Ashes of Chaos (Legacy of the Nine Realms #2) - Amelia Hutchins Page 0,137

large bounder for me to rest on while the others made their way over. Knox handed me a canister, and I shook my head, but he pushed it into my hands, ignoring me.

Crouching in front of me, he stared up, “Drink. It will help ease the pain. We have a few more miles to go, and you insist on walking it yourself, which I have respected. I won’t watch you suffer in pain, not even for your foolish pride, Aria.”

I removed the lid, happy to have the chain off the cuffs, even if it now hung and jangled every time I moved my arms. I pushed the canister to my lips and gasped in pain as the whiskey burned the cuts inside my mouth.

I closed my eyes, ignoring the agony, drinking deeply of the smooth whiskey, letting it soak into my bones and soothe my discomfort.

“You’re not nothing, Aria,” Knox whispered, and I snorted, passing back his fancy canister.

His words burned in my mind, knowing it mattered little what I was or wasn’t to him, since I wouldn’t be sticking around for long, anyway.

I tore my eyes from his stare, studying the moss while doing my best to pretend he didn’t exist. Varying shades of sage and lavender covered the side of the cliff to calm travelers that passed through. It was a nice touch, and something witches did to relax weary people or force their enemies into a false sense of calm before they turned them to ash.

Once all his men crossed the bridge, Knox held out his hand, and I ignored it, moving past him to start up the trail which was growing wider. We neared another large cave that was more like a tunnel, pausing at its moss-covered mouth. My hand moved to the sign with a mass of symbols announcing a place of sanctuary. It also warned that once you entered, you could not exit along the same path. A shiver snaked down my spine as I turned, staring at the men who watched me silently.

My attention slid to the altar, and I snorted as apprehension filled me. This was a place of sanctuary for wayward witches. It was a place where they came to find blessings and purpose, reclaiming their place among the Hecate ruling high queen.

Moving toward the altar, I opened the ancient stone box, withdrawing sage and a tiny jar of frankincense. I dipped the sage into the jar and then placed it onto the altar, watching as flames leaped to life from the magic.

“Did you just use magic?” Lore asked, causing me to turn and look at him.

“Blessed be, Lore,” I whispered, turning back to the altar. “I am of the blood who blessed this land, and I am seeking safe passage through her hand. Blessed be the lost souls, to find the light within the night, they come to thee seeking sanctuary. For those who are lost, and those who need found, blessed be, you’re homeward bound.”

I turned as the mountain lit up with glowing blue runes, stretching as far as the eye could see. Sage bloomed abundantly, opening up to free the scent while the lavender joined to fill the surrounding air. Knox held out his arm, indicating the entrance into the illuminated tunnel that mirrored the mountain walls.

I marveled at the stairs covered in glowing stones that looked as if someone had placed UV lighting beneath phosphate paint. Moving into the tunnel, I listened as it began singing a sultry, soulful tone that mirrored SVRCINA’s Who Are You as we slowly walked deeper onto the spiraling stairs that led down into the unknown.

The female singing switched to the song playing in my mind, and I smiled. The men behind me had no idea that the tunnel was listening to my soul, hearing my worries and fears while I moved further into the sanctuary.

As we reached the bottom of the spiral stone steps, I looked back, noting the runes that warned against entering. Someone had destroyed the sanctuary, and someone else had given those coming to it a dark warning of foreboding. Knox turned, staring at the steps as my eyes watered.

“We’re not supposed to be here.”

“No, they don’t like my kind here, Aria. After all, I am the murderer of witches and wicked things,” Knox snorted, moving ahead of me.

I swallowed hard, following behind him silently, lost in my thoughts. We stepped out of the tunnel into an abandoned village. The scent of decay filled my senses. Altars sat