Page 45 of The Hunt: Emerald

Emerald’s ’and tightens on mine, ’er lips ’oldin’ back a smile.Beautiful…Goddess, I could ’ave fallen tu me knees righ’ t’ere jus’ tu worship ’er. The council stands, presentin’ the chest. I pull out me bag t’at holds infinite space an’ it swallows the treasure befer I press it intu ’er ’ands an’ ’er lips pop open.

Fer you, me love.Me voice is wrought wit’ emotion in me ’ead but tu the world…

“Murdoch! No, I don’t n—” I quiet ’er wit’a kiss.

“Yu fought fer this, bled fer this. Take it. Yu ’ave earned it, precious one.”

She blinks an’ a tear falls, but I block ’er from the view o’ them. They dinna deserve any more o’ ’er tears, so I scoop ’er intu me arms as she ’olds the pouch tu ’er chest, wailin’.

Ignoring the gasps o’ the crowd, I carry ’er from t’is cursed arena, na lookin’ back an’ takin’ ’er tu the grandest hotel in the area. The clerk bows when seein’ me. I migh’ ’ave lost me mind, but they know not tu feck wit’ me.

“H-how m-may I h-help you?”

“The best room,” I reply.

“No I’m okay with som—” I cut me eyes tu ’er an’ she quiets down as the shop keep pulls out a key.

“Penthouse suite, sir,” I swipe it an’ make me way up tu the top floor, ignorin’ the stares. They know we jus’ won the hunt… I’m sure it was broadcast over the entire 7thhell, just like the rest o’ the hunts were…

Ienter intu the room an’ smirk at ’er gasp, but I dinna not give ’er time tu marvel. I jus’ take ’er straigh’ tu the shower an’ turn it on, washin’ all the dirt, grime, an’ blood from us, which nearly clogs the drains.

I then run ’er a bath an’ listen tu ’er pretty moans as I du the honor o’ scrubbin’ ’er down t’oroughly an’ let ’er soak while orderin’ food. It’s been days since she’s ’ad a proper meal, an’ years fer me…but I’m na worried about me.

After she eats a surprisin’ly small amount, I dinna force ’er tu eat more. I want tu, but I dinna want tu overwhelm ’er. But still…

Emerald

“Why dinna yu try tu eat more while I go tu grab the bandages?” he tells me and I nod. Even though I’m not hungry, I see he’s putting in effort to truly care for me, and I don’t want to seem ungrateful.

“Okay,” I smile nodding and watch him get up and kiss me on the head, leaving me alone for the first time since we left the hunting grounds. I blow out a huge breath, not knowing how to feel…

All my life I’ve literally had to fight for just scraps of food… but now I’ve got a bag full of gold on a bedside table near me, I’m laying a plush bed big enough for a ten foot giant baby, fresh fruit… and an Alpha who’s calls me his precious one and even more than that… he treats me like it too…

A lump rises in my chest, but like always, I swallow it down…Don’t cry… don’t cry… d…Tears spill from my eyes, and an all-encompassing anger pours from me.Why… why couldn’t I have shown my mama this kind of life?Followed by Envy that people could actually live lives like this from birth!

I sob silently to myself when I hear a sudden loud blaring horn than make me jump and my heart pound…I know that horn…I pant, sweating immediately, anxiety overcoming me, feeling as if I’m back in the Hunt, but I see my peripheral, the projector is on, and it’s broadcasting the Hunt…

I frown, eyes drawn to the flying projector even if I don’t want to look. It’s as if I cannot help it… The projector is split into four quadrants, and if you want, you can click and watch one full screen, but I just let all four of them play, eye greedily but horridly taking in everything.

In my zone, the reruns of the so called “epic battle” replays constantly, zeroing in on my battered and blood-slick body, but I don’t want to see that… living it was enough for me… no, I turn my gaze and watch them.The others.The strong ones I noticed from the carriage ride, the only ones who didn’t break, just like me… and I smile with pride to see them still alive!

The one with the eyepatch fights alone in a black wasteland… no sun, no sky. Just jagged obsidian and choking ash. Her blade drips with Alpha blood, her body a blur of motion, and I can tell she’s being chased, but every time she stumbles, she rises again, faster, determination never wavering.

The red-eyed one is in a burning desert split by a volcano mouth, rivers of molten lava and rock at every turn, yet she moves between the flows, covered in soot, teeth bared, fighting off five Alphas at once. Her fists are savage. Her will unbroken.

Then the white-eyed one fights in a blizzard wasteland. Ice cutting the air like blades, yet she stands bare-armed in the storm, an ice spear twirling in her hands, facing down a massive polar bear alpha. Her breath steams in ragged bursts as a cold smirk plays on her lips, her grip tightening…

YES!

I swallow hard, wiping my tears!You’re still fighting.Pride builds up in my chest.

I close my eyes and send out a prayer to the Source to protect them.

Don’t stop. Keep fighting. There is life after the Hunt! WIN!

“AHHHHHHHH!” I look up shocked to see them all glow and show simultaneously.

The eyepatch fighter surges forward in the abyss, cutting down her unseen opponent with a scream of pure fury.

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