Raven Moore's Arc

Chapter 2 of 6

The boundary closed behind her. Raven felt it more than heard it. One moment, the Hollowborn’s stolen voice followed them through the tunnel. The next, silence fell so completely that even the creature’s claws disappeared. She looked over her shoulder. Nothing physical blocked the passage. The same stone corridor stretched behind them, dim and wet beneath the dying lights. Yet something had changed. The darkness beyond the red markings looked heavier now, almost solid. Raven turned back to Lucian. “What did you just do?” “I closed the door.” “There is no door.” Lucian kept walking. “Not one you can see.” “That is incredibly reassuring.” “I wasn’t trying to reassure you.” Raven frowned. Apparently demons and witches had more in common than either group would appreciate. Lucian moved several steps ahead of her, his long coat brushing the stone as they descended deeper beneath Ashvale. His guards had remained behind at the boundary without explanation. Raven had noticed immediately. She also noticed that Lucian had not bothered checking whether they followed. People simply obeyed him. Annoying. She hurried enough to catch up. “Where did your men go?” “Back to their posts.” “So now it’s just us?” Lucian glanced sideways at her. “Nervous?” “No.” “Liar.” Raven stopped walking. Lucian made it several steps before realizing she was no longer beside him. He turned. She folded her arms. “Do you make a habit of irritating everyone you meet, or am I getting special treatment?” He regarded her in silence. Then he walked back toward her. Slowly. Raven resisted the sudden urge to reconsider several life choices. Lucian stopped directly in front of her. “You crossed illegally into my territory,” he said. “You brought a Hollowborn to my boundary. You demanded my help. And now you’re questioning how I provide it.” “When you say it like that, you make me sound difficult.” “You are difficult.” “You’ve known me for ten minutes.” “It was a productive ten minutes.” Raven’s mouth twitched before she could stop it. Lucian saw. Of course he did. His gaze dropped briefly to her mouth. That tiny movement should not have mattered. It did. Raven immediately looked away. “Are we finding this woman or standing here discussing my personality?” “I’m still deciding which is more dangerous.” “Definitely me.” Lucian’s quiet laugh followed her when she walked past him. That was worse than the smirk. Much worse. Raven hated that she liked the sound of it. They descended another flight of cracked stone stairs. The remains of the old subway slowly disappeared around them. Steel tracks gave way to carved stone. Modern concrete blended into walls covered with symbols so old Raven could not tell whether they had been carved before or after the Shift. Small flames burned inside iron fixtures along the walls. No wires. No electricity. Just fire. Raven glanced at Lucian. “How old is this place?” “Older than your city.” “Ashvale has been here for centuries.” “So have we.” She looked at him. Lucian kept walking. “You mean demons were here before the Shift?” A pause. “Some.” Raven quickened her pace. “Seraphine said the veil separated the realms.” “It did.” “But you were already here?” “Your cousin knows more than most witches.” He glanced at her. “That does not mean she knows everything.” Something about the way he said it bothered her. “What aren’t you telling me?” Lucian stopped beside an enormous stone archway. “Many things.” “Helpful.” “You asked what I wasn’t telling you. Not whether I intended to tell you.” “You’re unbearable.” “So I’ve been told.” Raven looked through the arch. Her irritation vanished. The tunnel opened into something impossible. A city existed beneath the city. Stone buildings climbed upward through a cavern so vast Raven could barely make out its ceiling. Bridges connected different levels of the underground settlement. Red and gold lights burned from windows carved directly into black rock. Demons moved along narrow streets below, some nearly human in appearance, others unmistakably not. Horns. Wings. Eyes that reflected fire. Shadows that seemed to move separately from the bodies casting them. Raven stared. Lucian watched her. She could feel it. “You’re enjoying this,” she said. “A little.” “I hate you.” “You don’t know me well enough.” “I’m learning quickly.” His mouth curved. Raven stepped closer to the railing overlooking the underground city. “This was here the whole time?” “Long before humans realized there was anything beneath their subway tunnels.” “And nobody above knows?” “Some know.” “Adrian?” The change in Lucian was immediate. Small. But unmistakable. His jaw tightened. The amusement disappeared from his eyes. Raven turned toward him fully. “You know Adrian Cross.” “Unfortunately.” “He runs the human district.” “I’m aware.” There was enough venom in those two words to make Raven curious. “What did he do?” Lucian started walking again. Raven followed. “That wasn’t rhetorical.” “It should have been.” “Lucian.” He stopped so suddenly she nearly walked into him again. His gaze dropped to her. “You say my name very easily.” Raven blinked. “It’s your name.” “Most humans down here avoid using it.” “Why?” “Names have power.” She stared at him. Then slowly raised an eyebrow. “Lucian.” His eyes narrowed. “Lucian.” “Careful.” “Lucian.” He stepped toward her. Raven’s back met the stone wall before she realized she had moved. Well. That escalated. Lucian planted one hand against the wall beside her head. He did not touch her. That somehow made the sudden closeness worse. “You enjoy testing boundaries,” he murmured. Raven looked up at him. “Maybe your boundaries are too easy to test.” Something flashed behind his crimson eyes. Heat. Interest. Challenge. All three were extremely inconvenient. “You should be afraid of me,” he said. Raven’s heartbeat kicked harder. She refused to let it show. “Do you want me to be?” Lucian went still. For the first time since meeting him, Raven seemed to have genuinely surprised him. His gaze searched her face. “No.” The answer came quieter than she expected. Raven swallowed. The tunnel suddenly felt several degrees warmer. “Then stop telling me how scared I’m supposed to be.” His eyes dropped to her mouth again. This time neither of them pretended it had not happened. Lucian leaned slightly closer. Not enough to touch. Enough that Raven felt his breath against her skin. “You really have no idea what you walked into tonight.” Raven’s voice came out lower than intended. “I’m starting to get an idea.” A sound echoed from farther down the corridor. Lucian straightened instantly. The moment shattered. Raven hated the tiny flicker of disappointment that followed. Lucian looked toward the darkness. “What was that?” she asked. He lifted one hand. “Quiet.” Raven opened her mouth. His crimson eyes cut toward her. She closed it. Fine. For approximately five seconds, she could follow instructions. Lucian moved forward without making a sound. Raven followed. The corridor narrowed ahead. Something lay near the wall. Fabric. Lucian crouched first. Raven came around him and froze. A leather satchel rested in a shallow puddle. A faded medical insignia had been stitched into its side. Raven knew that bag. “That’s hers.” She dropped beside it. Lucian caught her wrist before she could touch it. Raven looked at his hand, then at him. “Seriously?” “Look.” He pointed. A thin black residue coated the strap. Raven frowned. “What is that?” “Blood.” “It’s black.” “It isn’t human.” Her stomach tightened. Lucian released her wrist. Raven opened the satchel carefully using the edge of her sleeve. Medicine bottles remained inside. Bandages. Two syringes. A folded route map. Nothing looked stolen. Nothing looked disturbed. Except one thing. A small silver pendant lay at the bottom of the bag. Lucian’s expression darkened the moment he saw it. Raven noticed. “You know what that is.” “No.” “Terrible liar.” “Coming from you?” She ignored that. “Lucian.” His eyes remained on the pendant. “It’s a binding charm.” “Witch?” “No.” “Demon?” “No.” Raven waited. Lucian finally looked at her. “Human.” The word landed strangely. “That doesn’t make sense.” “It will.” “When?” “When I know why a human courier was carrying something designed to suppress supernatural magic.” Raven picked up the pendant carefully. It was cold. Unnaturally cold. Symbols had been carved into the silver. She recognized one. Not because she understood it. Because she had seen it before. Her stomach dropped. “Lucian.” He looked at her. Raven turned the pendant toward him. A tiny geometric symbol sat at its center. Clean. Precise. Almost hidden among the other markings. “I’ve seen this.” “Where?” “In the central district.” His expression hardened. “Where, Raven?” She looked back at him. “On Adrian Cross.” For several seconds, neither spoke. Then Lucian swore softly under his breath. Raven stood. “You know something.” “I know enough.” “Then tell me.” “No.” Her temper snapped. “You dragged me deeper underground, told me the woman I’m looking for came through here, found her bag covered in something’s blood, and now we have a charm connected to Adrian. You don’t get to suddenly decide I’m too delicate for answers.” Lucian stood as well. “You think this is about protecting you?” “What else would it be?” “Keeping you alive long enough to become useful.” Raven stared at him. “Oh, charming.” “I never claimed otherwise.” “You certainly flirt like you think you are.” Silence. Raven realized what she had said. Lucian’s eyebrow rose. Slowly. Damn it. “I flirt with you?” “No.” “That sounded very much like an accusation.” “It was an observation.” “And what have you observed?” Raven folded her arms. “Mostly arrogance.” Lucian stepped closer. “Mostly?” She hated him. She hated the amusement in his voice. She hated that he had noticed the exact word. “You are unbelievably irritating.” “And yet you keep looking at my mouth.” Raven’s eyes widened. “You—” A scream tore through the underground. Human. Raven spun toward the sound. “That’s her.” She ran. Lucian caught her around the waist before she made it three steps. Raven’s back hit his chest. “Let me go!” “No.” “She’s alive!” “And whatever made her scream knows we’re here now.” Raven struggled against his arm. “Lucian.” His mouth was near her ear when he answered. “If you run blindly toward that sound, you will get yourself killed.” Heat flashed through her for entirely the wrong reason. Not now. Absolutely not now. “Then let go and come with me.” His grip tightened for half a second. “You are going to become a problem.” Raven turned her head enough to meet his eyes. “I thought I already was.” Lucian stared at her. Then slowly released her. His hand lingered briefly at her waist before falling away. “Stay behind me.” Raven scoffed. He gave her a look. “For once in your life, human, do as you’re told.” She pulled a knife from her belt. “For once in yours, demon, try keeping up.” Raven ran toward the scream. Lucian followed. And somewhere far above them, Seraphine’s ward went dark.