Chapter 44
Chapter
Forty-Four
Britta
I had expected ominous silence as we reached the subterranean cells, but I had not expected furtive chatter and urgent whispers to fill the air. Volten held up a hand, signaling me to wait, but then two figures emerged from the gloom. I tensed, ready to fight or run, but then I saw that it was one Drexian slumped against another.
"Kann!" His name escaped my lips before I could stop it.
His head lifted slightly at my voice, but his eyes were unfocused, fluttering. Blood dripped steadily from his leg, leaving a trail of dark droplets on the stone floor. My stomach lurched at the sight.
When Kann’s legs completely buckled, I rushed forward, ducking under his free arm to support him from the other side. His skin was clammy against mine, and he felt heavier than he should, like he wasn't supporting any of his own weight.
"Who are you?" The Drexian holding Kann's other side asked, his eyes sharp as they moved between Volten and me.
Right. They weren’t used to women at the old academy. I kept forgetting that my entire presence was a shock here.
“We came for him,” Volten nodded to Kann without answering the cadet’s question. “Who are you?”
"I'm Tov. First year cadet. Or I was, before I got caught during the hunt and they threw me in here." He tipped his head at Kann. “I knew this Drexian was no cadet, but I did not expect his rescuers to look like you.”
I exchanged a worried glance with Volten. How much should we tell him? The truth was too bizarre to be believed, but our lies were wearing thin.
"We need to move," I said in lieu of answering any questions. "Kann is losing too much blood."
Tov nodded, though his expression said he wasn't done with his questions. "The other prisoners will create enough chaos to cover our escape, but we need to hurry."
Kann’s head lolled against my shoulder, and I could feel his breath coming in short, uneven gasps. Fear clawed at my throat. We needed to get him out of here—out of this simulation entirely.
Volten stepped up and met my eyes. “Let me.”
As much as I wanted to be near Kann, Volten was bigger and stronger. He and Tov would move faster than I could, especially because Kann was dead weight.
I nodded and let him take my place. He and Tov exchanged a solemn look and started moving briskly down the corridor. I had to nearly jog behind them to keep up, but I didn’t care. Anything to save Kann.
My throat tightened as I tried to keep unwanted thoughts from crowding my mind.
What was Zav doing on the outside? How much longer did we have before the window for extraction closed? And even if we made it to the entry point, would Kann survive the transition in his current state?
The questions chased each other through my brain as we climbed back up the stairs. I could not believe that I had finally found someone I truly cared about, someone who made me feel safe, someone who filled the constant ache in my chest, and he might be snatched from me. I bit back a sob at the cruelty of it all, then I curled my hands into fists.
I refused to lose Kann. I would not let him die.
We emerged from the stairwell into the upper corridor, and I nearly sobbed with relief when I saw it was still empty. Behind us, shouts of alarm began to echo up from the dungeon as I assumed that the escaped prisoners were discovered.
“We should get him to the healer,” Tov said as he started to move one way.
Volten pulled back and glanced at me. We needed to get to the coordinates Zav had given Volten, but how could we explain that to Tov? And how could we leave him behind, after he'd helped us?
The sound of running feet and angry voices from below made the decision for us. We had to move now, explanations be damned.
“We have to take him somewhere else,” I said. “We’ll explain when we get there.”
Tov’s brows lifted, but he did not argue and followed Volten’s lead.
I fell in step, my heartbeat as fast as our pace, as Volten started to run and Tov matched his speed, with Kann suspended between the two.
Stay with us, Kann, I thought, willing him to be okay. We’re almost there. We’re almost home.