“He’s right " Sera realized. "Someone smaller could fit through."

Arielle looked at the space.

"Absolutely not."

“There’s no room to breathe in there."

Kael’s expression hardened instantly.

“No."

Lucien looked unimpressed. "The tunnel is collapsing."

“I said no."

“We’re running out of time."

Another section crashed behind them.

The cold water had risen to Arielle’s calves.

Her heart pounded painfully.

If they stayed there longer they were going to die underground.

Arielle looked back toward the opening again.

Then at Kael.

“We don’t really have another choice."

His eyes snapped toward her.

“You are not crawling through that rock alone."

“Would you rather we all get buried here?"

Kael looked ready to argue

Lucien cut in first.

“She goes through, finds a way to clear the side and we follow."

“That plan sounds terrible " Eamon muttered.

“It is terrible " Sera agreed. " But it’s still the best one we have."

Kael’s jaw tightened harder.

Arielle stepped closer before he could shut the idea down again.

“I can do this."

“No."

The answer came instantly.

Firm. Sharp.

For some reason that irritated her.

“You don’t get to decide everything."

“You don’t understand how dangerous this is."

“I understand perfectly."

The tunnel shook again violently.

Dust filled the air and it made Arielle cough hard.

“We don’t have time for this!" she snapped.

Kael stared at her for one second.

Then he finally looked away.

That somehow felt like surrender.

“I hate this plan " he muttered quietly.

Arielle almost smiled despite the situation.

“That makes two of us."

Lucien moved toward the opening.

“We should hurry before the tunnel decides for us."

That was deeply comforting.

Arielle dropped to her knees beside the gap. Cold water soaked through her clothes instantly. She looked into the darkness beyond the rocks.

It looked impossibly tight.

“You’re certain I can fit through this?"

“No " Lucien answered honestly.

Eamon looked horrified. "Why would you say that now?"

Arielle took a breath.

Then another.

She started squeezing through.

The stone scraped painfully against her shoulders.

It was too tight. Way too tight.

Her breathing quickened.

Behind her the others sounded far away now beneath the rushing water and cracking stone.

“Arielle " Kael’s voice came sharply "keep talking."

She swallowed hard.

“I’m trying not to panic."

“ Good plan."

“Not helping."

The tunnel groaned again.

Arielle squeezed through the narrow space. She tried not to think about thousands of pounds of rock above her head.

The gap tightened around her ribs painfully.

For one second, she got stuck.

Her chest seized instantly.

No.

No no no—

Her breathing quickly became shallow.

Behind her Kael felt it immediately through the oath.

“Arielle."

Panic hit him too.

Sharp enough to make her feel it inside her chest.

“I’m fine " she lied quickly.

“You’re not."

Wonderful.

Now he could feel her lying too.

Arielle shut her eyes tightly.

Focus.

Breathe.

Move.

She forced herself forward again. She ignored the scrape of stone against her skin.

Suddenly, she broke through to the other side hard enough to stumble forward onto wet ground.

Air rushed back into her lungs.

For a second she just stayed there breathing.

Then she heard Kael’s voice again from the other side.

“Arielle."

Tense. Still waiting.

“I made it " she called back quickly.

The relief that hit through the oath almost startled her.

Strong. Immediate.

Too strong.

It vanished as quickly as it came.

She felt it.

Arielle pushed herself upright. She grabbed the lantern Lucien had shoved through after her.

The tunnel continued ahead before curving sharply right.

The rocks blocking the passage looked looser from this side.

“I think I can move some of them!"

“Hurry!" Sera shouted back.

Another c***k thundered through the tunnel.

Arielle immediately started pulling stones away from the blockage. Her hands shook from cold and adrenaline... Slowly, piece by piece the opening widened.

Water rushed around her boots.

The tunnel was definitely collapsing.

A larger rock shifted suddenly under her grip.

Then it slipped.

“Arielle move!" Kael shouted.

Too late.

The stone crashed downward beside her. It knocked her sideways, hard enough to slam her against the wall.

Pain exploded through her shoulder.

At the same moment, Kael staggered on the other side.

The oath.

Arielle sucked in a breath.

“I’m okay!"

“You’re bleeding."

“How do you even know that?"

There was silence.

Right... The blood oath.

Arielle looked down.

Blood ran slowly down her arm. The rock had torn through fabric and skin.

Through the oath she felt Kael’s anger immediately.

Not at her.

At the situation.

At himself.

At the fact that he couldn’t reach her.

The realization settled strangely in her chest.

Nobody had protected her in a long time.

Not since her family died.

“Arielle " Kael said again quieter this time "step away from the wall."

The tone caught her off guard.

Not commanding.

Worried.

Actually worried about her.

She stared at the rocks for a second before obeying.

Then Kael slammed hard against the blockage from the side.

Once.

Twice.

The rocks shifted violently.

“What are you doing?" Sera snapped.

“Making space."

“You’re injured!"

“I noticed."

Arielle almost laughed despite everything.

Idiot she thought.

Absolute i***t.

Before she could say anything the rocks suddenly gave way enough for a larger opening to appear between them.

Kael pushed through first.

The second he reached her his hands grabbed her shoulders quickly. He needed proof she was still standing.

His breathing was uneven now.

Closer than before.

Arielle looked up at him.

There was dirt on his face. Blood soaking through his bandages again. Exhaustion in his eyes.

Fear, still there.

For her.

The realization hit harder than it should have.

“You’re hurt " he said quietly.

“So are you."

The tunnel rumbled again around them.. For one strange second it felt distant.

Everything did.

Kael’s hands were still on her shoulders.

Arielle became painfully aware of how he was standing.

Too close.

The oath pulsed warmly between them.

Not painful this time.

Something softer.

Something dangerous.

Her eyes dropped briefly to his mouth before she could stop herself.

This is a mistake.

A big mistake. Because Kael noticed.

The look in his eyes shifted instantly.

The air between them changed.

For one terrifying moment, Arielle thought he might kiss her.