Page 236 of Fangs
Slowly, something began to cut through the shock. It was similar to the ringing in my ears but more melodic. As I finished lacing my boots, my eyes moved of their own accord to the gory remains of a shoulder attached to the shredded pieces of a metal arm, and in a strange dreamlike state, I reached down and fished through the blood and flesh until my fingers touched something hard that made my healing power jolt. I pulled it out and stared at the small object in my bloody hand. It looked like a rock—a black rock that was flat on one side and jagged on the other. It glinted slightly in the sun as I turned it, but I would have described it as unremarkable—except for my bloodsingingas I held it.
I glanced down at the gore at my feet. I couldn’t tell if it had been embedded in the shoulder or just buried in the mess, but something still called to me. I stood and moved forward, my boots squishing until my feet stopped. I couldn’t see anything, but again, I reached down, and my fingers immediately closed around something hard buried in the carnage, sending another jolt of power through me. Again and again, my feet moved until finally, I stood with eleven rocks in my bloody hands, and whatever was driving me vanished. I stared at the rocks for a moment longer before shoving them into a small inner pocket that buttoned closed in Sax’s jacket, and then I started walking in no particular direction. It didn’t matterwhere, so long as it wasaway.
I stumbled through the brush like a drunk but stayed on my feet. The sun had begun to set before I became aware enough to realize I should have taken one of the horses. I hesitated, wondering if I should go back, but the thought of returning to all that blood and?—
My feet lurched back into motion. No, I couldn’t go back.
As the sun set, it became increasingly difficult to see where I was going. I often fell, tripping over sticks or slipping on uneven ground, and the pain in my chest made it hard to breathe, but I kept dragging myself up and putting one foot in front of the other. I had to keep going.
Eventually, I fell, and my shaky arms gave out when I tried to push myself up. I closed my eyes, trying to catch my breath. I’d rest for a moment—just a moment.
The next time I opened my eyes, it was daylight again, midday by the sun’s position. The sight of my bloody body and clothes immediately made me retch again, but nothing came up. I needed to find water. Water and food.
I got to my feet and again focused on just putting one foot in front of the other. I found a craggy mountaintop that looked familiar and pointed my body toward it.
One more. One more.I chanted in my head with every footstep.
I was almost at the top of a ridge when I slipped on loose gravel and tumbled down the entire distance I’d worked so hard to climb. My palms stung as I pushed myself up, leaving bloody handprints in the dirt.
Keep going.
I found a stream and drank from it, washing my hands and arms as well as I could. My palms were covered in scrapes, tiny pieces of gravel embedded in my skin.
The grade grew steeper, and soon, I was on my hands and knees crawling up the mountain. Every single muscle in my body ached with pain, but I kept going.
One more.
One more.
One more.
The sun was beginning to set when a noise registered in my head. Something was running, crashing through the woods toward me. I twisted, and a strangled scream escaped my lips at the sight of a body charging up to me. They grabbed my upper arms, and I fought to get away, panicked.
“Ember! Ember, it’s Sable!”
I finally focused on the face before me, taking in the familiar long blond hair and pale blue eyes. Sable. It was Sable. He let out a piercing whistle and then focused on me again.
“You’re safe, Ember. It’s just me, it’s Sable.” He paused, worry and rage deepening the furrow in his brow, but when he spoke again, his voice softened. “Emmy, can you hear me?”
I realized I had frozen like a frightened deer, just staring at him and panting. I couldn’t think straight. My head felt like it’d been stuffed full of straw.
“It’s okay, Emmy,” he said, even softer. “You’re safe.”
I started shaking like my entire body was seizing, and his grip tightened on my arms, lowering me to sit on the ground as my knees gave out. He crouched before me, sharp eyes scanning me carefully, but stopped on my chest.
“Emmy, can I look at that wound?” he asked, but the words made no sense, bouncing around in my head until they shattered.
After a moment, he reached out, watching my face, but I just stared at him. Slowly, he parted Sax’s huge jacket and peeled one side of my torn T-shirt back. He went still, staring. Then he peeled back the other side, and his pale eyes lit with rage. Part of me realized this would normally make me panic, but I felt nothing.
“They branded you on top of the other one?” His voice was a low snarl.
I couldn’t answer him. It felt like I’d lost my voice, not from hoarseness or sickness, but like it wasgone.He pulled Sax’s jacket closed, and his cool fingers gently prodded my swollen, bruised face, feeling for broken bones.
“I think you’re in shock,” he said after a few seconds, “I want you to lay down so I can?—”
He’d begun attempting to lay me on my back, but my body panicked and fought him, clawing at his arms and trying to stay upright. He stopped, eyes narrowing on my face. A muscle flexed in his jaw, and his eyes hardened, but his voice was still soft when he spoke.
“Okay. It’s okay, Emmy, you don’t have to lie down.”
