Page 46 of Kingdom Of Veil And Vow

Bella exhales roughly, dragging her hand through her hair and tugging the strands away from her face. “I suppose I hadn’t considered that possibility.”

“It’s fine.” Walking to the hidden door, I feel my way around its edges until I find the gap in the roughened stone beneath my fingertips. Pressing on it, the door opens, a rush of cool air from the tunnel spilling out. Panic burns brightly within me, but it’s too late to go back now. For better or worse, Bella is about to know that there are tunnels and secret rooms hidden beneath the castle. “But we need to hurry. Time is limited.”

“What is that?” Looking over my shoulder at her, I watch as she studies the tunnel from a few feet away, her eyes peering into the darkness ahead of us. “It looks like it was carved out of the castle itself.”

“It’s a tunnel. Not exactly carved out of the castle but certainly put there as the stone was being laid. The uses for them aren’t exactly known, but we believe that they may have been meant for the royals to traverse secretly were an attack from above to come.”

“From above… like dragons?” she asks, taking a small step forward.

“Dragons, yes. Though I imagine they may have also used the tunnels to hide from all manner of magical beings. Sirens and mages and shifters alike.”

She nods, but her face remains skeptical. “And what are they used for now?”

“Now they are mostly abandoned. Only a select few know about their existence, and those that do use them for a specific purpose.”

She arches a light brow. “And what might that be?”

I don’t answer, instead reaching for the small torch set within the tunnel’s entrance. Striking one of the matches also laid there, I let the small flame grow until its amber light dances along the inner walls.

“You’re not expecting that I will—”

“I am because, as I mentioned, time is limited. If you don’t want to go, that is fine. I will bring you back to your cell and then bring what supplies I can to you there.” Her gaze snaps back to mine. “But, if you can pause your stubbornness for just a moment, I promise I will make it worth your time.”

“Your promises hold no weight,” she whispers. Worse has been said to me, but that doesn’t soften the sting.

Still, I extend my free hand out to her and hold her gaze, my heart a steady beat in my chest. “The choice is yours.”

Her eyes bounce from me to the tunnel and then back out to the room before she finally closes the distance between us. Stopping just short of my outstretched fingers, she swallows and then lifts her hand tentatively towards mine. Her fingers are warm against my palm, and there’s a brief flicker in her expression at the contact that has me holding my breath as I turn and look back within the tunnel again. Stepping past the threshold, I instruct her on how to close the door before warning her to keep her head low.

“It’s helpful if you drag your hand along the ceiling, just so you don’t accidentally bump your head.” Gods know I have done it far too many times to count. Bella does as I instruct, her fingers flexing in my grasp as I lead us down into the tunnel. “It’s a short journey.”

“And where does it lead?” she asks, voice gently echoing. “I should have asked before deciding to join you in a tunnel where no one can hear me scream.”

“Most of the tunnels spill to other rooms within the castle, though a few do lead outdoors. Where we are going is a space that has long been forgotten. Abandoned like so many but still useful to me and my men.”

“Your men?”

My face falls flat at her connotation. I suppose I could have worded that differently. “My community,” I amend, hoping she doesn’t question it further. I may be willing to show her this portion of the tunnel, but it’s only a tiny section of the whole and only gives access to these two points. The other door out of the abandoned room is also hidden, and though it can be found if one looks hard enough, I wouldn’t dare give Bella any hints about where it is while we are there.

“Other guards?”

“Some, yes.” I quicken our pace, the flame responding by flickering. Bella doesn’t ask any more questions, and soon, the end of the tunnel is in sight.

“It smells of something ancient in here,” she says when I release her hand, reaching for the handle of the second door.

“These spaces date to the creation of the castle itself, and no one really knows exactly when it was built.” Blowing out the torch, I set it against the wall and tug the door open, Bella following closely behind me.

There are two flame gems set in this room, amber light cast from the corners and out towards the center, setting everything in a soft glow. I give her time to let her eyes adjust before walking over to the small tub.

“This is what I wanted to show you.” My lips quirk when I see the spare towel and soaps set on a turned-over crate next to the tub. Tienne had thought of things I didn’t. “This curtain”—I grab the white cloth hanging from a rafter above—“can be pulled into place so that you have a little bit of privacy.” Striding over to the makeshift dinner table, I lift the silver dome lid, releasing the savory scents of the food trapped beneath it. “And when you’re done, you can enjoy a meal.”

I’m not sure what I expected when offering Bella a way to bathe and food to eat, but it certainly isn’t the quiet that rolls into the room and sits heavily like fog between us. The seconds drag by as she stares at me, her expression damn near unreadable.

“If you’re worried that I might try to take advantage of you, I promise—”

“Save your promises for someone who is not actively your prisoner.” Twisting her hands together, she sighs and looks back to the tub. “That said, I do not think you will try to take advantage of me, but I’ll still remind you that my magic is unpredictable right now, so perhaps, don’t risk it.”

“I’ll face the wall.”