Chapter 11

CHAPTER ELEVEN

The floor trembled as another ear-splitting screech tore through the air. My heart hammered, and I tasted copper on my tongue. Garrick bolted for the back exit, his movements a blur of desperation.

A flash of déjà vu hit me. This was McDuff Manor all over again. My fingers latched onto Garrick's sleeve. "Damon and Zara," I managed, fear constricting my throat.

Garrick turned a hard-as-flint look on me. "The wards won't hold forever. We linger, we're trapped."

Maggie materialized behind us, her expression worried. "They're almost here."

"Time's up," Garrick hissed through clenched teeth. His gaze darted to Justice. "Think you can outpace a shadow dragon?"

Justice's lips thinned, his pale features set with grim determination. "Guess we'll find out. Link up, now."

The atmosphere congealed around us as the four of us huddled near the door, fingers interlocking with white-knuckled grips. The rhythmic thrum of massive wings pulsed through the air, beating a countdown to our doom.

Garrick cocked his head, his gaze unfocused as if listening to a distant call. "Beyond this threshold lie the Whispering Wastes," he murmured.

A deafening roar ripped through the house, rattling windows and shaking dust from the rafters. Damon's thunderous snore cut through the chaos, a jarring reminder of his oblivious state.

Justice's jaw clenched, the muscles in his neck straining. His eyes blazed with urgency. "Enough waiting. Open it. Now."

With a swift motion, Garrick wrenched the door open. A gust of air rushed in, carrying whispers that tickled the edge of comprehension. As the chill seeped into our bones, Justice surged forward, dragging me into his slipstream.

The world dissolved into a swirling smear of colors and sensations. My stomach lurched, struggling to keep pace with our supernatural flight. The Whispering Wastes unfurled before us, a nightmare landscape rushing past in a blur of muted hues and half-formed horrors.

My feet played tag with the ground, touching down in quick, teasing moments. Justice's fingers interlaced with mine. On my other side, Garrick's unyielding grasp sent tremors coursing up to my shoulder. Trapped between them, I felt like a prisoner, shackled by their unyielding grasps.

Hang-on-hang-on-hang-on.

I mumbled the mantra over and over in a desperate prayer. My skin crawled at the thought of the sloth demons' touch. Their mere presence sent icy tendrils of dread coiling in my stomach.

I could almost feel the demons' glacial fingers reaching for me, threatening to freeze me in place for all eternity. My muscles bunched, ready to bolt at the slightest provocation, though Justice and Garrick's grip kept me tethered to our desperate escape.

The Whispering Wastes stretched before us, a nightmarish expanse of barren, gray earth. Withered stalks of long-dead plants clawed at the swirling, ashen sky. I stumbled, my feet skimming the ground as Justice's inhuman speed propelled us forward.

"Trees ahead!" Justice's voice cut through the rushing wind. In a heartbeat, we plunged into a copse of gnarled, leafless trees.

My lungs burned as we skidded to a stop, finally able to take in our surroundings. The twisted trunks loomed over us, their bare branches reaching toward the ashen sky like skeletal fingers.

"Did we lose them?" I panted, my grip on Justice and Garrick's hands finally loosening.

Maggie pressed her back against a tree, her eyes closed as she focused on listening. "I don't hear the dragon," she whispered.

Garrick's gaze darted between the trees. "We can't stay here long. The sloth demons will catch our scent soon enough."

I peered through the stark branches, trying to catch a glimpse of our pursuers. The Whispering Wastes stretched beyond our meager shelter, a desolate expanse offering no comfort.

Justice squeezed my hand. "We'll rest for a moment, then we move. Stay close."

I nodded weakly, then doubled over, my hands trembling as they rested on my knees. Each breath felt like fire in my chest, my lungs desperately trying to pull in air. The ache in my ribs was a constant throb, a reminder of how ill-equipped my human body was for vampire-speed travel.

"Garrick," I managed between gasps. "How far…is the Forgotten Hollows?"

The Unseelie king's eyes swept across the bleak landscape. His face was a mask of concentration, lines of worry etched around his eyes.

"We still have to move through the Whispering Wastes," Garrick replied. "Based on where we are, I suspect we have another five miles to go."

A chill ran down my spine at the thought of crossing more of this desolate terrain. The gnarled trees around us suddenly felt less like shelter and more like looming specters, silent witnesses to our desperate flight.

Garrick continued, his gaze fixed on some distant point I couldn't see. "There's a large stone archway you must pass to enter. The Forgotten Hollows lies beyond, and that's where we'll be tested."

Maggie moved closer to Garrick, her hand finding his. "Tested how?" she asked.

Garrick didn't answer.

Justice's cool hand on my back steadied me as I straightened, finally able to breathe without gasping. Already, I felt the urge to keep moving, to put more distance between us and our pursuers.

"We need to go," Justice murmured, his heightened senses no doubt picking up dangers I couldn't perceive. "Can you make it, Sawyer?"

I nodded, steeling myself for the next leg of our journey. "I have to," I replied, meeting his concerned gaze. "We don't have a choice."

I looked behind us and couldn't even see the thatched house. "Do you think Damon and Zara are okay? Maybe we shouldn't have left them."

"I don't know," Garrick admitted. "If the sloth demons touch them, they'll remain alive but frozen in time."

A pit of fear ballooned in my chest at leaving my brother behind.

Please-please-please let him be safe.

I braced myself to leave our temporary haven. My legs shook at the thought of another five miles, but it was our only hope of escape. Our one chance to outrun the horrors that pursued us through this nightmarish realm.

I reached for Justice's hand, drawing strength from his touch.

"Head that way," Garrick urged tightly, gesturing in a direction. "Move fast. I see the demons out there."

Justice's eyes flash with determination.

"Always." Justice's hand grabbed mine. My heart pounded, adrenaline surging through my veins.

Once again, wind rushed over me as Justice whirled us out of the copse. The gust felt like icy daggers against my skin, carrying the putrid stench of rotting vegetation. Angry shrieks pierced the air, freezing my heart and sending shivers down my spine. The cacophony of inhuman wails seemed to come from every direction at once.

The sloth demons' cries sounded like a nightmarish blend of nails on a chalkboard and a wounded animal's howl.

Justice weaved us around the demons' lumbering forms, their grotesque bodies barely more than blurs of matted fur and twisted limbs. Maybe they were too slow to touch a blitzing vampire. Their claws swiped empty air where we had been mere milliseconds before.

My stomach lurched with each rapid change of direction.

Probably not faster than a shadow dragon, though. The thought sent a fresh wave of terror through me, my mouth going dry as cotton.

I clenched my eyes shut, unable to process the dizzying speed.

Once again, my feet barely touched the ground. My hair whipped around my face like angry serpents, stinging my cheeks and obscuring my vision. All I saw was a whirlwind of colors. Flashes of sickly green foliage, the grimy brown of demon fur, and the endless gray of the overcast sky above.

The air tasted metallic, tinged with acrid fear.

Justice slowed his pace, glancing at Garrick for guidance. Garrick thrust his chin forward as if to say keep going.

The ground became increasingly treacherous, transitioning from packed earth to unstable, spongy terrain. Each step sank slightly, releasing puffs of dank, musty air.

A cloying, sweet scent filled the air like overripe fruit mixed with decay.

An ominous tree line loomed into view ahead. Massive, gnarled trees with trunks wider than houses form a dense barrier, their canopy blocking out what little light filtered through the perpetually overcast sky.

It reminded me of the Wicked Witch of the West's forest in The Wizard of Oz . I kept waiting for one of her flying monkeys to jump out and carry me away. I squeezed Justice's hand as he finally slowed our frantic pace, and he glanced over his shoulder, giving me a reassuring look. His strength eased some of my nerves.

Yet, as we drew closer, my stomach churned with anticipation and dread.

"We're almost there," Garrick muttered. "The Forgotten Hollows lie just beyond those trees."

I exchanged a nervous glance with Justice, noting the tightness around his eyes. He moved closer to me, a protective gesture that made me feel safer.

"What should we expect?" Maggie whispered.

Garrick's features turned grim. "The unexpected. The Hollows are unlike anything you've ever seen. Stay close, and whatever you do, don't wander off."

We formed a tighter group as we approached the edge of the woods.

Justice scanned the sky and behind us. "We've lost the demons and Maci for now, but there are shadows all around us. She could be hiding, watching us, waiting for the right moment to attack."

Fear slid down my spine like a glittering snake. "That's comforting."

"I won't let anything happen to you. I promise."

I stared into his earnest eyes and believed him with all my heart.

As Justice led us into the shadow of the towering trees, the air grew thick and heavy. Each breath became a laborious task, as if I was fighting an invisible force. Tendrils of mist curled around my ankles, and strange, muffled sounds emanated from deep within the woods.

The temperature dropped noticeably, my breath visible in small, wispy clouds.

Justice's fingers intertwined around mine. Despite his usual stoicism, I caught a flicker of concern in his eyes as he surveyed our surroundings.

"The Hollows are directly ahead," Garrick stated in a low, tense voice. "Remember, nothing here is as it seems. Trust your instincts but not your eyes."

A shudder ran through me, goosebumps rising on my arms despite the layers I wore.

As I ventured deeper into the forest, the feeling of being watched intensified. Every shadow seemed to move, every rustle of leaves felt deliberate. As if Maci was messing with us, trying to get us to make a mistake. Even with Garrick's knowledge guiding us, the Forgotten Hollows loomed ahead, a daunting unknown filled with dangers I could scarcely imagine.