Zodiac Academy Fated Throne - Caroline Peckham Page 0,88

the roots rearranged beneath it to form a stairway leading down into the dark.

“Holy shit,” Seth breathed. “This is awesome. But why the fuck am I even here?”

I looked to Gabriel for an explanation, but he just smiled like a mysterious bastard and headed down the steps. I’d grown pretty used to Gabriel evading explanations about the things he did, but it was still frustrating sometimes.

I shrugged at Seth and he moved behind me as we followed Gabriel who’d cast a Faelight to see by. As we reached a damp tunnel far below ground, the sound of the roots retreating made me turn back and my heart thudded harder as the ground closed up above us once more, leaving us down here in the dark.

Gabriel directed his floating orb of light toward the wall, pointing out another Hydra symbol there. “You can get out again just as easily.”

I nodded, examining the old mark and wondering if my father had once used this passage. Had he stood right here where I was now, with all his plans for the future? Had my mother come here with him? How long had she known they were going to die?

The gifts of a Seer had to be a curse in that way. Surely they’d see their death coming long before it ever passed.

We followed Gabriel into the dark, our footsteps the only sound between us as we moved along the narrow passage.

We eventually reached a fork in the path and Gabriel turned right without even hesitating, leading us along until the floor beneath us began to rise.

I tried not to freak out over the fact that at the end of this tunnel was Orion. Which I sort of managed, mostly because I was still processing that shit. I needed to get my game face on because I was wholly unprepared for seeing him again.

“Why would Lionel get him out of prison?” I asked Gabriel.

“You won’t like it,” he said darkly.

“When do I like anything Lionel does?” I said coldly as worry splintered through my chest.

“Touché,” Gabriel said. “Unfortunately, Lionel apparently now has his own Seer. And he’s using the Royal Seer’s Chamber. Because of him, Lionel now knows about Orion’s diary.”

“What?” I gasped, horror filling me. “But when you tried to use the chamber during the summer, it wouldn’t work for you. How can-”

“Because Vard has been appointed the position by Lionel - who is the King whether we like it or not. And that means the chamber is his to use until you and Tory can dethrone him.”

“And this Vard dude is as powerful as you?” I questioned, my gut knotting with anxiety at the thought of that because if that was the case then I didn’t know how we would ever be able to strike at Lionel without him knowing we were coming.

“No fucking way, he’s not as powerful as me. But with the use of the chamber, he’ll be able to see more than we’d like. Don’t worry, I’ll make sure that I’m watching everyone carefully though. He won’t get around me.”

“So has Lionel taken the diary?” Seth asked, his own panic clear. We’d been pinning our hopes on that diary. What were we going to do without it?

“No, it seems it is still in Lance’s possession, but I don’t know the details. The shadows conceal Lionel’s plans to me because he is with Clara so much, but I’ve seen enough to know that we’ll be safe to visit Lance and that he may have some answers for us.”

“Okay,” I said heavily, my gut clenching as this news settled over me. My pulse was thumping so loudly in my ears that it was hard to hear anything else.

We reached a set of stone steps and Gabriel cast a silencing bubble around us as we climbed them. A crack of light appeared around a wooden hatch in the ceiling and as we reached the top of the steps, we had to hunch over beneath the low ceiling. Gabriel and Seth practically had to crouch with how tall they were.

“There, Darcy,” Gabriel said, pointing to the Hydra mark engraved on the hatch. I swallowed my nerves, reaching up and pressing my palm to it.

The mark gleamed and a click sounded the hatch unlocking. I pushed it, using my air magic to swing it open. Well, it’s probably best to get this over with sooner rather than later.

I cast air magic under my feet, propelling myself up into a white kitchenette with blue flowers