Page 45 of A Hunt So Wicked
"It really wasn't that big of—"
He held up a hand. "Don't underplay it." He paused, running a hand through his blond hair. "But really, how did you see it? It's too dark in here. Even with a strong fire, it would've still been hard to spot..."
I looked behind us into the belly of the cave. It didn't seem that dark to me. I could clearly see each person, even the ones in the very back. Girane and Rion were talking to each other, Isla was talking to Ayla, presumably about her injury...
"Are you serious?" I asked, looking back to Kael. "It's not that dark."
His mouth dropped. "Are you messing with me?"
"Uh, no?" I questioned, getting confused. "What do you see right now?"
He peered into the cave. "I can see the dim, red coals of the fire. I can see that a few people are standing around it. That's it."
I swallowed harshly. "Yeah, same," I lied and chuckled. "I guess we just have different ideas of what 'really dark' means."
Kael hummed as he stared down at me. He was smart and observant, so I wasn't completely sure he bought my lie, but I didn't understand it myself... How was it that I could see so well in a supposedly dark cave? People were on such high alert right now—I didn't want to give anyone a reason to view me as being 'different.'
"Right," he cleared his throat. "Well, in any case, thank you. Sea snake bites can kill a man in under a minute, and I hear it's an excruciatingly painful way to go."
"You would've done the same for me," I replied, bumping him with my shoulder, attempting to lighten the mood.
"Aye, I would. Don't forget it. Let's grab a bite and then get a move on. I have a feeling our journey back to the Keep today isn't going to be an easy one..."
If only we knew how right his feeling was.
******
"We stick together, don't venture off alone, no exceptions," Kael ordered our group as we stood near the exit. "Our plan is to head back to the Keep along the coastline. We need to move as quickly as possible, as quietly as possible. There's no telling what we might encounter, so keep your eyes and ears open at all times."
Nobody spoke, but I could see the looks of fear and determination painted on their faces as everyone nodded.
My muscles twitched from adrenaline and the weight of not knowing what the day would bring. All I could do was keep going. I couldn't give up.
I was at the front with Kael, Riv, and Isla. The salty air hit my face as I squeezed through the narrow opening, back into the labyrinth of rock walls and sand. It was dark now, with maybe two hours until dawn. Despite the other night being the full moon, heavy cloud cover blocked any light that would benefit the others as they stumbled through with their hands against the walls for guidance. I still found it easy to see though. Almost as if everything was illuminated, and that was definitely something I'd never experienced before. As strange as it was, I couldn't focus on why it was happening or what it meant. I decided it was a blessing from the Goddess, giving us the advantage to escape this disaster.
"Do you see anything overhead?" someone behind me asked nobody in particular.
Murmurs of 'no' trickled through the line. I turned my eyes to the sky, peaking through the towering boulders, and felt relieved that I, too, saw nothing.
"Maybe dragons aren't nocturnal," Isla whispered, hope heavy in her tone.
"One small win for us then," Riv replied.
The sand was packed and damp beneath my boots, which made it easy enough to walk through and I was thankful for that small win. My body ached while standing stationary, so the flat terrain was practically a gift as it was easier to maneuver through.
"What do you think the royals will do? You know, for the families of the fallen girls?" Isla asked.
"Probably pay them hush money so they don't cause any problems," I huffed.
Kael turned a corner, leading us deeper into the maze. "They're going to have to pay more than just those families. Think about it. We all saw what happened—we're all out here, being stalked like prey. They're going to have to pay every single person who was a victim of this madness if they want to avoid scandal."
"And that's on top of the money they already owe the women who won't get a proposal," Riv added.
"They're going to be out a lot of coin by the end of this, that's for sure," Kael agreed.
We walked in silence for a while, lost in our own thoughts. There were too many questions, too many what-ifs. At the end of the day, all I knew was that the four kingdoms had completely failed the women who they had invited here. To a place that was supposed to provide a life-changing opportunity for most of us and had ended up being a living nightmare. A massacre. How would they ever make things right?
For me, I knew it would be an impossible feat. I came into this hating them, and now, my feelings had hardened. There was no excuse as to why we were still out here, marching through rock formations, single file, like a perfect row of prey. More than enough time had passed for us to have been rescued. So where the hell were they?
