Chains rattled behind her and clanked to the floor. Siban grabbed Rell and hauled her against his chest. He swiped the hair from her face. “Are you all right?”
She stared up at him but didn’t have the strength to speak.
The other Bringers rose. Rhys helping Ravyn, who looked as if she was about to be ill. Had anybody besides her and Ravyn heard the screams? Aches racked Rell’s body when she tried to sit forward.
“I’m all right,” she said, finally finding the ability to speak. “Help me up.”
Siban bent and hoisted Rell to her feet. “Thank the Saints.”
“Thank the Saints we’re all still alive.” She got her balance and gently pushed away from him so she could assess his injuries. “Are you hurt?”
He shook his head. “No.” His gaze tracked around the corridor. “Our journey grows more perilous.”
“Yes, and if this is what we’ve endured so far, think of those who Vile holds captive,” she said.
He covered her hands with his. “From here on out, stay close to me. We’ll be more safe if we work as a team.”
His worry was evident in his tone, but his idea of working together was sound. “We’re not alone this time, Siban. We have others to help us now.”
His eyes searched her face. “A bitter blessing. With the Saints’ help we’ll all get out of here alive.” He held out her hand and she took it.
“Please tell me that somebody else heard those screams,” Meran said, stopping next to Rell.
“I did.” Rell rolled her shoulders. “It’s not the first time. I heard them yesterday morning as well.”
“And I heard them when Rhys and I fought the Bane near Willa’s inn.” Ravyn gave a shudder. “Their torment has haunted me and it was something I never wished to hear again.”
“What do you think it is?” Rhys asked, rubbing her shoulder.
She shrugged. “I have no idea, and I don’t really want to find out. I just want it to go away.”
“I don’t think that will be happening.” Gregory stood at the end of the hall, his arm around Juna, supporting her. “Come see what we discovered.” He slowly released her, but waited a second to make sure she was all right. When Juna gave him a nod, he walked to the end of the corridor. “It’s here.”
“I really hope this isn’t more bad news,” Luc grumbled as he limped forward. “I’m getting very tired of bad news.”
“I second that,” Rhys said.
In a far-less-uniform group than before, they shuffled forward and followed Gregory around the corner. He stood in front of another stone arch and beneath it a wooden door cut in the same chaotic star—the symbol of the Summoner.
Gregory held his sword before him and glanced back at the group. “I say we take a peek inside.”
“I was afraid you were going to say that,” Meran said, wiping her palm against her pants.
Gregory grasped the iron handle of the door and pushed. The door gave a little click. He waited, but no noise emanated from within.
“If somebody is inside the chamber,” Juna said, “I highly doubt they missed the maelstrom that just decimated the corridor.”
Meran and Ravyn exchanged glances. Rell wondered if there was trouble between the siblings. From what she’d been told, they barely knew each other, having been separated as infants.
Gregory looked over his shoulder at Juna, his eyes narrowing. “Still, caution is required.”
She scowled at him and tapped her toe twice. Her gaze drifted to the door and eventually Gregory turned back to face it. Watching Juna was a lesson in itself. Rell couldn’t imagine how the woman hadn’t come to more harm already.
“Open the door.” Juna’s order came out as a hiss, but there was a definite push of compulsion in her words.
Gregory’s head snapped around. “Do not use that on me.”
For good reason, Juna took a step backward. In the short time Rell had known him, he’d never raised his voice. The expression on his face now was enough to quell the most stubborn subordinate.
With a gentle push, Gregory eased the door open. Still no sound stirred from within. He raised his sword to a vertical position in front of his face and crept forward, inching the door open. His body leaned to take in as much of the chamber as possible, and when the space had widened enough, he slipped inside. Juna shifted from foot to foot, trying to see into the room, but didn’t enter.
A shiver skittered up Rell’s neck as the silence lengthened. The blackness she’s lived with as a demon oozed from the room. It would take all her willpower to enter.
Finally, Gregory pushed the door open. “It’s empty.”
Second to enter was Juna. She surged forward and the rest of the Bringers followed behind. To Rell’s surprise the chamber was sumptuously adorned. Thick brocade curtains ringed the bed and luxurious linens draped over the thick mattresses. Candelabra made of gold sat lit on an ornate table and a chair fit for a king held the center spot against the longest wall. Thick tapestries, like those she’d seen in Illuma Grand, hung from the walls. Instead of a hearth, two large round kettle braziers burned with a low white flame.
Rell held her hands over the flames, flexing her fingers and trying to return some of the warmth to their tips. “Real heat.”
Jade joined her. “Ah, that’s lovely.”
“Is this Vile’s chamber?” Rell scrutinized the room. “Surely this is not where he rests.”
Everything within the chamber was a stark contrast to what Rell had experienced with the Demon King.
“If I had to guess, I’d say yes.” Gregory walked to the table and examined the parchments strewn across it. He sorted through each one, shaking his head. “Yes, this is definitely his chamber.” He held up a yellow sheet. “It seems he’s planning on attacking Illuma Grand.”
Rell stepped away from the brazier and walked across the chamber. A thick tome rested on top of a small table near the bed, the emblem of the Summoners emblazoned on the leather cover. “Gregory.”
She waved him over and then stepped aside so he could look at the book. A curse slipped from between his lips when he saw the symbol. He picked up the book and opened it, his eyes growing wide. He thumbed frantically through the pages.
“What is it?” Dread rolled off him, engulfing Rell. “What does it mean?”
Gregory slowly closed the book and turned to face the members of the group. “An accounting of Vile’s life.”
Silence filled the room. There was more to come; Rell could feel it. His eyes searched the faces of the Bringers, coming to rest on Juna.
“Vile’s journal?” Juna asked.
Gregory nodded. “It appears that the Summoners are not working with the Bane.” He swallowed hard. “The Summoners are the Bane.”
Chapter Fifteen
Nobody spoke for several seconds.
Siban let the information sift through his mind, trying to reconcile that the treacherous demons could be some of their own.
“But how can that be?” Juna crossed the room to stand beside Rell. “I thought all the Summoners were imprisoned within the Abyss.”
“As did I.” Gregory looked at Magnus. “None of us have ever actually seen the Abyss. King Harlin kept its location a secret and I was born after my father’s death.”
“King Harlin thought that the fewer people who knew where they’d imprisoned the Summoners, the less likely it would be that anybody would free them.” Magnus paced the length of the room. “Once we crossed through the Arch, we suspected the Abyss was here. It appears we were right.”