“How are we going to wake him?” Delano asked.

“Well,” I glanced at Casteel, “we thought we’d cross that bridge when we came to it.”

Vonetta lifted her brows. A moment passed. “That sounds like a wonderfully detailed plan.”

Casteel smirked. “Aren’t you glad you signed up?”

“Totally,” Vonetta replied, sounding so much like her brother.

“Ready?” Casteel asked, his eyes meeting mine.

I wasn’t exactly sure, but there was no point in delaying this, so I nodded, and we followed Casteel into the nothingness.

Time was a strange thing in the tunnels. With no light but that of the torches, we only knew hours had passed when hunger stirred. We stopped only to meet that need and handle personal ones in earthen rooms I convinced myself weren’t full of six-legged insects. We could’ve been in the twisting, cramped tunnels for hours—or longer—and I didn’t think we’d know.

“Careful,” Casteel warned at some point in the never-ending tunnel, holding the torch ahead of him. “The floor feels weak through this section. Stay close to the wall.”

I wasn’t sure how he could tell that, but I did as he requested, pressing my body against the cool stone. The canteen dug into my back as I crept along, Kieran close behind me. My chest tightened as I realized that the tunnel had narrowed once more. I’d never had a problem with enclosed spaces, but I had a feeling I would now. I reached out, gripping the back of Casteel’s shirt without really thinking about it. I’d gotten into the habit of doing so whenever the walls or ceiling pressed in.

“Poppy,” Casteel whispered.

“What?” I focused on the reddish glow beyond him.

“You know what I should’ve brought with us?” he asked.

More food? Maybe a little pouch of cheese? I was hungry again. “No,” I answered.

“Miss Willa’s journal.”

I stopped momentarily, and Kieran bumped into me. Thank the gods, he’d given the torch to Delano, or my hair would currently be on fire. “Really?”

“Yeah.” Casteel continued forward. “We could’ve passed the time taking turns reading from your favorite chapters.”

“Are we talking about the same Willa?” Vonetta asked from somewhere behind me.

“Yes. You see, there’s this extremely popular book in Solis. It’s actually Poppy’s favorite—”

“It is not my favorite, you jerk,” I snapped.

“Please don’t stab him in this tunnel,” Delano called out.

My eyes rolled. “I cannot promise that.”

Casteel chuckled.

“What is in this book? I have a feeling I’d be interested in it,” Vonetta said, and I heard Kieran groan. “What is—?” A loud crack cut off her words, and then the entire floor of the cavern seemed to rumble beneath us.

I spun around just in time to see Vonetta step to the other side of the wall and then disappear in a plume of dust. Horror seized me.

“Netta!” Kieran shouted, his fear sticky against my skin as it mixed with mine.