'Even the darkest night will end and the sun will rise.'
- Victor Hugo.
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CHAPTER TWO
The pair of eyes moves a step closer, its attention never once straying from us. Unnervingly, it doesn't even spare a blink.
Staying put, with the knowledge that it's only getting closer, is one of the most difficult things I've ever done. Every fibre in my body urges me to leg it, and yet logic informs me that would be a horrendous mistake.
A low growl issues from the creature as it takes another step forward, its four-legged silhouette now visible by the fire.
Brayden curses under his breath. "They're Ash's hounds."
Well fuck.
Slowly, I begin to stand to my feet, my own eyes remaining locked on the threat. Brayden joins me, complete silence descending upon the situation.
"Harper, I need you to stay calm."
It's only as he says the words that I become aware of my short, ragged breaths and sprinting heart rate. With a slight nod, I focus on calming myself down- a difficult task, when a pair of very inhuman eyes has you pinned under its gaze.
"They can't be far behind. We need to move, now."
"There's no way we can outrun them."
"Who said anything about running?" Brayden's eyes scan the forest around us, as though he can see something through the haze of darkness not penetrated by the light of the fire.
Another pair of eyes pops into view. Panic begins to take root. The reality of the situation makes me feel sick to the stomach.
"There's a tree over there with a few low-hanging branches. Do you see it?"
20 ft away. It feels way too far in our current predicament. Despite this, I force myself to nod.
"When I say, you run."
"What about you?" A feeling of panic begins to take hold inside of me. With each passing second, it becomes harder and harder to restrain the urge to bolt towards home.
Only I know I'd never get there in time.
"Just trust me."
Brayden's eyes hold mine, and I surprise myself when I realise that I do subconsciously trust him, even after such a short time. He's saved my life once; why would he be leading me into a trap now?
Too nervous to speak, I merely nod.
"Okay, ready-"
A whistle issues from the darkness. The hounds stop growling, tearing their eyes away from us for the first time. Moments later, a figure steps out of the shadows.
"You're not safe here, Caulfield."
Brayden's tense muscles ease when he sees the figure's face. He's only an inch shorter than Brayden, and roughly the same age. A pair of broad shoulders lead to a thin waist, where a sword is sheathed at his belt. A satchel of arrows and a bow are slung across his back.
The man's blue eyes meet my own, bright even in the lack of light. He is stunning.
His expression turns into one of remorse as he looks back to Brayden.
"Fucking hell, Caulfield. You've done it this time. This is the girl, isn't it?"
"Anderson, how far?" Brayden urges, stepping forward to close the distance between himself and the stranger. "How far is Ash?"
"I wouldn't know; he's not with our group. Last I heard, he was looking for her." His eyes find mine again, as though, for some reason, he can't believe I'm really standing here.
My breath hitches.
My eyes dart behind him to the hounds, relieved to find them laying on the forest floor in idle positions. Maybe my headstone won't read 'Cause of Death: Mauled By Hounds' just yet.
As though hearing something, the stranger looks purposefully back over his shoulder, eyes scanning the darkness. When he turns back to Brayden, his expression is one of urgency.
"Look, you guys need to move before they find you. Our camp is only a few hundred metres back."
The thought of moving again, of running, brings both physical and mental pain.
Brayden nods in agreement, and then seriously asks, "Do they know?"
A look of understanding passes between the two men. "No, not yet. Provided you make it back to the castle before Ashleigh returns."
"First I must take Harper to the Rebellion."
"You're running out of time, Caulfield."
Brayden runs a hand through his hair, frustrated and anxious. "I know, I know." He squeezes the bridge of his nose, clearly deep in thought. He looks back to his friend. "Can you delay them?"
"I don't know how much extra time I can give you," the stranger admits. "They'll undoubtedly use the hounds to track Harper- they picked up a scarf from her house."
"Fucking hell," Brayden mutters.
The mention of the beasts draws my attention back to them, they sit up now, watching us with their beady eyes. Waiting.
What's worse, is that there are now four of them visible.
"You're right; we need to go." He strides over to the fire and douses his bottle of water over it. It sizzles, a cloud of thick smoke rising into the dark sky. Our surroundings are immediately submerged into darkness, save for the soft glow of the remaining embers.
After a few minutes, my eyes begin to adjust enough to make out the distinct shape of the trees, the hounds and the stranger. A warm hand encloses my own, tugging me gently backward. Brayden.
"See you around, Anderson," he tells the man.
"Watch yourselves," the stranger warns. "She has many enemies."
"Don't we all."
The stranger laughs; the sound is melodious, sending a strange warmth throughout our cold surroundings. "Reckless bastard."
With that, Brayden turns away from him and leads us further into the forest once more.
[A/N: Edited up to here. Will be continuing shortly within the next few days. Please be aware that the remainder of this chapter might not quite match up at the moment. Sorry for any inconveniences.]
When we're far enough out of earshot and I'm sure the hounds have been called off of our trail for now, I turn my attention to Brayden.
"Who was that?"
"A friend."
"But he worked for Ashleigh?"
"That's not your concern."
"Like hell it's not," I grumble.
"We need to hurry. We're running out of time."
It's an obvious attempt to stop my questioning, and even though I recognise that, I go along with it anyway.
The questioning could come later. Wherever he was taking me, it had to be better than being abducted by Ashleigh.
A twig snaps. Brayden and I go to hide, but it's too late.
A blonde man steps out in front of us, blocking our trail.
"Hello, Harper."
A group of at least four other men step out from the cover of the foliage around him. I hadn't seen him before, but something about him bears a cunning resemblance to Ashleigh that sets me completely on edge.
Brayden steps up, half blocking me from the blonde man's raking gaze.
"Blake. I was wondering if we'd see you here."
"You've got the girl," Blake states.
"Obviously."
"How? My father was supposed to have captured her. I didn't realise you were meant to be accompanying him to capture her."
They speak as though I'm not here. As though I'm an object.
"I found her running through the woods. I figured it would be easier to meet Ash back at the castle with the girl."
What?
If Brayden was working with Ashleigh, why the theatrics? Why would he engage with Ash's men to save me, only to drag me back to the very place Ash himself had been planning to take me?
It doesn't add up.
Either way, Brayden had lied.
Blake takes a few steps towards me. One hard stare at Brayden has him stepping to the side to reveal me. I'm left standing face to face with Blake. His breath fans across my face, almost making me gag.
"Pretty little thing, aren't you? But then again, I only deserve the best."
His tone makes me feel sick, but I hold his gaze. Intimidation is what he wants, what he clearly strives for. I can't allow him the satisfaction.
"Master Blake, we must get going. Ash will be waiting," speaks one of his men.
"I suppose you are right." Blake clicks his fingers in the air above him. "Brayden and I will take the lead. Two of you to hold her. She cannot get away or someone will be dying this evening. Understand?"
Everybody nods. Except for me.
Before I can back away or make a run for it, a hand clamps around each of my upper arms.
Severely outnumbered, I'm all but defenseless. There is no choice but to allow the two guards to direct me down the path, pressed close on either side to prevent any chance of my escape.
One fact keeps ringing loudly in my head: Brayden had betrayed me.
My father, before he was brutally murdered, had once told me never to trust anybody. I went against that and trusted the guy who had saved me from my worst enemy. One would think he would be on their side.
But he wasn't.
I'm alone.
"Don't try to struggle, Harper," Brayden's voice warns lowly. "It'll only make things worse."
Turning my head as the men pull me forwards to start walking, I send him a loathing glare. How dare he betray me and then expect me to obey him?
My father had been right. I should've listened to him.
I shouldn't have trusted anybody.
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Finally!!! I had a total mind block with this book but I wanted to update. In the end I just wrote and, well, this is what I came up with. Story is just getting orientated now so hopefully it wasn't too boring :)
Next update SOON this time.
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- ConfusingIllusions.