Page 74 of Sinful Curses
Some of the spiders clambered back up the walls while others raced forward. She swore the ones above them flew as they drifted on unseen air currents, and a few succeeded in landing on the air bubble instead of bouncing off it.
When they did, she spotted a second, circular mouth in the center of their large, hairy bellies. The razor-sharp teeth within the mouth clicked and clacked as they moved back and forth as it tried to break into the air bubble while sliding off the side of it.
Thousands of bristly black hairs covered the monstrosities. The two mandibles beside their front mouths were more like spikes meant to spear their victims. Two fangs, dripping with a green liquid she assumed was venom, hung down so low they nearly touched the ground when the thing landed.
“Holy shit,” Elsa breathed.
“Keep moving,” Zeth commanded. “Don’t let them swarm us.”
The only problem was the spiders blocking the tunnel behind them and a giant web blocking the way forward.
“Head for the web,” Orin said.
They all inched toward it as the spiders continued to charge and batter the protective bubble surrounding them. Each one was as ugly and horrific as the one before as their claws struck the air bubble, or they charged headfirst into it while others scampered across.
“How long will this spell last?” Pip asked.
“We can keep it going for a while.” Sahira glanced at Elsa, who stared back at her with frightened eyes. “I’m not sure exactly.”
She had no doubt Elsa would keep the spell intact as long as possible, but eventually, the spiders would weaken it. Not to mention, exhaustion would get the better of them, and once that happened, the barrier would fall.
For now, strong energy continued to pulse from the ground. That would help them continue to fuel the spell, but they had to devise a way out of this soon.
They were almost to the giant web when Orin stopped walking. If they kept going, the air bubble would get caught in the webbing, trapping them further.
Sahira shifted her attention to the enormous home and death trap the spiders devised. So intricately woven together, the fine, white filaments created strands thicker than her biceps and no more than a few inches apart.
Not even a brownie could slip past without being caught in the spiders’ web. More bodies than she’d realized were caught in the webbing as spiders scampered over the strands and descended toward them.
In the top left corner of the web, a massive, black spider was perched low with its legs tucked beneath it. Even though it lay on the web, Sahira could tell it was three times the size of the others.
Its numerous beady, red eyes surveyed them while it sent its children out to destroy them. That thing was so convinced they were already dead that it didn’t bother to rise.
Its confidence irritated and unnerved her. She wouldn’t be this monster’s dinner.
“If I stay inside this air bubble, can I hack at the web through it?” Orin asked.
“No. Once something pierces the bubble, it will collapse,” Sahira said.
Orin studied the web before looking at her. “Can you let me out of it while keeping yourself protected?”
Sahira’s heart bashed off her rib cage as everything in her protested this statement. “The second you step out of here, those things will be on you. And once you’re out there, we won’t be able to get the spell around you fast enough to protect you.”
“That’s not what I asked.”
Her mouth was so dry, she could barely speak as he stared at her with his sword raised before him and steely determination etched onto his exquisite features. “They’ll swarm you.”
“We can’t stay here. This protective barrier will fail, and when it does, they’ll be on all of us. If I leave here, I can hack through the web and clear a way to the other side.”
“They’ll follow us over there.”
“That will be our next problem, but our first problem is gettingoutof here. We’re trapped here; at least over there, we can run.”
“Orin—”
“I’m not arguing over this, Sahira. Can you let me out or not?”
She gulped as she shifted from foot to foot and looked at the others. They all stared expectantly back at her. Elsa could answer him, but she knew it had to come from her.
