Page 53 of Into the Abyss
“Let’s not do that then,” Erin said andglanced worriedly at where Vargas and Hawk remained immobileagainst the wall.
“Could we all go in and kill the jinn?” Caiminquired.
“No!” Amalia cried. “I won’t allow that! Idon’t agree with what they’ve done, but I willnotallow youto harm my family and friends!”
“Weren’t they going to killyou?” Lixdemanded.
“They’re not happy with me, and my unshiOlgon isfuriousabout what I’ve done, but they won’t hurtme.”
They all stared skeptically at her.
“It’s true,” I said. “I saw and heard thejinn when they were unaware we were there. The jinn may be ruthlesswhen it comes to everyone outside of them, but theydolovetheir own.”
I didn’t include her uncle in thatassessment; he would kill her if she got in his way. I suspectedAmalia knew this but was still holding out hope his love for herwould win out and he would let go of the anger ruling him.
“Really?” Corson asked doubtfully.
“I didn’t believe it either, but yes, theycare for each other,” I said.
“So where does that leave us?” Erinasked.
“I might have an idea,” Amalia said. “I’mnot sure it will work or if they’ll help us, but I may be able toget the Faulted to intervene. There might be something they can doto help.”
“And how do we do that?” Corson asked.
“I know where they live. I’ll go tothem.”
• • •
Magnus
I stood at the edge of the grove of calamuts,stunned to discover the Faulted jinn had made their home amid thetowering trees growing from the ruined remains of an areadevastated by bombs. A couple of months ago, we’d come acrossanother grove of calamuts on Earth, but we’d traveled too far sincethen for this to be the same one.
The calamuts originated in Hell, but they’dfound their way to Earth and were spreading throughout the land.Twice the size of the tallest Earth trees when full grown, thesebabies were only a few hundred feet tall, but I didn’t doubt they’deasily kill any threat walking beneath them.
The Faulted were less of a danger than I’drealized if the calamuts allowed them to live here. The calamutsdidn’t tolerate violence beneath their boughs, and if the Faultedresided in this forest, then the calamuts would protect them.
The black leaves shone in the sun filteringthrough them, turning them a more purple color as we strolledbeneath the sweeping canopies of the calamuts’ branches. Unlike theEarth trees in this area, which were barren in February, thecalamuts retained their leaves, and small balls of growing pruryfruit hung from the limbs of the more mature calamuts.
Broken bits of homes rose from in betweenthe thick trunks, and a towering chimney nearly touched the bottombranch of a baby calamut. Scorched land crunched beneath my feet asdid the shattered remains of some of the things humans oncecherished.
Amalia bent and lifted something from theground. Wiping away the soot coating it, she revealed the brokenface of a child’s doll. One blue eye stared out at us, but a chunkof the cheek beneath it was gone and the body was half rottedaway.
“What is this?” she asked.
“A doll,” I replied. “Human children playwith them.”
The look on her face said she didn’tunderstand why. When a roach skittered out of the doll’s roundedlips, she released the toy, wiped her hands on her dirty dress, andcontinued walking.
“When did the Faulted move here?” Iinquired.
“A month ago,” she replied. “They stayed ina few other places before this one, but I think they’ll stayhere.”
“Corson and Wren encountered some jinn wholived in part of the ouroboro’s den.”
“Some of the jinn used that as a place to,ah… play, but they didn’t reside there.”
“Were you with them?”
