Chapter 36
Thirty-Six
Autumn crawled on all fours, drawing closer to the ship. Her throat ran dry, and her body trembled with each unnatural movement. She inhaled, struggling to catch her breath. The corners of her vision shattered with stars.
She slowed down, resting on her belly for a moment before pushing herself up and continuing along her slushy path.
What choice did she have but to challenge Valdez? It was either fight her or be stranded on this miserable planet forever.
Armienti crawled beside her. The elbow of his injured arm propped up his weight, sliding against the snow and ice. His blue complexion shifted suspiciously off color. He stopped for a moment cupping his mouth. He gulped, shaking his head. A thin layer of ice sparkled, coating his long golden tresses.
“I’m not sure what’s wrong,” he admitted quietly. “I feel so very?—”
“Don’t you dare chicken out on me,” she hissed. “We both feel like crap. You need to back me up. I can’t take her on alone.”
He nodded as they drew closer. They came upon a dense pile of rocks covered with snow. Flurries trickled from the sky. Autumn stopped and rested her back against the stones, catching her breath. Armienti joined her, sky-blue eyes closing before glancing at her.
He inhaled. “Maybe we don’t have to do this. Maybe we could stay here forever and live out the rest of our lives in peace. We could have a fam?—”
“Please don’t do this right now, I need you to focus,” she reached out and weakly squeezed his hand. “I know you’re scared and so am I, but we have to try. There’s no backing out. It’s fight her or die.”
As she inhaled, a sharp pain welled in her chest. She winced as it became more difficult to catch her breath. What was happening to her? It was like she was suffocating a little more with each passing day.
She hesitated. As she glanced around the corner of the rocks, she heard music whistling through the wintery terrain. Figures dressed in black wispy clothes skipped and danced around in circles. Guards cocked their oversized metallic guns and stood around them in silence. Laughter and merriment ensued. What the heck? How could they be celebrating at a time like this?
But what really sent her over the edge was the smell of fresh food sizzling through the air. Mmmm. Her gut tied itself in a million knots. She salivated before swallowing. All that sat in her stomach was weeks and weeks of ice world fish.
Yuck.
How she missed eating a freshly prepared meal. Gooey chocolate chip pancakes, her dad’s arroz con gandules, cheese fries. Heck, she’d even eat meat if it was in front of her. Desperation rattled her to the core.
It had to be some kind of trap.
She turned back to Armienti, who sat beside her with his eyes closed. “It’s our last chance, Autumn. We could go back to the cave and be safe until?—”
She inhaled before exhaling slowly. Her vision fogged. “Until what? We die? You see what’s happening to us, don’t you? Our abilities are gone. We can barely function?—”
He rested his head on her shoulder. “This time I’ve spent with you has been the happiest in my entire life. I feel so connected to you out here, and I never want this feeling to end.”
She paused. “I’m sorry but there’s no we, Armienti. And right now, we need to focus on staying alive, not your ridiculous fantasies.”
He ran his good hand through his matted golden hair. His face fell in a way she’d never witnessed before. His broad shoulders slumped. “I know,” he said quietly. “I can dream though, can’t I? Dreams are the one luxury we have in this life.”
She sighed, pitying him for a moment. “I don’t want to hurt your feelings, and I don’t want you to think that I haven’t thought at all about what could’ve been. Because believe me, I have. Maybe if I had met you first or if Dante’s wasn’t in the picture things could’ve been different,” she paused. “But the fact of the matter is, he’s my husband and I love him more than any?—”
Before she could finish her sentence, he crushed his mouth to hers, running his hand through her frozen tangled coils. He kissed her deeply, setting her on his lap. The side of her body scraped against the pile of rocks. His tongue swirled in her mouth, tasting of fresh peppermint.
He hadn’t been listening to a word she said. He was as dense as a log. Frustration and anger rattled through her. When she pulled away to scold him again for disregarding her wishes, his leg buzzed and vibrated.
Her stomach dropped into the great unknown and his eyes widened.
“What is that?” She reached into his pocket, splaying her fingers. He tried to move away but she was too fast. She slid out a sleek black communicator.
“Wait, Autumn, please—I can explain.”
Her fists clenched with fury as she examined the device. The charge was full, and the signal was strong.
“How long have you had this?”
He glanced away.
She grabbed the cleft of his chin and forced him to look into her eyes. “How long, Armienti?”
“Well, you see,” he stuttered. “I suppose since the incident in the cave with Valdez’s soldiers. I discovered it amongst the bodies with the mini blaster we’ve been utilizing for fire. I meant to?—”
“I can’t freaking believe you. You mean to tell me we could’ve been rescued by now? How could you do this? How selfish are you? What were you trying to do, get me to fall in love with you?”
“Well, I?—”
Armienti sprang to his feet and threw her behind him, blocking her with his body. She winced as her back smashed against the sharp rocks. When she opened her eyes, they were surrounded by onyx clad soldiers with cocked metallic guns. Crap.