“It means that she’s a problem they need to make disappear,” I said.
“That’s the reason? Because of my coloring?” Alina looked at us in disbelief.
“We need to get out of here,” Sol’s calm voice sounded from the front of the room and I looked at the door behind him.
The undead dragon was slamming against it with all its strength and I suspected that the old door frame would soon give way. My eyes followed the shape of the room and I saw a wide, unlit corridor. I looked at the floor and noticed that tiles outlined the entrance, and continued further into the hall before disappearing behind the thick shadows. I looked around and found ceremonial torches stacked in the corner. My arm ached with pain as I picked up a torch and walked closer to the dark corridor. From the corner of my eye, I saw the others had also grabbed torches.
I inhaled dusty, dry air and focused on the warmth that was building up in my abdomen. A thick trail of smoke escaped my mouth before a couple of sparks landed on the oily fabric of the torch and ignited instantly. I caught Alina’seyes as she stared at the flaming torch in stunned amazement.
“I don't like this.” Victor stepped beside me.
I only looked at him. I did not like it either.
With those thoughts, I took a step forward.
CHAPTER TWENTY
ALINA
Iclenched the heavy wooden torch with my trembling fingers. It was really uncomfortable to hold. I kept staring at the others who did not seem bothered by the weight of it. More than any time before, I felt that they were real warriors, and I was a damsel in distress. I used to spend my days overseeing the castle business, reading correspondence, meeting with merchants and regular citizens, and organizing celebrations. During my free time, I walked and read books. I sewed and collected flowers from the newly planted gardens my brother and his wife built for me.
After the death of my fiance, all the sword training stopped, I could not even enter the training groundsanymore. The memories of us spending hours together laughing, joking, and flirting were too hard to bear. I could not even enter the small cottage where we spent so much time together. His crooked old house where I first confessed my feelings, became his woman, and where he proposed to me stood abandoned for months.
Slowly, I exhaled, and my eyes landed on the broad shoulders of the man who led the way. His movements were gracious and precise. His head turned from side to side, searching the spacious corridor of the ceremonial passage.
“I’m sorry for what I said.”
Frid appeared beside me. I turned, surprised to see her so close.
“What are you talking about?” I whispered.
“I was so mad at you when you escaped. You put all of us in danger. I was ready to kill you for that,” the girl continued.
“I know.” Her words really stung.
“But I understand,” she added.
I turned away, feeling too emotional to continue. The truth was, I really liked Frid and it pained me that I was nothing but a stranger, the mission, the target for all of them. My friends and my brother were far away, and no one gave two straws about me here. I was all alone.
“The place you came from, is it really the way you described?” Frid continued.
“Yes, everything is true. We have no crawlers in Gora,” I responded.
“Damn, I wish I could at least see it,” she said.
“Maybe you should. Maybe all of you could come with me.” I turned to face her.
“I don’t believe that there is such a place for any of us, but I like to dream about it.” Frid laughed softly, shaking her head.
“Why not?” I asked.
“I don’t want to get my hopes too high. That’s not how you survive. Here, hope will kill you before the crawlers do,” she explained.
I stared at her, not understanding the meaning behind her words.
“If you accept the life you have, you can never be disappointed,” she added.
“But why?”
