Chapter 19 #2
We make one final turn and come to a staircase spiraling upward.
My stomach sinks. I don’t know if I have it in me to climb them.
I shake my head, then my hands, trying to steel myself.
I flinch as a drop of blood flings off the dagger still in my hand and lands on my cheek.
I reach up and wipe it away, though I’m sure I’ve just added more blood from my hand.
I watch Caene climb higher with the only light source, leaving me in darkness.
I follow. I can’t give up now. I’m too close.
They’ve already broken me; I won’t let them keep me.
Caene bounds up the steps and I follow, albeit much more slowly, each one getting harder, my breathing becoming labored, painful. He’s moving much faster than me, disappearing around the curve.
Invulnerable prick.
When I reach him he’s fiddling with a lock in a door that runs parallel to the ceiling. We had a door like this at the house I grew up in. It led to our cellar and cold storage. I’ve been underground this whole time. A shiver runs up my spine.
They buried me alive. Add that to the list of new fears.
He swings the door open and cold air rushes me. I welcome it. I inhale deeply, the cold wind smelling of pine and moss and mist. It dawns on me I haven’t breathed fresh air for a long time.
I follow Caene out into a dense forest. The pine trees grow close together, the fog making it difficult to make out much of anything.
Now completely free of my prison, I collapse to my hands and knees, gulping down air.
I can feel the panic start to rise and reach for my necklace. A warm hand wraps around my arm.
“We can’t stop yet,” he says, his voice calm and gentle.
“They’ll be right behind us. The lock will only slow them down for a short while.
” I turn my head to look at the door in the forest floor.
It camouflages into the twigs, moss, and undergrowth becoming nearly invisible.
Caene has taken the lock from the inside and secured it to the outside.
I look back at him, then into the forest. The sun has started its descent in the west and resolve washes over me.
They won’t take me again. At least, not alive.
I nod at Caene. He helps me to my feet, and we take off running through the trees.
I don’t look back. I will never look back.
We run as fast as my withered legs can carry me until they give out. I can’t run anymore. I fall to the ground, gasping for air. Caene’s invulnerability has nearly worn off.
“I can’t,” I pant. “I can’t go anymore.” I’m sucking in air like a person dying in the sun, desperate for water.
Caene looks back at the direction we came and nods.
The sky has grown dark as we’ve run, though how late it is I couldn’t say.
The fog enveloping us is too thick to see the sky through.
Without a word, Caene starts collecting twigs and dry grass to make a fire.
“Where are we?” I ask as I sit back against a tree, my eyes closing. I’m so tired. I wrap my bare arms around myself, rubbing them, trying to keep out the chill. Autumn has begun to descend on Lyclaven, putting into sharper focus how long I’ve been captive.
“The Elvael Forest,” his deep voice rumbles.
My eyes snap open. The Elvael Forest isn’t somewhere you want to end up.
No one comes here. No one dares. There are legends and myths surrounding this place.
There isn’t even a road that runs through it, only around.
My eyes dart around the dark forest, looking for any legendary creatures that might be lurking in the fog.
I shake my head, settling back into the tree.
There’s nothing here. They’re just stories.
Just like the gods and goddesses. Fables.
Even so, I can’t escape the eerie feeling surrounding me.
I close my eyes against the sensation. It’s a struggle to open them again.
The adrenaline pumping in my veins has burned out and the strength Caene gave me has worn off completely.
My body aches, my stomach grumbles, and I’ve begun to shiver violently.
Light flashes behind my eyelids as Caene lights the fire.
I open them and watch as he rounds it, taking his coat off, then he takes my hands, pulls me to my feet, and tenderly guides me closer to the fire, where I settle on the forest floor.
I don’t even try to fight him. I’m too cold, too drained.
He delicately drapes his coat over me, his cedarwood and wood smoke scent enveloping me, and wraps it tightly around my shaking body.
I’m momentarily moved by the kindness of the gesture before reminding myself he’s the reason I’m here.
Even with that knowledge and the awareness of where we are, I can’t stay awake.
“Rest.” His voice sounds far away. “I have you.” I feel his hand push a strand of hair from my face as I let my exhaustion wash over me and sleep claim me.