Total pages in book: 92
Estimated words: 87781 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 439(@200wpm)___ 351(@250wpm)___ 293(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 87781 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 439(@200wpm)___ 351(@250wpm)___ 293(@300wpm)
The ground beneath us trembles, sending cracks snaking through the ancient stones of the chapel floor, and parts of the ceiling start to fall, dust billowing into the room.
I lie frozen in terror and pain, unable to tear my gaze away from the surreal scene unfolding before me. My heart pounds in my chest, each beat echoing in my ears like a drum of impending doom. I feel as though I am on the precipice of something unimaginable, something beyond the realm of human or godly comprehension.
As the chanting reaches a deafening crescendo, a blinding light erupts from the cauldron, illuminating the chamber in a sickly green glow. Shadows twist and dance along the walls, taking on grotesque forms that seem to leer at me with malicious intent.
And then, with a final, ear-splitting shriek that pierces the air like a knife, the ritual reaches its climax. The ground tremors intensify, threatening to swallow us whole as the very fabric of reality seems to warp and twist around us.
The cracks in the aisle split open, right down the middle, just feet away from me.
A large, long arm emerges from the crack.
All black fur with long, red claws.
It’s then I feel my horns being grabbed again, this time closer to my head. I yelp, trying to move out of the way, afraid I’ll be dragged to the creature waiting in the fissure, but instead, not-Hanna is dragging me away from the altar, to the back of the crypt.
“You’ll meet your grandfather some other day,” my mother says to me while all the statues behind her grin in unison. “Better to introduce you slowly. I wouldn’t want him to eat you all at once.”
And at that, I’m taken straight to the nearest cell and thrown in there in a heap. The last thing I hear before I pass out is the sound of the cell being locked with a key, and then a deep, animalistic growl coming from inside the crypt.
Chapter 17
Lovia
The Old Gods
The bell should be ringing, I think.
But there is no sound.
I sigh, putting my head in my hands. I don’t know how long I’ve been sitting on my boat, waiting at the dock, but it feels like forever. Time has been acting funny today, no matter how you look at it. Is this even still the same day? Or is it the next day? I seem to recall night falling, but it felt like it was only for a second.
At least the weather has calmed down. It’s back to being still and gray, much like it usually is with my father. Perhaps the Magician was right, and my father did leave the match in one piece. He’s probably back at Shadow’s End right now, and, if it’s the next morning, relaxing in bed with Hanna and a coffee.
But even though the weather is no longer as deathly cold and stormy, I can’t seem to shake the feeling that something is wrong. It didn’t help that the Magician’s words were so unsettling and cryptic.
It also doesn’t help that the bell hasn’t rung once since I’ve returned to the boat. The last dead to enter Tuonela was Ethel, the senior serial killer, and there hasn’t been anyone since. Sometimes, we don’t even hear the bell ring—not every newly dead knows they’re supposed to ring it—but even so, we instinctively know when the newest members of Club Dead are waiting for us.
And yet, for all the time that has passed, there hasn’t been anyone.
It’s beyond unusual. It’s actually a little disturbing.
Where are the dead?
I should probably head down the river anyway, I think. Go past the forest and maybe say hello to the Forest Gods. Drop by my Aunt Vellamo in the Great Inland Sea. Perhaps go for a swim and give my mermaid friend Bell a visit. Or just make my way to Death’s Landing, because, eventually ,someone has to die. It’s just the way the world works.
I sigh again and look around. No point sticking around here. I guess part of me wants to go back to the Magician and talk to him some more, but he’s got his job to do, and I’ve got mine.
Still, he can’t do his job unless I bring him the dead.
I adjust the mask on my head and think about leaving the boat. But if I see the Magician now and the bell does ring, I’ll just be further away. I’ll have another talk with him when I drop the next person off.
I pick up an oar and push the boat off the dock, standing at the bow as it starts moving swiftly down the river, the cool misty breeze in my hair. I close my eyes and breathe in deep through my nose, the smell of the water usually invigorating.
Instead, I cough, my eyes suddenly burning as I smell a putrid, decaying stench. I know this the Land of the Dead and all, but for the most part, it doesn’t smell like it. This is something rotten and sulfurous.