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Fresh air hit Ace like a cold bucket of water. It soothed the fire. It soothed the hurt but only like a thin bandage that might rip off at any point.

Shelby dug his heels in. Eyes searching for somewhere to go. Ace didn't stop. She sprinted by him taking his hand in hers as she went. His upper body yanked forward before his feet began moving.

"Stop!" The guards were farther away now.

Dirt and grass flung up under Ace and Shelby. The forest waited for them. Distance. She needed distance between them and the guards. They broke the treeline. Branches lashing against them as they pushed in deeper. Ace relished the hurt. She was alive. For now.

Shelby hissed as he swatted the tree limbs away and after they'd made their way farther into the small wooded area, his hand was pulled from her grasp. She checked that he was still there, still close, and slowed to a walk when they realized they couldn't hear the guards anymore.

Breaths pillaged her chest as she ran a hand down her body to make sure she was still intact. Her body finally came to a stop under a tall dead looking tree with a large bush growing around it. The sun cut through the canopy and danced across her skin.

Shelby lowered to a crouch and cradled his head in his hands. Sweat glistened on his neck. He groaned to himself.

Ace tipped her head to the sky and laughed. She laughed at the gods, she laughed at her life, and she laughed at this terrible situation she'd just found herself in. She laughed until the sound became a cackle and Shelby looked up at her with an expression of pure horror.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" he gasped.

Bark dug into her palm as she steadied herself on the tree. Tears had welled in her eyes as her laughter grew and she wiped at them with a smile pulling at her lips.

"That was exhilarating. Really got the blood pumping." She balanced her hands on her hips and kicked her worn boot out against the patchy grasses under her. "I thought we were going to get caught and hanged right there."

"We almost did." He stood up. "Come on, we can't stay here. We need to get moving before word gets out that they are looking for us. Where were you planning to go after this?"

"Home."

Stepping over a fallen limb, he pressed fingers to his temples and began making small circles against his skin. "I've just ruined my life, haven’t I?"

"I don't think so." Ace followed a few feet behind him even though the way they walked wasn't toward the bakery she was staying in.

Shelby whirled around to face her. His lip curled up into a snarl. "I don't even know you. I can't trust that you'll actually help me. I…I don't even know your name."

"Ace," she said quietly. No one knew that name except the gods. She'd never talked to anyone who needed to know her name and she couldn't give him her old name. Still, it felt like she was giving away a fragile piece of herself to a stranger who didn't even want it.

"Ace," he repeated. She tried not to cringe at the way he sounded disgusted to even say it. Then he sighed. "We should split up."

Split up? She didn't necessarily like Shelby but she knew that she needed him.

"I—" She struggled to find the words to convey what she wanted to say. Finally, she sighed and settled on the truth. "I need your magic."

"Well, I don't needyou."

Birds chirped around them as if they were a part of the conversation. Wind rustled the leaves in the underbrush making both of them stop to listen for anyone following them. When the adrenaline that spiked inside of her started to lower again, she spoke up.

"What are you going to do?”

Shelby scrubbed at his face, dragging his features. "Getting away from you is first on the list." He didn't even meet her gaze, just looked right over her before turning away and starting his aimless trek through the forest.

"You'll be wanted too!" Ace struggled not to yell as she followed him. He couldn't get away this easily. "You'll be hanged."

He swatted at her as she got too close. "You are like an annoying little gnat. You won't just go away."

"We need each other." Her breath was starting to get ragged again as she tried to keep up with his long stride.

"No. You said it. You needme,not the other way around."

The toe of her too big boots caught on a stick, causing Ace to stumble. She caught herself as she launched forward and grabbed Shelby's wrist. "Stop walking away!" Shelby came to a halt. She started to lift a finger to point at him but stopped when she realized that was exactly the reason they were in this mess to begin with. "You need me if you ever want to be free."

"Annoying. Gnat," he repeated more sternly this time.

Source: www.allfreenovel.com
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