His Destiny Read Online Free Page B

will it take?”
    The rebel halted and turned. Yellow light cast hard shadows against eyes that saw too much. “We are safe.”
    Mouth dry, she yearned for light. Warmth. A sign of life. Not this terrifying blackness that eroded her calm. “I know.”
    “Do you?”
    “I was but curious.”
    Curious? The lass was petrified, but determined not to show it. But, as long as they traveled together, she would nae face her demons alone. Patrik turned and started forward.
    Hours passed as they trekked beneath the ben. Though he caught her quickened breaths, never did the lass cave to panic.
    Rock curved. Ahead, the tunnel sloped down to a narrowed opening wide enough for only a single man to pass. Candlelight exposed time-worn walls smeared in colors of brown and gold and in places hints of red.
    “We will need to crawl through,” he said.
    “Cr-Crawl?”
    He glanced back. In the play of light, her lips grew tight and her eyes widened with fear. “It is the only way through. You can do it.”
    Cristina angled her chin. “Of course I can. I was but waiting for you to go first.”
    He turned away before she caught his smile. Saint’s breath, the lass was a woman to admire. A waft of fresh air hit him as he knelt, then crawled through the narrow opening. Candlelight flickered in a mad dance. He edged forward, the blackness fading as the dim glow ahead grew brighter.
    “I smell fresh air?”
    Patrik inched forward. “Aye, we are nearing the center of the ben.”
    “The center? Why would we find fresh air so deep within the mountain?”
    A smile touched his face as he remembered his first time through the complex tunnels, his shock when he’d reached this cavern. “You will see.”
    “See? Our escape is no riddle.”
    “Nay, lass, that it is not.” Somber, he pushed forward. The tunnel fell away. He blew out the candle, then stood.
    The shuffle of clothing echoed behind him as she crawled. “How can I see when—” She gasped. “Oh my . . . it is . . .” Cristina stood in the soft spray of shimmering light, like a child catching sight of a gift unveiled. “’Tis wondrous.”
    The awe in her voice touched him. And as he’d suspected, her fear was forgotten in her wonder at this magical place. “Aye, when I first viewed this cavern, I felt the same.”
    “There is . . .” She slowly turned as if to try to take it all in, then halted, her face filled with amazement. “It is as if—”
    “As if we have found the secret passage to the Otherworld.” At her frown, he realized he’d spoken aloud of the fey, of things like wishes that he would be a fool to believe in.
    “The Otherworld?”
    He frowned. The lass was Scottish, her soft burr a testament to her heritage. How could she not have heard of the home of the fey?
    At Sir Patrik’s confused glance, Emma froze. With her ignorance of the Otherworld, she’d made an error. The last thing she wanted was to invite doubt. She made her body tremble, then her knees give slightly.
    Sir Patrik caught her. “What is wrong?”
    With shaky fingers, she touched her brow. “ ’Tis nothing. A wave of dizziness came upon me.”
    A grimace tightened his mouth. “’Tis no wonder, after all you have endured this day. You need food and rest.”
    Guilt wove through her at his sincere concern for her false claim. “My thanks,” she said, too aware of him, of the strength behind the man, and that for the first time in her life she’d met someone who challenged her on every level. With gentle strength, he guided her forward. However much she wished to break away, she must keep up the appearance of dizziness.
    Fragmented rays of sunlight streamed from a fracture within the immense ceiling and spread out in a magnificent shimmer, exposing a huge cavern punctured by spears of rock arching to the ground. Color infused the grand stones, from the deepest brown to a myriad of oranges.
    Along the edge of the cavern lay a pool, a mirror to the magnificence, its stillness reflecting an