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“I’ve been in worse situations. I can’t think of any right now, but I’m sure I have.” My words don’t bring a smile to her face, but her irritation seeps away. It’s a small win, but I welcome it.
I take the lead from here. We are trying to outrun horses and well supplied men while we have no food, no water, and a perfect trail left behind us. We are sitting ducks here in the open. Jaren won’t have any trouble picking us off if we let our guard down, even for a moment.
The sun is swallowed by the clouds late in the morning, and I take my first deep breath all day. I’m still damp from the last storm, but I’ve never prayed for rain harder than I do now.
A large cliff looms before us, the sight most unwelcome. It will take at least a full day, maybe more, to walk around it. Time we don’t have. The mountain slopes sharply to a valley far below, the forest returning in the distance. If we can make it there, we will finally be out of the wide open spaces of the farmland.
“What now?” Ari asks next to me, releasing the words in a deep exhale, voicing both our thoughts. We stare at the vast canyon stretching as far as we can see. She walks away, moving to the side of the cliff, looking below at the sheer drop. “There’s something here,” she says before scooting to the side, her body dropping below the edge.
“Ari!” I yell after her, realizing too late that I may have just given away our position.
Her head pops up as I run over to the drop, and I bend down to pull her back to safety. She puts a finger to her lips, her head instantly snapping toward me when she comes into view. It looks as though she’s floating against the mountain, and I can’t help my open jaw as I gawk at the impossibleness of what I’m looking at. “There’s some kind of road here, dug into the side. It looks like an old smuggler’s path.”
I’m still stunned as I look over the edge to see her feet resting on firm ground. Completely hidden from view lays a path perfectly carved into the side of the cliff, exposed only if you’re standing right above it.
I turn around, scouting the area once more before I duck below the lip of land. This route should shave off at least half of the time it would have taken us to go around, and I can’t help but pray Jaren and whoever else doesn’t find it. It may finally give us a cushion of time so we can stop looking over our shoulders.
We move carefully, the trail criss-crossing back and forth on itself as the path slopes down. After a time, my stomach growls loud enough that I hear a tiny laugh bubble from behind me.
I turn my head, somehow grimacing and smiling at the same time. “I can’t remember the last time I was this hungry.”
“Go spend some time in the East Village. You’ll get used to that feeling quickly.” She says it with meaning, but I don’t get the feeling she’s admonishing me more than just telling me truths that I refused to acknowledge before now.
“Is that where you grew up?” I ask her, listening intently for her reply.
But before she can give one, the ground gives way underneath me.
I’m falling down the sodden mountainside as rocks, stray twigs, and branches cut through my shirt and pants, leaving cold, bloody streaks in their wake. Sharp stings ping across me from every direction.
Everything passes in a blur as I try to dig my fingers into the slick ground, grabbing at anything that might stop me. It’s too steep and slippery to find anything of substance that will stop me completely. The best I can find will only slow me down for a fraction of time before I pick up momentum again.
Something gritty and bitter flicks into my mouth, and I frantically spit the thickness away. My eyes sting as I try to keep them open, looking for anything to hold on to, my vision murky as I try to wipe them free of muck. I slide down further and further, my body tumbling in every direction, my limbs aching as I fight to stay above the plunging mountainside.
It seems like hours before I begin to slow, but it couldn’t have been more than a few, terrorizing seconds. Blood now steadily streams down my face. The red pops from underneath the layers of mud coating my body as I try to assess the damage. The pain of each fresh cut rings across my skin until I finally lie still. My mind is scattered, trying to make sense of what just happened.
I’m buried under inches of mud, the heaviness closing in around me. I attempt to move my hands, feeling each finger wiggle in response. As I look around, checking my neck for any injuries, I see only a giant brown pile with me as its centerpiece. Everything seems to blend into this surrounding brown abyss. I will myself to roll over, to uncover myself from the heaviness of the mountainside, to plant my feet into the ground and stand. But nothing happens. My legs refuse to comply.
My heartbeat stutters when I don’t move. Is it the weight of being partially buried? Am I deeper than I realize? I try to sit up, but my head doubles back, feeling as if I will wretch all over myself.
When my vision clears back into one steady stream, I maneuver the only limbs that will answer me. I plant a hand firmly into the soft ground, pushing with all the strength I have, lifting my torso high enough that my body should pull free alongside it. My weight begins to shift, but there’s no time for celebration. An intense pain shoots up my leg and through my side. Nothing but black greets me as my vision threatens to swim into nothingness.
I lie still, trying to keep my breathing in control. My hands fumble for the sword at my side. Maybe I can use it to give me the boost I need to get my feet underneath me again. But my grip comes back empty. Somewhere along the fall, it must have broken away from my side.
Ari. Ari?I search my surroundings, doing my best to keep my panic at bay. Did she fall? Is she ok? Nothing but walls of dirt and rock interspersed with what must be plants and tree roots dot through the mud. My arms reach out for one to hopefully pull myself free and unbury my legs, but it breaks almost immediately.
I try to yell, to see if she’s hurt. But a deep inhale sends my side into agony once again. Something is broken, maybe a couple ribs. But a broken rib doesn’t explain the unbearable torment in my leg, and my inability to stand or move. I search through the mud and debris with my limited mobility, turning only my head as I scan the area.
There’s no sign of Ari. No sign of life anywhere except the starlings flying above me. I stare at them intently, noting their movements and patterns as they weave through the air— so graceful, so free. Is this how Evander felt right before he died?
Is this my end?
My focus snaps back. No. I’m not going to die today. I look down, my entire body blended perfectly with the endless brown. Exhaustion pours over me, threatening to pull my mind away from me.
Ari. I need to see if she’s ok, to help her. I must get to Lena. I need to save her.
I’ll give myself a few moments to rest my eyes, to let my body build back its energy. And then… then—
The world goes black.
