The Goddess Read Free Page B

here has one, too.”
    She blinked at him. “Oh.”
    He frowned back. “What?”
    “Nothing… Except, well, it doesn’t seem fair. She finally gets out of this cold dark
     cave only to be locked up again?”
    He was about to state the obvious; this piece was made of stone and wouldn’t know
     the difference. Instead he stopped. Listened. The sound of water running down limestone
     had suddenly grown louder.
    Beneath the bare soles of his feet, the ground seemed to shift and the echoing trickle
     swelled more. At the same time as his muscles locked and his gaze flew toward the
     tunnel entrance, the walls began to shake. When the ancient ceiling rumbled, Helene
     Masters jumped and threw her arms around his middle.
    A heartbeat later, the first boulder fell less than a foot away. With a final agonized
     glance at the goddess, he swept Helene into his arms and bolted toward the exit. At
     that same instant, the roof buckled and caved in.

Chapter Three
    With boulders dropping and barely missing their heads, Helene held on as the prince
     bundled her in the sling of his arms and shuffled away from the chamber’s exit. When
     an almighty crack ripped out overhead and an even heavier rain of rock fell, dust
     plumed and all light was snuffed out. They were trapped in the dark, cut off.
    Alone.
    After what seemed like an eternity—but which was more likely a few seconds—the sky
     stopped falling, and deafening silence crept in. Helene felt numb. Hands. Heart. Brain.
     She tried to scan the scene but the world had turned black. The air was clogged with
     dust and stirred-up moss that stuck in her nose and throat. She hacked and coughed.
     When she’d settled, Vasily set her down.
    Neither one spoke. Helene guessed he was listening for creaking—noises that might
     lead to another cave-in. But the only sounds were the echoing trickle of water and
     her own ragged breathing.
    His deep steady voice drifted over. “Are you all right?”
    When his big hand found hers and squeezed, she exhaled and squeezed back. “This is
     bad, isn’t it?”
    He grunted and his fingers slipped away from hers.
    A few feet away, she heard a sizzle, and then a flash went off. The scent of sulfur
     permeated the air and swirls of yellow-blue flame appeared before Darius Vasily’s
     face. His brow, cheeks, and what she could see of his bare chest were smudged with
     sweat and grime. She studied the yard-long torch he held. He could have plucked it
     out of the middle ages.
    “Where’d you get that?” she asked.
    “Torches line this chamber’s walls. Matches are always kept on the ledge.” Slipping
     the box into a pocket, he stopped to study the figurine from head to toe, back and
     front, until his shoulders rolled back.
    “She’s unharmed.”
    Helene slumped. With all due respect, she felt that was the least of their worries.
    “A person can survive without food for a time,” she said, “but what about water?”
     Then she remembered. “When Alexio gets here and can’t find anyone, he’ll send out
     the alert.”
    In the flickering light, she read his bleak look. If they could be dug out at all,
     it could take days. Or weeks.
    Finding her hand again, he led her between chunks of rock to the far wall. He gave
     a simple instruction.
    “Sit.”
    He meant on the cold rocky floor? “Thanks. I’ll stand for a while.”
    In a halo of torchlight, she watched him find a seat and get settled.
    “It’s soft,” he said, “if that makes a difference.”
    She made out some cushions fringed with gold brocade. “This cave is furnished ?”
    “Just this ledge.” He leaned back. “A small comfort during times of meditation.”
    She joined him.
    After setting her sandals down beside her and brushing away pebbles from under her
     thighs, Helene’s jangled nerves settled a little, and clenched muscles began to relax.
     She squinted at the figurine, but, from this distance, even an outline wasn’t visible.
     It was a miracle that no