An Ember Bright

Chapter 5c

We pause at the edge of the forest, gazing at the expanse of green bordering the dirt trail.

"I don't know, Cara," Kaya shifts. "I have a bad feeling about this."

"It'll be fine," I tell her. "We won't be more than a half hour. If we don't find anything, we'll turn back." Kaya nods and we head onto the path.

Sunlight filters through the trees, dappling our surroundings. The scent of pine fills the air and the only sound is the chirp of birds and the occasional rustle of leaves. I inspect every bush we come across, searching for the berries that could mean the difference between life and death.

After nearly twenty minutes, I run my hands through my hair, nearly tearing out the strands in frustration. "I'm so stupid." I kick at a tree. "I listened to the ramblings of a crazy old woman and let her give me hope. But now we're here wandering through the trees and digging through bushes like fools."

"Let's just turn back," Kaya sighs. "At least we tried. Maybe I can try mixing some of the things we bought or I could try sending someone to one of the other sec –"

"There!" I cry, cutting Kaya off. I point toward a cluster of bushes a few feet away, their branches laden with black, glistening spur-shaped berries. I race over and fall to my knees, scrambling to grab the berries. Kaya falls next to me, pulling a large cloth from her bag and piling the berries on it.

We load in as many berries as the cloth can fit and place it in the bag. I beam at Kaya, a hope I haven't felt in a while filling my body. "She's going to be okay," I laugh, throwing my arms around Kaya. "She's going to be okay!"

The clomping of hooves grab my attention and I get to my feet. Not many people frequent the woods, mainly merchants traveling to sell goods directly to Aurelians and the occasional hikers. The merchants only go once a month, and they already delivered their wares last week.

"Hide," I hiss. Kaya and I dart behind the bush, crouching low behind the leaves. A few moments later, a pristine white carriage rolls by. The crest of a wolf before two daggers is imbedded into the side.

The crest of man who stole so much from me.

I can't manage to breath and my hands curl into fists. All I see is red and nothing comes into focus. My nails dig into my palms but I barely feel the pain. I haven't seen a carriage bearing the crest of Rioda in seven years. Not since that day.

The past shrieks in my head and digs its claws in my heart. You took him. You took him and now he's gone. You took him without a care, without consideration for the innocent life you were extinguishing. You took him through my screams and fight. You took him without mercy.

You took him and it was my fault.

"Cara? Cara, listen to me." Kaya eases my fingers open. "Don't do that, you only hurt yourself."

"I deserve to be hurt," I whisper. "I lost him. I lost him because I didn't fight hard enough."

Kaya shakes her head. "No. You lost him because of them." She gestures to the carriage trundling through the forest. "You know that nothing you could have done would have changed anything. It's their fault, not yours."

An icy cold washes over me. My fists fall and I watch the coach as it continues on. "You're right," I say quietly. "It's their fault."

I stand and make my way through the foliage, following the horses through the plants.

"Cara, wait. Where are you going?" Kaya hisses.

"I'm going to do what I should've done a long time ago."