Chapter 14 #2
“What’s your name?” I asked.
Her sneer only tightened. “What’s it to you? Want to curse me with your Protectorate magic?”
“No. But you keep looking at me like I put some scars on your body or heart. And I don’t remember cursing or fighting anybody who looked like you.”
“You’re the heir of the enemy Clan. That’s enough.”
“I didn’t ask to be here.”
“Doesn’t matter. You are and you could ruin everything.” Her gaze turned as cold as the frozen crater rim. “I will not let you hurt the Commander. He’s like my older brother and he is my Brother and I will do anything in my power and beyond to protect–”
Loud barks resounded from beyond the market.
A flicker of hesitation mirrored between the girl and I.
Neither moved.
If the dogs alerted their owners to this alley and they saw me threatening one of theirs, my already dire situation could become worse.
Retreating could hurt my pride, but help my future escape.
I didn’t have the time to choose.
Three of the wolf-dogs jumped over the barrels, massive jaws snapping as they thundered my way.
Shit.
I didn’t care if this girl would cackle at my expense.
I ran.
The boots hit the cobblestones with a vengeance as I raced down the alleys, desperately trying to remember which path was frozen over. If I fell on my ass, I’d be easy prey for these beasts barreling after me.
Like the crater was done watching and had finally barred its teeth.
But beyond their huge paws thumping after me and their angry barks, I heard frantic steps, as fast as mine.
I chanced a look behind me only to see the girl running.
Was she–was she hunting me down with the wolves?
The Commander had rescinded his promise or this girl was going rogue.
Either way, I was screwed.
Out of breath, starting to panic, and screwed.
My body was still too frail to keep up this pace and the fortress was too far away.
I made a sharp right turn, rushing down the first alley, and getting lost in a maze of paths and buildings that felt like they would cave over me at a sharp gust.
The vicious barks and haunting steps followed.
Too many turns later, I felt right back in that blasted maze that took so much away from me.
The images of blood, arrows, and olive trees clouded my vision.
No .
I would not fall again.
The Protectorate needed me.
An icy patch shimmered in front of me.
Shit.
Another sharp turn and I found myself staring at a gate at least twice as tall as me–but I’d scaled taller trees.
I jumped, feet pushing against the wall and using it as leverage. My palms grasped the top of the wooden gate.
Barely.
My body was fighting me, tired beyond reason.
I managed to pull myself up through sheer force of will and the strong grip years of handling a bow had given me.
I’d already straddled the gate when the girl ran down the same alley. My knife was already gripped and ready when I noticed her eyes.
Her scared gaze was jumping around, searching for a point of leverage.
She was being hunted down, too.
“The wall, use the wall,” I said quickly. “Jump, one leg pressed against it and reach up.”
If she wanted to gut me, she could try to do it safely from this side of the gate. I wouldn’t stand by and let her get torn to shreds when I could help.
“What, so you can impale that knife in my eye when I jump?” she asked.
The barks and growls came closer.
I arched my brow, looking at her.
The girl tried the same maneuver, but only managed to propel herself against the other wall. She’d obviously trained for hand-to-hand combat and could probably take me out with one strong fist, but right now, she needed to be nimble, not strong.
I growled, tensed my leg muscles on both sides of the gate, and leaned down. “Give me your hand.”
She looked at my outstretched palm as if it would scald her.
The wolves finally found us, hurtling down the alley, snouts wrinkled with anger.
“Come on!” I roared, flexing my outstretched arm.
The girl swore loudly, jumped, and grabbed my hand.
In my unstable state, the slight weight of her pulled me down hard. I barely regained my balance, thanking the gods for all those countless hours I spent training my grip, and pulled her up, arm stinging and screaming.
Just as she straddled the gate, the wolves slammed into the wood, shaking us.
I wasn’t sticking around to see how high they could jump. “Run!”
We both leaped down and hit the cobblestones at a frantic pace, not straying away from each other.
Only after five more alleys, when the wolves’ bark was nothing but a distant, threatening echo, did we stop, right before another ice patch, the both of us more out of breath than we should have been.
That’s what fear did. Made you weak.
My back bowed, I placed my palms on my knees, using a wall to stand upright–but still kept my eyes trained on her. Right now, I didn’t care if she saw me like this.
Something was wrong.
Struggling to climb up the fortress stairs on the first day was understandable. Famished, thirsty, and cold, only my stubbornness had kept me going.
But I was fed and clothed properly now.
A simple run shouldn’t have winded me like this.
I expected the girl to make another snide remark. Maybe take that ax and try to finish what she’d started in the alley.
“Thank you,” she said instead. She didn’t look at me in this pitiful state, a small comfort.
“You’re…welcome,” I managed to say and licked my lips. “Why were they chasing you, too?”
“It seems the hounds hate any outsider, no matter where they come from. And they will bite.” She snorted a mean laugh. “I’ve learned to stay away from the city’s center and you should, too.”
Not if I wanted to escape this mad place where dogs chased you down icy streets.
“Outsider?” I echoed. “How did you get in?”
And how can I leave? That history sounded too much to share with a stranger you didn’t trust enough to save your life until the last moment, but any scrap of information could help.
“I was brought here. And I’m not telling you how to get out, Huntress .”
I swallowed my annoyed sigh and righted myself, but didn’t move away from the wall–I feared my tired knees would give out if I did.
“Why were you following me?” I asked.
“I have more important things to do with my life than care where you skulk,” was her instant reply. Then she exhaled sharply through her nose, as if just remembering I’d saved her from being mauled alive–or at least some mean bites. “I was told where you were and came to get you.”
So I was being watched. How? I’d been so careful, always checking behind me, stopping at weird intervals to listen to any sound, and always going down different routes right as I exited the fortress.
But there was a more pressing issue now. “Why?”
She finally looked at me, a warning in her cold eyes. “The Commander wants you.”