Banging on the door.

Head pounding.

Smell of piss fills my nose again.

And then I'm back in the cell, wide awake, hands gripping the soil so tightly that it forms a ball.

"Who's there?" I call out.

The door bursts open and a swarm of people come in. They surround my place on the floor.

"Levántate," says one.

They hoist me to my feet, arms under my pits, lifting me so far off the ground that my feet don't even touch the floor anymore.

I have this corridor memorised. Well, there isn't much to memorise anyway. Just the clogging smell of soil and the eerie glow of a few lanterns.

I don't put up a fight against the hands. It's almost a relief to be away from the awful smell of the cell.

I recognise the door at the end of the hallway as soon as we turn the corner. We erupt through it, and I'm blinking into the massive hall again.

It's devoid of people now. Since there's no one here, it makes me realise just how big of a place it is. This whole system of corridors underground must spread over lots and lots of land above.

Again, like so many other times, I have a fleeting image of Mum. Only this time I shake her out of my head.

They are on the far side of the room again. Both of them. Bea's tense shoulders relax when she sees me and I feel my own breathing slow in slight relief. The King's stance tells me he's far from letting us go easily.

"Welcome," he says breezily as I arrive.

Bea looks worse by tenfold. The bruise below her eye has worsened and extended down to her cheek. She grabs me, pulling me into a hug so tight that I have to gasp for air. Her perfume is strong, but it only comforts me.

"Bloody hell," she hisses into my shoulder. "Are you okay?"

"Yes," I reply. "Thing is, are you?"

She nods. "Fine. I did more damage to him, actually."

That reminds me that I haven't actually looked at the King. His hair is dishevelled, and blood runs freely from his split lip. I catch a nasty-looking scratch on his cheek, one that looks suspiciously like it was caused by a nail. My eyes trail to Bea's hands, and I see bright red filth under her nails.

"Fake nails are a bonus," Bea says simply, and I smile secretly.

"You may have wondered," begins the King, "why I have brought you here." He turns his cheek away from us slightly as though to hide his wounds. "After much discussion with my trustees, we have come to a conclusion. One that is less harsh since..." he trails off, looking at Bea's hands in mine. "Nonetheless, since you are from the diggers, we are proposing you work for us. Return the diamond to me in twenty-four hours and I will set you free forever."

I gaze excitedly at Bea.

This is it.

This is our chance. We may be able to get out of this hellhole.

But I can see Bea turning the plan over in her mind, picking out the flaws. "But how are we to reach the digging site so soon?" she asks him. "Your Highness, it would take us days—"

"That is why," says the King, cutting her off, "I have issued some help." He raises something in his hand to our faces. It looks like a strand of seaweed attached to a small pole. "This is the trout's rattle. Shake it and she will be summoned. If you need to summon me, call for me after you shake the rattle." I take the seaweed rattle in my hands. It's small enough to be pocketed. "Though don't shake it now. You will leave via the aquarium."

I make to pull Bea with me out of the room, but she roots herself in place.

"Not yet," the King says. "I still haven't had my wish yet."

I frown. "What wish?"

"In exchange for all this, you two will do me a favour."

I glance at Bea. "And what's the favour?"

She takes my hands in hers. "Don't take this to heart."

Confusion wells inside me. "Don't take what to h—"

And I'm cut short because Bea has pressed her lips to mine.