44

Then, we’d take our time bathing in the warm baths, change into clean slacks and robes, then make our way into the reading alcove and spend some time picking through the books. Whenever I tried to ask Corinne details of how long she’d been here, or about her life outside of the caverns, she’d deflect and change the subject. As much as I wanted to lash out and demand answers, I needed her to trust me if we were going to work together. So I let it slide.

By day four, I was getting antsy. My wolf was beginning to knock against my ribs, demanding attention, and I was dreaming of moonlight runs with Elias nipping at my heels behind me. At night, in the privacy of my chambers, I’d taken to shifting into my wolf form and pacing in circles, just to release some of the pent-up energy to try to sleep.

On day five, or what I thought was day five, I woke up after another night of fitful sleep. I’d had the same nightmare I’d had the first night. The blood. The fight. The falling. But this time, there were more wolves in Draunar’s palace, and more dragons clawing them to pieces.

My own wolf whined internally. I couldn’t take it anymore—the uncertainty was driving me mad. Draunar had yet to reappear in the cavern. Corinne was unfazed by his absence. Had she even heard what he’d said when he left?

I climbed off the mattress and made my way into the dining room. Seated at the end of the long table, Corinne was sipping coffee as she sliced an apple into impossibly thin pieces. Anything to kill a little time.

“Good morning,” she said. “You’re up early.”

I dropped into the wooden seat next to her and poured myself a coffee from the waiting carafe, mysteriously refilled and refreshed as it was every morning.

“How can you tell?” I asked. “How do you even know what time it is?”

“Mm,” she hummed. “Internal sense, I suppose.”

It was one of those evasive answers again. I sighed and wrapped both hands around the warm mug. “Listen, Corinne,” I said. “When do you think Draunar will be back?”

“I have no way of knowing,” she said mildly. “He must attend to his business.”

“You heard him say what that business was, though, didn’t you?” I said. “Shianga has been attacked.”

“Mm,” she said again. “Kingdoms rise and fall.”

“It’s more than that,” I said. “It’s my husband who he’s fighting right now. The King of Frasia. He’s fighting to get me out of here—to ensure Frasia is safe from Draunar’s overreach.”

“How romantic,” she said.

It was like talking to the stone walls. Corinne was numb to the world, because her world no longer extended past the exterior of this cavern. Did she even have anyone outside of the cavern anymore? The thought made my heart go cold.

“He could be dead,” I said with an edge of desperation. “He could need my help. And there’s nothing I can do here—there’s no way I can know what’s happening.”

“You’ll know eventually,” she said. “When Draunar returns.” She held a small piece of apple between her pinched fingers. Sini appeared out of nowhere, it seemed, darting up the table leg and onto the surface to take the fruit from her grasp.

“What if he doesn’t?” I asked. “What if Frasia is the victor, and there’s no one to come rescue us? Does anyone know about this cavern other than Draunar?”

Her mild expression briefly flickered into something more anxious, before it melted back into its neutral flatness. “That won’t happen,” she said. “Draunar will return.”

“Do you want him to?” I asked.

She sighed. Sini curled around her forearm, then Corinne stood up. “I need to bathe,” she said, striding purposefully out of the dining room and toward the vast bathing chamber.

I snatched up the finely cut apple and followed her. “You don’t know that, though,” I said. “Elias is a strong fighter. But if Draunar won’t tell him where I am, there’s no way for us to escape. We can’t count on Draunar returning. It’s been days—isn’t he possessive? Don’t you think he would’ve come back for us by now?”

Corinne closed her eyes briefly. She shed her clothes and stepped into the warm bath.

I stepped to the side of the pool and sat down at the edge, cross-legged, and watched her as she sank deep into the water until only her head was visible. Her silvery hair floated on the surface like spider-silk. But there was a small furrow in her usually smooth brow. I was getting to her.

“Don’t you want to get out of here?” I asked.

Then Corinne opened her pale eyes slowly. Her expression was briefly thunderous, so enraged I rocked backward where I sat—but then that expression passed too, like a thunderbolt.

“You think I like it here?” she asked.

“I don’t know,” I said. “I can barely get you to talk to me at all. I thought you were glad to have someone else around.”

“Having company has just proven Draunar’s threats are real,” Corinne said. “Having you here brings me no solace. We won’t be getting out.”

“We haven’t even tried,” I pressed. “And what threats? He didn’t threaten me with anything other than being trapped here. Is there more?”

Corinne sighed. She pulled herself out of the bath. Sini crept out of the water too and clung to her calf as she toweled dry and pulled her robe back on. “I can show you,” she said.

“Show me what?”

“Here. Draunar doesn’t know I know about this, and we should keep it that way.”

“What?” I asked. “What do you mean?”

Corinne already looked exhausted as we padded down the hall toward our quarters.