Page 226 of Commanding Blood And Bonds

“Just a typical Tuesday morning walk.”

“You often keep skeletons for company?”

“Obviously,” he drawled. “They’re the only companions that don’t annoy me.”

I snorted, thumbing at my knife as the specters closed in, hurling the ugliest parts of my lives in my face. Every failure. Every fear. Every bone-deep realization. They preyed on it all. August. Ally. Ansel and Lana. The Porters. All dead—and the corpses only grew more grotesque the deeper we went.

I clenched my jaw and repeated my mantra.

“Okay, here we go,” I breathed, pulling down a sconce that triggered a creaky trapdoor.

“Oh, good. Deeper into hell.”

“You volunteered, might I remind you?”

“No need. I am well fucking aware. As a matter of fact, I’m scheduling my cat scan when we get back.”

“Book me one too, will you?” My eyes flew over the vacant wall, scanning—there. An ancient, rust-covered key, half the size of my palm, rested on the third row. I swiped it, wiped grime onto my pants, and headed for the ladder.

Cyrus snatched my elbow.

“We gotta go, dude. One way to your precious crown, and that is down.”

“You rhymed,” he complained. “And I’m going first.”

“Fine by me. Expect the worst.”

“Stop that.”

“Tit for tat.”

“Lovely,” he muttered. “I broke her already.”

He vanished down the hatch. I clambered after him, maneuvering down the short ladder into the darkest chamber yet—only our torches giving us light.

Boots on solid ground, I hoisted my bag over my shoulder, unzipping the back to slide in the goddamn crown the moment I got my grubby hands on it. The illusions, mercifully, didn’t follow.

The final chamber was all coffins. Stacked like building blocks, row after row. All but one—hollow. A mystery I never solved, though I’d since used it for...we’ll call it storage. I checked my gloves to make sure no skin was exposed. Good. I blew out a heavy breath.

“Things usually escalate once I take something from the vault.”

“Yeah, but can we run this time?”

“Through the dark? I mean, sure. But watch your step, ‘cause I’m not coming back for you.”

“Noted. Me neither.”

“So long as we have an agreement.”

The key slid into place with a clunky scrape. I gave it a quick twist and a great mechanical click vibrated through my hand. I yanked it free, coughing on dust and God-knew-what as Cyrus raised his torch for a better view.

“Fuck me, that’s a lot of gold.”

“Most of it’s cursed, so don’t get too excited,” I mumbled, running gloved fingers over my collection until I found the wooden box at the back.

“Who the fuck steals cursed gold?”

“Past-life me. Settling a beef with pirates.”