CHAPTER 35
Andi
Andi was having
considerable trouble staying upright when the gigantic sorcery
erupted a short distance away.
Against her own
better judgment, she had taken a short rest—maybe an hour—once she
was a few hundred yards into the woods. She couldn’t help
herself—by her best guess, she had lost at least two pints of
blood. Maybe three. Wasn’t four lethal?
Whatever. She had to
rest, even if Skip was chasing her. And as it turned out, he didn’t
find her.
Maybe he didn’t need to, she reflected as she
watched the giant spider reach for the heavens. Maybe he already had enough blood from me, and he decided
to start the ritual with what he had.
The Poison Moon. Oh,
how could he? Driven, yes. Selfish, yes. Filled with hate, yes. But
this . . . the times they talked about it . . . the times
he talked about it . . .
A fact she didn’t
know she had bubbled up in her mind: Skip had always been the one
to initiate discussions about the Poison Moon.
Skip always liked to
touch her, to love her
(love he doesn’t know love and neither do
I)
after they’d talked
about it. After he’d talked about it.
She had never
thought.
She never thought he
had the power. Or the drive. Not for that. It was love talk.
She had found the
path down the steep slopes to where the bridge vaulted from the
eastern shore, when she saw the mist roiling within the
dome.
They’re coming for him already. She stretched her
head up at the spider-sorcery. Good. I hope
they’re not too late.
She briefly
considered ways in which she might assist them—could she help them
locate Skip? (No, and Dianna probably had that covered.) Could she
fight alongside them? (Not without keeling over.) Give them advice?
(Not without wasting their valuable time.)
No, there was nothing
to do but continue toward the town. She would beg Jennifer and Dr.
Georges-Scales for mercy, gratefully receive aid, and then rejoin
whatever battle was still in progress. If she was too late for that
last, then she would work with her new allies to bring the dome
down. Sure, Slider’s sorcery was powerful—but she was Quadrivium as
well, and with the right song, maybe she could unlock this
barrier’s secrets . . .
“Freeze!”