Page 122 of Wings of Lies
After a couple of hours of walking, I sat behind a tree and took out both my bobby pins. I bent one in an “L” shape for the tension wrench and curved the tip of the other to create a small hook. Inserting the tension wrench with one hand and applying rotational pressure, I added the hooked bobby pin and pushed at the pins. When a couple of pins released, I smiled.
“Temper resistant, my ass.”
At the final pin, the keyhole flashed, sending a searing heat into the bobby pins. I yelped and coated my fingers in purple flames. But even as my Infernus soothed the searing heat, it did nothing for the melting metal.
I slumped.Damn.
Resuming my walk, I stressed over where I was going. A Drune wouldn’t be half bad right now, at least to point me in the right direction to Magda’s and food for a drop of blood.
At the mere thought of finding food or water, I nearly sent myself into a panic attack. Alone, hungry, and tired, and I had no idea how to hunt or provide for myself. If I found a berry bush, I could pluck some off to eat. That was if Elora even had berry bushes. As for the water, Elora had rivers, but based on the poisonous one I was just in, who knew if they’d be safe to drink? It looked like I was back on the starvation train until I found help.
Foot by foot, tree by tree, I traveled through the Drune Forest with no sightings of Aspen, Brock, or Drunes.
Eventually, the trees widened until they were the width of a small compact car. Unsurprisingly, there was still moss. But this moss was fluorescent orange, swallowing the thick roots that erupted from the ground like tufts of fur. In between the tufts were bright blue mushrooms. But I most enjoyed the little clusters of white flowers blooming in the spaces between each car-sized trunk. Yet, my gaze kept training back on the mushrooms.
Were they edible?Probably not.
With my stomach a twisted mess, energy leaking out of a hole created by the lack of food and water, my thoughts took a dive. I was either about to starve out here, collapse and get eaten by some hellish creature, or collapse and get caught.
With heavy eyes, I paused against a tree to take a break, then jerked back.
It hummed.
I placed my hand back on the rough bark, feeling the vibrations tickle my hand. Each tree I touched resulted in the same sensation. Strange.
It took twice as many steps, but I weaved around the giants, marveling at their vibrant foliage and curious vibrations. When my stomach cramped with pain, I grabbed a mushroom, desperate. Blue residue brushed off on my fingertips as I turned it, contemplating. Brock mentioned something about things I couldn’t eat unless I wanted to puke my guts up. But as the spongy mushroom pressed into my fingers, and my stomach craved sustenance, I brought it toward my lips.
With no warning at all, someone tackled me from behind. Air fled from my lungs as my face planted into a cluster of white flowers. Panicked, I squirmed and thrashed at my captor. Their hands dug into my arms, and their body pressed against my back, holding me to the ground. Once I realized I couldn’t get out of this, my ears registered a noise. They were talking to me.
I froze, recognizing the voice. He must’ve noticed the change in my body because he released me. Turning around on the ground, I looked up into emeralds.
A devilish grin lit his face. “Hey, Luce.”
Chapter
Twenty-Eight
No words. I had no words as I gazed up at Oliver. He stood in nothing but a green pretty boy sweater vest and dark jeans. He shoved one hand into his pockets, and the other ran through his wind-blown hair, the streak of black mixing with his blonde strands. He continued to rub his head nervously, smearing the cut along his forehead. A cut I secretly hoped I gave him in our struggle.
“So, did you miss me?” he asked.
One phrase. That was all it took to entice the coiling power in my blood. I scrambled off the ground, letting my Infernus cover my hands, and moved toward him.
Oliver’s face paled. “Lucy, come on. You don’t want to do this,” he said, backing up, hands raised.
“I don’t?” My voice was quiet. Lethal. Similar to the male’s voice who liked to invade my head.
I backed him into a tree. “Last time I saw you, you placed me into the hands of the same male we were running from in the first place,” I spat.
He laughed and looked everywhere but my eyes. “About that… I had no choice.”
“You had no choice?” I shouted. “That’s your excuse?”
Oliver’s gaze hardened the tiniest fraction. He didn’t look angry, only determined, as if he had something to prove.
“My excuse?” he said and laughed. The fear shot right out of him. “That’s what you think it was? An excuse?” He took a step forward, and I yielded a step. The shift in his emotions startled me. “I regret that I played you. I regret that I had to lie to you. But when I say I didn’t have a choice.I didn’t. You have no idea.”
“Ihave no idea? I’ve been through hell because of you!”
