Chapter 15 #2
“I suppose that’s true. Truce then? At least until we get close to the rendezvous point, at which time I will encourage you to provoke me as much as you want.” He flashed a grin that verged on wickedness. “Just so I can retaliate.”
Retaliate? She ground her molars wishing she had another log to throw, just to knock the smug look off his face.
Although thoughts of escape were never far from her mind, she needed to be practical.
She had spent the first sixteen years of her life in a palace overflowing with loyal servants to do her bidding and the last five aboard Armathea surrounded by her protective friends and crew.
She didn’t know the first thing about surviving in a jungle. “Fine. Truce.”
“Good.” Reyne spun and resumed his arduous chores, sending shredded vines in all directions.
They continued in silence while Kendra smacked bug, after annoying bug, that landed on her and wiped beads of sweat from her brow. She tripped, climbed over fallen trees the size of boulders and slipped on the swampy ground.
It had only been a short time since their journey on foot began, and she already felt exhausted.
Reyne halted. “Look. There appears to be a game trail up ahead.” He dropped his backpack and pulled out a palm-sized device and took readings from what appeared to be a compass.
“And it’s going in the correct direction.
” He pointed through the dangling vines to a trail worn with hoof prints embedded in the mud.
“Hopefully, this should lead us to water. Since I only have one canteen, we will need to scout for it as we trek.”
Great. They were going to die of thirst.
Not long after they moved onto the game trail, Kendra’s foot slid in a pile of slippery mud, forcing her to grab the nearest tree for support.
Her palm came away sticky. She wiped her hands on her tawny pants.
More sweat dripped from her brow. Any loose locks that escaped her braid were now drenched in sweat and plastered to her face.
“Can we stop for a minute?” She pleaded when the sweltering heat began to overwhelm her, leaving her feeling faint, dizzy. “I need to adjust my clothing.”
Reyne dropped his pack and leaned against a wide tree covered in hairy vine roots. He ran his fingers through his sweat-dampened hair, dislodging lingering pieces of woody debris from his long locks.
The glare he flashed her spoke of retaliation, but Kendra didn’t care. Her immediate concern was air. A breeze. Something to cool her overheated skin. She removed her waist cincher, dropping the sweat-covered leather to the ground. “May I borrow your dagger?”
Reyne studied her for a moment, then removed the blade from his boot and handed it to her, hilt first. She tore her cream-colored shirt from underneath her breasts to the hem and tied the split ends together, exposing her midriff.
She sighed in relief as cooler air caressed her overheated skin and returned his weapon. “There. That is so much better.”
Reyne picked up the discarded clincher and stuffed it into his pack.
Boom. A thunderous explosion in the distance shook the ground. They both turned to see a blazing fireball shoot into the sky followed by waves of billowing black smoke.
“I guess it was a good thing we left the ship,” she muttered.
Reyne gazed down at her with a raised brow, his expression grim. “What ship?” With that, he turned, and they were back on the move.
They continued down the trail as the sun began to fall.
When the trail widened, and she didn't need to navigate around obstacles, Kendra was able to admire the jungle's raw beauty.
The air was thick with the scent of blooming flowers, their sweet fragrance mingling with the earthy aroma of damp soil.
Towering trees stood overhead, their branches forming a dense canopy that filtered sunlight into a soft, dispersed glow.
The calls of exotic birds echoed through the trees.
Vibrant insects fluttered from one unique flower to another, their wings adding splashes of color to the dense undergrowth.
Kendra slapped another persistent bug that landed on her arm. “Do we have food?”
“We have enough jerky for four days. If we ration.”
Great. Not only could she be eaten alive by ravenous insects, sweat to death or die of thirst, but now she could add starvation to the growing list of things that could kill her.
She tripped over a gnarled root hidden beneath partially decayed leaves, scraping her knee as she stumbled to the ground.
She groaned, getting back to her feet was a struggle.
“Do you have any rum?” She rubbed her throbbing knee as she limp-hopped to catch up to Reyne.
“No rum, but I did grab some Taleari whiskey. I suggest you watch the roots, or else you will trip.”
“A little late, but thanks for the warning,” she grumbled, trying to ignore the pain shooting up and down her leg.
From the corner of her eye, she noticed a unique flower that appeared to be an orchid, with ivory petals striped with lavender and a hint of yellow at its center. The flower was beautiful. Pain nearly forgotten, she leaned down to see if the unusual bloom offered a fragrance.
Fingers dug into her arm. “This isn’t a horticultural expedition.” Reyne tugged her back to the trail. “We will be stopping soon. You can admire all the flora you want then.”
Kendra scrunched her face and resisted the urge to stick out her tongue at him. Fucking Ass.
Just as the sun dipped close to the horizon, they happened upon a break in the dense canopy. The path opened to a small grassy field with a partial view of the darkening sky. Reyne dropped his backpack. “This looks like a good place to bed down for the night.”
Exhausted, she dropped to the ground in a heap and rubbed her sore knee.
Reyne opened the canteen, took a deep swig and tossed it to her. She did the same. The cool water that drenched her parched throat felt so wonderful, she closed her eyes and moaned with pleasure.
Something landed in her lap. She glanced down and saw several pieces of jerky. Her stomach rumbled just looking at the twisted meat. Fueled by hunger, she devoured the first piece. It was a bit salty, but the dried meat was soft and tasty.
Using his machete as a makeshift shovel, Reyne swept a layer of leaf debris aside and dug a shallow hole in the soil, releasing an earthy scent.
He scouted the perimeter of their makeshift campsite for wood, returning every so often to dump a stack of roughly chopped branches and kindling next to the pit.
He arranged the wood and struck the flint. Flames leapt to life just as the sun dipped below the horizon, painting the sky with a palette of fiery oranges mingled with deep purples.
Reyne poked the fire a couple of times with a long stick, stoking it. Once the fire was burning on its own, he leaned against a gnarled tree trunk. As the sky darkened into night, the Valerian moon became visible through the canopy, scattering wispy scrapes of moonlight across the jungle floor.
Kendra sat cross-legged near the fire, inching closer to the flames without risk of being burned, hoping the dancing light would shield her from the encroaching darkness.
As soon as she swallowed the last bite of jerky, she held her palms towards the crackling warmth.
A sigh of contentment escaped her as she enjoyed the feel of flickering heat on her skin.
It was odd, she hadn’t given Valeria—or her previous life, a second thought in years.
But somehow the simple pleasure of sitting beside a warm fire caused memories to swirl around her mind.
She missed her mountain home, she realized.
The rustic lodge, her favorite escape, had been littered with welcoming hearths that kept the harsh Valerian chills at bay.
With the exception of her gentle mother, Kendra didn’t miss her family at all.
Not even her sisters or her brother, who all treated her like an outcast in her own home.
Kendra had learned at a young age to stay out of their way.
Still, the thought of how Mordrick killed them made her angry.
No one deserved such a fate. Not even the horrid father who sold her like chattel.
“You had a good tutor,” Reyne said, his deep masculine voice breaking the quiet.
She glanced up at him, startled. “What?”
The fire crackled, sending red embers and ash into the air between them.
“Your ancient Calysptian was flawless. If you had mispronounced one word, I would not have been obligated to tell the truth.”
“Oh. I hated that awful, belittling man,” she admitted, thinking of her horrid tutor. “He was an evil fat toad. If I mispronounced a word, he would strike my knuckles with a switch. It hurt. But I'm glad the pain I endured actually paid off.” She mimicked one of his annoying smirks.
He chuckled. “It only works once, you know?”
“Once? What do you mean?”
“It’s our Ramachii secret. We are only compelled to tell the truth once. After that, we can lie as if the ancient words had never been spoken.”
Her eyes narrowed, confused by his odd confession. “Why are you telling me this?”
“Honestly, I don’t know.” He tossed another random piece of wood into the fire pit. “The fortress is a dangerous place. I have eleven Ramachii brethren, and some are just as sadistic as Mordrick.”
She felt a sudden chill despite the warmth of the fire dancing on her skin. “Are the terrible things I’ve heard about Mordrick true?”
He stoked lean fingers over his jaw. “No.” The fresh piece of wood caught and flared to life, a bright flame illuminating his face so she could read the awful truth in his grim expression when he confessed. “I imagine they are infinitely worse.”
Worse? She wasn’t sure what she expected when she had asked that insane question, but the blatant truth of his reply sent another shiver down her spine. She glanced towards the flames and whispered, “if you are trying to frighten me Reyne, you have finally succeeded.”