Page 41 of A Hunt So Wicked
"Just keep moving until we find a spot that has aerial coverage!" Riv shouted as we ran single file through the stone maze.
"We're sitting ducks in here!" I screamed. "If the dragons blast us with fire from above, there will be no escape!" My heart was beating at a very unhealthy rate. Who knew it would take getting so close to death in order to feel so alive.
"Not gonna happen, Eves!" Kael shouted from behind me. "We're getting out of this, come hell or high water!"
Speaking of high water... I looked down at the sand beneath my feet and found... seashells and kelp. "Goddess damn it, Kael! The tide reaches these boulders!"
"I know, but I can tell by the salt lines on the rocks that it doesn't get very high. Now shut your mouth and focus, Evie."
My mouth snapped shut, and I blinked at Kael, unsure of how to feel about the way he’d just barked at me like I was some new recruit in the guard. I didn’t get to ponder it for long.
"Up here!" someone called out from the front of the line. "I think this will work!"
Becca and I took off, following the group, when the sound of a ship’s sail caught by the wind came from above. Stumbling, I tilted my head back and nearly choked on a scream. A reddish-gold dragon swept over the boulders, its massive eyes tracking, searching.
"Go, go!" Kael boomed as I made eye contact with the beast.
Yelping, I darted forward, following the footsteps in the sand. I was moving so fast that I didn't see the cave, nor that the footprints ended. The scent of smoke filled my nose, and I froze, knowing I was about to become nothing more than a charred lump of flesh. Suddenly, I was pulled to the left, slamming my shoulder against a rock. I yelped and spun around, coming face to face with a madwoman.
"Sorry, luv!" Riv grinned maniacally. "Get yer arse in here!” She yanked me into a cave that was hidden between two fifteen foot boulders, only accessible through a very narrow opening. No wonder I hadn't seen it.
"Kael!" I screamed and jumped out of the way just in time for him to dive through the opening. A blast of intense heat blew past the entrance of our hideout, and my legs finally gave out. I collapsed to the ground and fell onto my back, gasping for breath. Screams echoed from outside of our hideout and I slammed my hands over my ears, trying to block it out and immediately feeling shame for it. I had no idea how many of the group were still out there, wandering through the maze of rocks.
I was terrified to find out and my entire body trembled and shook from the exertion and adrenaline. In my peripheral, I saw Kael leaning against the rock wall.
“Is this— what death— from running— feels like?” Becca gasped for air to get her words out, and I weakly flopped my head to the right, finding her stretched out on the ground right next to me.
I cracked a pathetic excuse of a smile. It was the best I could do. But I was so glad to see her, and since I could scarcely get enough air in my lungs to continue living, I simply reached out and grabbed her hand.
Isla ran over and crashed down next to me and Becca. Her wide eyes bounced from me to Kael. "That was way too close."
"Ya think?" Kael panted, wiping his face with the back of his arm.
Riv let out a whoop, which made several of us jump. "Goddess, I have never had such pure energy flow through these veins!" She looked around. "And let me tell ya, these veins have been with me through many a dastardly situation!"
All I could do was lay where I was and attempt to calm down. It wasn't easy. I'd never been so terrified in my life, so why did I suddenly feel the urge to cackle like a deranged witch?
"Are you insane?" Belinda barked at Riv.
Riv grinned. “Maybe.”
Belinda rolled her eyes and went to get up when, abruptly, Rivka reached down into her boot and pulled out her knife. She spun the handle of her blade against the palm of her hand, then tossed it into the air, grabbed it, and hurled it through the air right at Belinda.
Several screams and gasps echoed around the cavernous walls. A thunk told me that her blade had hit whatever the target had been, and Belinda swallowed roughly, turning slightly. Just behind her, an enormous crab lay pinned to the ground, and the handle of Riv’s blade protruded from its blue shell.
"Crab legs it is!" Riv announced, pumping her fist in the air as she waltzed over to where her kill lay. She didn't take her eyes off Belinda as she passed her, nor as she bent down and retrieved the knife, wiping the blood on her skirt. Belinda's face was pale as a ghost, and I couldn't hold it back any longer. Laughter bubbled out of me like the water rushing through a broken dam—forceful, overpowering, and limitless.
Several questioning faces watched on, probably wondering if I was having a mental breakdown, which made me laugh harder. Riv joined in, and soon, nearly everyone was hysterically laughing. At what? I didn't have the slightest clue, only that if I didn't laugh, I felt like I might cry... and I didn't cry. Ever.
"Right then," Riv proclaimed, holding her stomach, which had to be cramping from laughter like mine was. She retrieved the crab and plopped it down on a small rock.
“I’ll find some dry wood,” Tiro offered. “And I’ll keep an eye out to see if any more of those buggers are hiding out in here.”
"Are we even going to be able to make a fire here?" Belinda asked from her corner, far away from Rivka.
I chuckled, still battling the giggles. Oh Goddess, was this the hysteria that women were accused of? I definitely had it.
"Did you not witness the absolute inferno that just occurred on the other side of that wall? I have no doubt we'll be able to have a fire,” Tiona answered Belinda when nobody else piped up.
