I cut him off in midsentence, tossed the phone and purse over onto the passenger seat, then climbed into the car.
And only then realized I wasn't alone in the car.
Chapter 10
For a moment, fear froze me to the spot. And that's all it took for the Ania to wrap tightly around me and prevent movement. Amaya was screaming inside my head, her fury burning through my body and her flames flickering across my skin like angry fireflies.
"Azriel!" I screamed, physically and mentally, even as the Ania ripped me free of the seat and the car. I felt the heat of his approach. Then power exploded and there was no Azriel, no world, only darkness and an uneasy sense of movement.
It stopped with a suddenness that made my stomach lurch, and then I was dropped rather unceremoniously onto a surface that was cool and dry. Dirt, I thought, spitting it out of my mouth in between groans. I drew Amaya, then rolled onto my back. Her purple light spread across the black, parting it like glue. Rock surrounded me—above and around. I was in a cavern of some sort, and there didn't seem to be either an entry or an exit point. My tomb—for that's what it suddenly felt like—was about four feet wide and about the same height. I could kneel, but I couldn't fully stand. But a breeze stirred sluggishly across my skin, which meant there was a link to the surface here somewhere, even if the air had a stale, somewhat old scent. And that in itself suggested not only that there wasn't a whole lot of fresh air getting down here, but also that I was deep underground.
And if I was, it meant Azriel wouldn't find me. My being underground restricted our chi connection, and the deeper I was, the worse it became—although apparently such restrictions didn't apply when reapers collected the souls of miners and others who died underground. Not that I was making any immediate plans for him to find me that way. What the Raziq planned was anyone's guess.
I glanced up at the ceiling again, and this time noticed a faint, multicolored shimmer that reminded me of oil on water. I swore softly. That shimmer was a field of magic designed to prevent me from reaching for the Aedh—something I'd discovered the hard way the last time the Raziq trapped me underground. I guess I had to be thankful that at least this time their prison wasn't a sewer.
I sat up. As I did so, an oddly dark surge of electricity ran across my skin, making the little hairs at the back of my neck stand on end and my soul shiver away in fear.
The Aedh were near.
Fear slammed into my heart and for several seconds I struggled to breathe. I closed my eyes and battled for calm. I couldn't give in to fear—not when I needed all my wits about me to survive whatever it was the Raziq had planned. Although what good mere survival would do me in this place deep underground I had no idea. It wasn't like I could run anywhere, even if I'd wanted to. With that shimmer in place, my tomb had no exit point.
"I know you're there." My voice was croaky with fear but sounded oddly flat in the thick atmosphere of the little cavern.
"Sheathe your weapon. It will do you no good."
The disembodied male voice held no threat, but it nevertheless sent a chill down my spine. This was the Raziq I'd spoken to last time—the Raziq that had invaded my brain and made it seem like every part of me was being torn apart.
I licked my lips and somehow said, "Then you shouldn't be worried about me holding it."
The lilac-lit shadows showed no hint of them—not surprising, I suppose. It wasn't like they'd shown a propensity to reveal themselves in our previous encounters.