37. Phoebe
37
PHOEBE
V apas walks away without a word and it feels like my heart tears out of my chest and drags in the dirt behind him.
I follow in his wake, the heat of my regrets burning with every step. He doesn’t look back, his broad shoulders stiff. Every instinct screams at me to tell him the truth, to explain why I was sent to live among the Urr’ki. But the words stick in my throat.
Now? Seriously Phoebs? Get real girl. He’s not going to listen.
What would I even say? That I was a pawn in a plan I barely agreed to? That my silence wasn’t meant to deceive him but when have we had a chance to talk? The weight of it presses on me, and for all Vapas seems to care, I might as well be invisible.
Ahead, the resistance members move into position, their dark silhouettes darting through the gaps between broken walls and piles of rubble.
“Human,” one of the resistance members whispers, motioning for me to stop moving. He points off to the left, away from the guards. “When we move, you follow Vapas. Don’t stop. Don’t hesitate.”
I nod, though my stomach nervously churns.
The signal comes without warning and makes me jump. It’s a sudden burst of light and heat that paints the cavern walls in flickering orange hues. The explosion of noise and fire roars in the distance. The guards shout as they scramble toward the commotion with weapons drawn.
“Go!” the resistance Urr’ki hisses.
Vapas is already moving, slipping through the shadows with fluid grace. I dart out from the shelter and run after him. My heart is hammering as he weaves us through the chaos.
The cavern exit looms right ahead, a broad opening in the rock that should be a promise of freedom, but only if Vapas forgives me. We’re almost there. I’m right behind Vapas, running to keep up with all I have. My shorter legs forcing me to take two steps for every one he does.
He’s moving through the defensive barriers. Right as I pass the first one myself, a shout cuts through the noise, sharp and guttural. I don’t have to understand the words of it to know what it means. We’re caught. My breath catches as Vapas whirls, his eyes locking onto mine for the briefest moment.
“Run,” he growls as he spins and moves behind me.
I try, but my feet are frozen. The pounding of approaching boots echoes, closing the distance with terrifying speed. And then, without thinking, I grab his arm.
“No!” I scream, the word tearing past the lump in my throat. “Not without you.”
Vapas stares into my eyes, looking for something. I don’t know what he looks for or what he finds, but a heartbeat later, he grimaces and nods. We’re running. Side by side we sprint through the offset barriers that guard the tunnel exit. The shouts of pursuit grow louder and closer.
The cavern walls become narrower the further into the opening we go. For a fleeting moment, I think we might make it.
Until a shadow looms ahead, blocking our path.