The Curse of Thorns

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

"We can't be trapped," Briar yelled, panicking.

"It feels like we are," Leon grunted, straining to pull the door. But it remained stubbornly immovable as if it had fused with the wall. "The door won't budge."

"Hut," Briar yelled, her voice echoing through the empty halls. "Open the door!"

"No," the hut bellowed back, the walls trembling with its anger. "You lied to me. You are here to seal the book."

"Open the door!" Briar shouted again, her desperation growing. "Or else."

"You can't do anything," the hut taunted, its tone dripping with malice. "Break whatever you want. You can't scare me anymore. You can never escape. You are trapped inside me. Wait for Baba Yaga."

Briar's mind raced, her eyes darting around the room. Suddenly, she remembered the strange set of keys Leon had found earlier. "The keys!" she shouted, her voice filled with newfound hope. "Maybe they will open the door."

Leon's face lit up like a moon in the night sky. "Oh, yes!" He pulled the keys from his pocket, his hands trembling with excitement. "Luckily, I didn't throw them away." He raised the keys towards the door but then stopped, hesitation clouding his face.

"What are you waiting for?" Briar urged him. "Open the door!"

Leon gave her a troubled look, his brow furrowed. "The door has no keyhole."

"What?" Briar rushed to the door, her fingers tracing the smooth wood. The prince was right. There was no keyhole. "Maybe it's hidden. Let me try." She snatched the keys from Leon and began pressing them against the door, feeling for any hint of magic. She touched every inch of the door, from top to bottom, leaving no spot untried. Her movements grew frantic as nothing happened. "Come on," she muttered, pressing harder. "There has to be a way."

Furiously, Briar hurled the keys across the room, watching them clatter against the wall and fall to the floor. Her breaths came in short, furious bursts, her face flushed with anger and desperation. "This is hopeless!"

"Maybe the door needs some sort of offering to open," he suggested, scanning their surroundings for any clues.

"Where are we supposed to find a heart?" Briar's eyes welled up with tears. "Evalina didn't say we might get trapped inside. This wasn't part of the plan!"

"Maybe she didn't know," Leon said, trying to keep calm.

"I just want to leave this hut!" Briar sobbed, her frustration boiling over. She kicked the door with all her strength, her fists pounding against the wood. "OPEN!" she screamed, her voice echoing through the room. "OPEN!"

"Leave the book," The hut's voice reverberated through the space, cold and mocking. "And maybe you can go. I'll not tell Baba Yaga."

"Never!" Briar spat, her eyes blazing with defiance. "You have to open. I'll make you." She kicked the door again, her foot aching from the impact.

"Briar," Leon called softly, placing a gentle hand on her shoulder. "You're only hurting yourself. The door won't open if we take the book."

"And you know we can't leave the book." Briar threw one last futile kick at the door before Leon pulled her away.

"Relax," Leon said, guiding her to sit on the floor. He crouched beside her. "We'll think calmly. There must be a way out."

"The only way out is the door," Briar said. "And we have to break it."

"You can't break a magical door by hand," Leon replied, shaking his head. "And I don't think our swords will make any difference."

"This door will open," Briar said, a sudden spark of an idea lighting up her eyes. "I'll burn it." She paused, the thought solidifying in her mind. "We have to burn the door."