Page 230 of Commanding Blood And Bonds

“So?” I yelled up, backing into a run and leaping to grab the rope.

“Yes!” she barked, voice strained as she took my weight. Freya threw herself backward, heels sliding over bone as I scrambled up. Together, we collapsed flat on our backs, sucking in breath as the sound of rushing water finally faded.

“So, there’s a way out of this then?”

“That’s what I’m clinging to. She’s usually good about warning us if we might die. But even the best seers miss shit.”

“Yeah,” I muttered, rising to my feet and sweeping my flashlight forward into pitch black.

“No more ledges?”

“No more ledges,” she confirmed, but her tone was far from reassuring. She reached into her pocket and fished out the rock. With a furrowed brow, I mirrored her as she knelt, cocked her arm, and tossed the stone like she was skipping it across a lake. It clanked loudly on the floor, bounced forward, and then…nothing.

She exhaled, stood, and grabbed my hand. “Stay behind me.”

“What?”

“No questions. Just commands.”

“No wonder you were best friends with my mother.”

She stopped short. I nearly collided with her before she turned to glare up at me.

I raised my hands in surrender, chuckling. “My bad. Not the time.”

“Asshole,” she muttered, resuming her careful march. We caught up to the stone, she knelt again and repeated the throw.

“What exactly are we testing for?” I asked.

“Trust me. You don’t wanna know.”

I followed her as she slid the stone across the floor again. “I’m just saying, maybe it’s time to find a different place for your treasure trove, you fucking dragon.”

“You coming back down here to help me move it?”

“Hell no. But I’ll rent the moving van.”

“A generous offer,” she scoffed, lips twitching. Another throw.

“Seriously, what kind of lunatic does this more than once?”

“The kind with a habit of acquiring things other people want.”

“Like what?”

“Oh, I dunno, maybe a crown that siphons power and funnels it to an overlord?”

“Did you die hiding that, by chance?”

“What?”

“I just don’t remember any stories about you being a siphon. Wondering if you died holding the damn thing and stole its power.”

“Interesting theory,” she said—right before the floor snapped.

Freya froze, mouth and eyes wide. “Go,” she breathed, body rigid.

“What?”