Blue Blood (Series of Blood Book 3) by Emma Hamm (books to read this summer .txt) 📕

impressive, if not terrifying. The ivy was so twisted and tangled that it almost looked as though it were one plant.

“This the maze?” he asked.

“I believe so.”

“Fantastic.”

He didn’t really believe it was fantastic. Jasper had a knot in the pit of his stomach making him nauseous. There was something entirely unnatural about this place. Magic was steeped in everything around them, making the hairs on his arms stand up straight.

“We going in?” he asked.

“I guess so.”

“Any guesses on how we get in?”

“Not a clue.”

“Right,” he muttered. “Time to take initiative then.”

He took a few decisive steps towards the ivy. One way or another, he would get into that maze. A few plants weren’t going to stop him.

To Jasper’s surprise, when he was about five steps away, it moved. He paused to watch the slithering strands of greenery pull themselves apart until they formed a doorway. The opening was the perfect size for him to pass through.

With a creased forehead, he glanced over his shoulder at the Wisp. She shrugged.

He held his hand forward. “After you.”

“Oh, I don’t think so.” She shook her head firmly. “You have no reason to let me go first. You’re the one that’s supposed to teleport us into the center.”

“I don’t know what the center looks like. I can’t teleport into it.”

“Sure you can.” The Wisp ran her tongue over her lips. “That’s why we brought you.”

“Weren’t you listening when I explained teleportation to your boss? If I had a picture of the center, I might be able to do something. But right now? Not a chance, doll.”

She fidgeted as he spoke, her eyes darting from side to side. Finally, she held a hand up to interrupt his rant. “Just go through first. No more arguing.”

He opened his mouth to start in on her again, but stopped when he noticed the expression on her face. He couldn’t quite pinpoint what it meant. Her brow was strangely smooth but there were fine lines around her mouth he had not noticed before. Her lips were pursed and the crow’s feet at the edges of her eyes were more prominent.

His feet began to move of their own accord. He turned back towards the opening and took one last deep breath. Plunging into the ivy was easier than he had anticipated.

His stomach churned with the imagined feeling of vines slithering against his skin. He pictured the vines snapping out to wrap around his throat. The plants didn’t move as he walked through, save for the rustling hiss of leaves.

He stood in what appeared to be the beginning of a maze. In front of him and to the sides were long pathways that continually split off in different directions. It was like the veins of some monstrous creature. He was traveling to its heart.

Jasper inhaled and turned to the Wisp. “I think we’re okay. We’re alone here.”

“Are you sure?” she asked. He doubted that she would believe him, no matter what he told her.

“Yeah, pretty sure. Come on, let’s keep going.”

He reached out a hand for her to take. The Wisp took one step forward and paused. Her eyes darted to the left of the path, which now shone suspiciously brighter than moments before.

Somehow, her face paled further. “You go on alone.”

“I don’t think I’m supposed to be alone.” He corrected her and shook his hand. “Whatever it is you see, it’s not real.”

“It’s real to me.” She looked at him with a sad smile. “I have to run now.”

“Don’t.”

‘‘I was made for darkness, but I am a moth to a flame when it comes to light such as this. It’s like…the sun,” she whispered, staring longingly at whatever was creating the light illuminating her cheeks. “I have to run, or I will never leave this place. Find the center of the maze. Go!”’

She turned and ran as though the devil himself was nipping at her heels. A man made of light trailed after her. There was nothing of substance to him, though he seemed to drip molten lava as he rushed after her.

Jasper hated this place.

“Oh a maze!” Bluebell shouted. “I love mazes!”

“Yeah? Think you can figure this one out?”

“Most definitely. We’re going to have to teleport a lot though. It’s been a while.”

Jasper cracked his neck to relieve some of his tension. “I’m fine with that. Let’s go.”

4

He grew out of breath as he teleported again and again through the maze. Each section was stranger than the last. There was no rhyme or reason to how this maze had been created —  many of the pathways ended too quickly, while others brought him in endless loops.

As much as he wanted to believe her, Jasper was convinced Bluebell did not know anything about solving mazes.

“Go left!” she shouted excitedly.

“To the right you mean? Or actually the left this time?”

“If I could use one of your hands to point, this would be easier.”

He sighed and rubbed a knot in the back of his neck. It was a stress knot. He was about ready to wring his own neck to get out of this damned maze. “If I let you control my arm, you’d still be pointing in one direction and telling me to go the other.”

“I don’t think you have any faith in me,” she grumbled.

“I don’t. I think you’re lying and have never been in a maze before.”

“I never said I’d been in a maze. I said I liked them. That’s a big difference, Jaspy!”

A distinction he had not been intelligent enough to clarify apparently. He wanted to sit down and not get back up. Or actually… He stilled.

“Bluebell, we’re teleporting back home. We’ll get the others. Lyra is more important than this.”

“What?” she asked. “We can’t do that.”

“Why not? There’s no one around to stop us. We’re going back to Haven.”

She banged at the edge of his mind, fighting for control over his body. “No! It is important to stay. I can feel it!”

“Yeah. Just like you felt you knew how to get to the