Page 176 of A Crown of Tears and Treason
One foot in front of the other, a trail of blood behind me. I stumbled, I cursed in my mind, I hurt.
But I didn’t give up.
They must’ve drugged me. It was the only explanation for reality slipping away from me with every blink. Magic couldn’t do this…could it?
I didn’t know where I was going, just far away from those creatures. A weird rustle resounded from up ahead.
Just as the howls grew louder, my right foot went through a rotten mushroom that came up to my ankle.
A rancid cloud emanated through the air along with a loud crack.
No.
The chanting stopped.
“She’s run away, you idiots! Find her!” that same boorish voice screeched, beating against my bones.
Panic seized my muscles, hurling me into a shaky run.
I moved faster as steps thundered behind me, squeezing between the crammed trees. This forest was thick and filled with malice, trying to block me.
That sound. That rustle. There was something up ahead.
It trickled a gram of hope in me. It was all I had on my side now.
Bursting through the thicket, I stumbled onto my knees on a bank. A river. Long and wide and dark and fast.
Water. Why the fuck did it have to be water?
I fisted my palms in the thick mud. I couldn’t go back. Running along the bank made me an easy target.
I had to cross it.
All my instinct blared at me to back away.
Run. Run away.
The steps quickened in tune with the hiss of blades cutting through the leaves.
I got up and took one step in the water.
Something big and thick slithered across the surface of the water, rippling it. It looked like a scaly hump.
There was something massive in those frightening depths and I didn’t plan on becoming its midnight snack.
I blinked at the trees. Vines. Slim and barely hanging onto the branches.
They were the only way.
Only the gods knew how I managed to grab hold of one and hoist myself up.
Everything turned into a dim haze as I propelled myself away from the slimy trunk, holding onto the vine for dear life.
But my hands were tainted with sleek blood. Mine.
I felt myself slipping. I held on with all the strength Adara had trained in me.
But it didn’t matter.
