by Lena August
Chapter 14
That night I have a hard time falling asleep. The temperature is freezing, the coldest it has been since I arrived on Murderers. I lie curled up in a ball, hugging myself, trying to conserve as much warmth as possible. Violent shivers prevent me from relaxing. Finally, I admit defeat and get up to walk around, forcing blood back into my numb limbs. I pace around the small clearing in which we have set up camp. The night is clear and peaceful and the stars are brilliant.
On Innocents, the security flood lights usually block out the stars, but here there are thousands of the cold white lights, contrasting against the inky blackness of the sky. I stare up at them until the shivers find me again and I am forced to continue pacing. Despite my attempts to be quiet, my foot snaps a twig. Flynn bolts up cursing, knife in hand. He must sleep with it on him. When he sees that it’s just me, he visibly relaxes and lowers his knife. “God, Brie, what are you doing up? I thought we were being attacked.”
“Couldn’t sleep…Because of the cold.” I say before he can ask, “I should ask how you manage it. You don’t even seem to notice the temperature.”
Flynn gives me a lazy smile, “When you have lived through enough winters here, you develop a high tolerance for cold. I had forgotten you weren’t used to it. Come here.” He pats the ground next to him. I hesitantly lie down and he puts an arm around me, pulling me close. Flynn closes his eyes again and seems to fall asleep immediately. However, I lay awake, his proximity causing nervous energy to course through my veins. I can feel his even breath on the back of my neck. Forget about the cold, now adrenalin will keep me awake. Eventually I manage to relax and sink into a deep sleep, Flynn’s arms protecting me against the night.
When I wake up, the sun is already high in the sky. Flynn’s arm is still wrapped around me, our bodies separated by a few inches. I am glad that Flynn is still asleep so he won’t see the blush that has crept onto my face. I sit up and Flynn’s arm falls away causing him to jolt awake. For a second he just stares at me as though wondering what I am doing here. Then he catches sight of the sun and jumps to his feet, cursing. “It’s already almost ten o’clock. We should have started walking hours ago.” He tells me, “Now our chances of meeting a patrol has greatly increased.” He grabs his pack and sets off at a brisk walk. I am startled by the abrupt departure but I hoist my rucksack onto my back and continue on after Flynn.
The terrain is becoming more demanding as we travel farther across the island. The flat forests that I had grown accustomed to have been replaced by steep hills and jagged rocks, the leaves on the trees replaced with needles. The new landscape has an unforgiving feel, as though there is danger, whether human or natural, waiting around every corner. I stick close to Flynn, feeling slightly embarrassed by my anxiety. As usual, Flynn seems perfectly at ease in his surroundings, and while I am jumping at every sound, Flynn’s gate is relaxed.
After a few hours of travel, Flynn picks up a thick branch and begins to carve it with his knife as we walk. Curious, I try and guess what he is making. Finally I give up, “What are you making?” I ask. Flynn’s eyes don’t leave his work, “I’m carving us some practice knives. There is only so much you can learn about knife fighting without sparring with someone and using real knives would probably end up with one of us dead.”
“That one of us probably being me,” I admit.
He smiles, “I wasn’t going to say it. Although I know that I am skilled enough not to kill you accidentally.”
“Wow, arrogant much?”
“Maybe, but not without reason. You have to admit that.”
I shake my head and give a small laugh, “I guess. But you know narcissism isn’t a particularly becoming quality. You could at least pretend you don’t know how awesome you are.”
He shoots me another crooked smile, “So you admit that I am awesome?”
I make an exasperated noise, “That wasn’t exactly the point I was trying to make.” Flynn just laughs and turns his eyes back to his work. It strikes me that this was one of the first normal conversations we have ever had. One that wasn’t centered on survival or our depressing pasts. It reminds me of being around my friends back on Innocents.
As the day wears on, Flynn starts getting more nervous, constantly looking over his shoulder. He has stowed away his completed practice knives and has his real one held at ready. Once, he stops so suddenly I almost run into him. “What’s wrong?” I ask quietly, scanning the rocky terrain around us. Flynn doesn’t answer for a long time, until finally he says, “We are being followed. I think they’ve been tracking us for about an hour now.”
“And you wait until now to tell me this?” I hiss angrily taking out my knife.
“I wasn’t sure until just a minute ago, now I know.” Flynn replies as he starts walking again.
“Well, you could have at least warned me, that way I might actually be ready in case of an attack. And what are we going to do now? Will we fight them?”
Flynn’s voice remains calm and carefully controlled, “I didn’t warn you because I knew as soon as I did you would tense up. And I can guarantee you that whoever is following us is carefully watching to see if we know about them so I waited as long as I could before telling you. Just try to remain calm and act as naturally as you can.”
“But what are we going to do?” I demand, “They are bound to attack us sooner or later.”
Flynn gives a grim smile, “Not if we attack first and catch them by surprise. Now we just need to wait for one of them to make another noise and give away their location.”
“Why haven’t they attacked yet? Whoever is following us could have taken us down anytime in the last hour.” I try to adopt Flynn’s casual tone.
“We are in Endrone territory now, and the Endrone are smart. They won’t attack until they are absolutely sure they can defeat us. This means that we are probably headed toward an ambush.”
“And you are okay with that?” My calm demeanor slips slightly.
“As I said, we will attack them before it gets that far.”
We walk in silence for a few more minutes until I hear a faint rustle. Flynn grins, “Ready?” He asks. I nod and without hesitation, Flynn sprints through the trees in the direction of the noise. I follow close behind. I hear a shout and a group of Murderers materialize from their hiding spots to meet us head on. Flynn closes the distance between us and them in two strides, his knife in attack position and I follow suit. However, before either of us can attack, gray figures emerge from the trees on all sides. We are completely surrounded. Before I can react, someone steps forward from the circle and grabs me, holding a knife to my neck. I freeze, the cold blade sending chills down my spine. Flynn steps toward me, knife raised, as if planning on taking on the entire group by himself. As he takes another step forward a woman’s voice sounds from the back of the circle.
“Take another step and she dies before your knife can meet its mark.”
Flynn hesitates but does not lower his knife. I can almost see his mind spinning, calculating the speed his knife must fly in order to catch my captor before he can react and kill me. Before he can make his move, the woman speaks again, “Your talents are well known here, but I doubt even you, Domus, can hope to attack us and make it out with both of your lives. Now drop your knife or she dies.” I struggle against the arms restraining me and the Murderer digs the tip of his knife a little deeper into my neck, drawing blood. Slowly, Flynn lowers his knife and lets it fall to the ground. As soon as he does, three figures spring forward, two of them grab Flynn’s arms and the other snatches the knife away. He then pats Flynn down and removes the other knives he had hidden. Once the man is satisfied that Flynn is unarmed he nods and the woman steps forward into the center of the circle. Her face appears young, but her long hair is as gray as her clothes. Flynn glares at her, “Salina. I should have expected to see you here.”
She appraises us coldly, “Yes. You should have,” she says simply. When she turns to Flynn she almost look
s disappointed. She approaches him and stops only a foot away. “This was easier than I expected it to be. When our scouts reported that a known Domus had crossed into our territory, none other than Marek’s personal guard, the legendary Flynn, I had expected, hoped even, that it would be a challenge to capture him. It seems that I overestimated you. You reacted exactly how I expected you to. Although, it took you much longer than I expected. We purposefully allowed you to hear us several times earlier. We had almost given up before you attacked.” Flynn doesn’t respond. He coldly meets Salina’s eyes. Salina continues, “Fighters are always so predictable, they never avoid initiating a struggle. I had hopes that you would be different, but I should have known better, being that you were raised by Marek. You two are so much alike, do you know that?” Flynn tenses and I can tell he is clenching his teeth. I wonder if Salina is purposefully goading him, trying to get him to fight. “I suppose you did simplify things by being so easy to catch, and by bringing a…friend… along.”
“Why don’t you just kill me and get this over with,” Flynn cuts her off. Swiftly, Salina draws her own knife and presses it against Flynn’s throat. “If you interrupt me again, I will be only too happy to oblige you. But if you decide to cooperate, then I have no intention of killing either of you and you may just make it out of here alive.”
I can see the distrust in Flynn’s eyes, “What do you need my cooperation for?” Salina gives an eerie smile, “you are going to lead a raid on the Domus.”
A half hour later, I am sitting in a cell not unlike the one at the Volis base camp. The word déjà vu briefly flits through my mind. They have taken Flynn into a separate room to give him an in-depth description of their demands, so I sit against the cold wall and await his return. I must have eventually fallen asleep because the sound of my door opening wakes me. Two guards escort Flynn inside and slam the door shut behind him. I jump to my feet, desperate for news. “What do they want? Are they going to kill us or just keep us here?”
Flynn looks anxious. “The deal is that if I manage to lead a successful raid on Domus, they will release both of us unharmed once I get back. I am scheduled to leave tonight and you will stay here. They promised that you would be safe while I am gone.”
I don’t like the idea of sitting here waiting out the danger, but I know that I would be a liability on the raid so I restrain myself from complaining. “Why do they want to raid the Domus?” I ask instead.
Flynn sighs, “From what they have told me, these past couple of years have been rough. The raids from the Domus and Volis have left them desperate for food. The Endrone is one of the only clans that resembles a functional society, but without food, that will disintegrate. If the clan dissolves, so does Salina’s power, and she is desperate not to let that happen. Salina wouldn’t be able to survive one minute without power.”
“So you know Salina?”
Flynn gives a humorless laugh, “She used to be a member of Domus. She and Marek were together, I guess that kind of makes her something like my step-mother. But she left suddenly when I was three and formed her own clan. Marek has hated her ever since.”
I consider this. How could anyone just abandon a three year old that she helped raise. But I guess you don’t get sent to Murderers for being kind and selfless. I hate Salina even more for it.
Since there is no clock, I not sure what time it is or even how close evening is. I pass the time by making designs with the condensation that has formed on the metal walls. Flynn sits on the opposite side of the room, staring at the floor. My fingers are tracing a swirling pattern when he speaks. “Brie, it’s almost time for me to go.” I want to ask him how he knows this but decide that it isn’t the time. I remain quiet and let him continue. “When I leave, there is a good chance I won’t make it back alive. If that happens, I am sure Salina will give you the choice to join the Endrone. You must accept the offer and then at the first opportunity you get, run away. Head east as fast as you can, but only travel after midnight and stop once the sun rises. This should help you avoid any patrols. Within a few days you should make it to the fence and then you will be free to go.” He reaches over and grabs my hand, gripping it firmly, “But listen to me Brie, you cannot trust Salina. She will try to trick and brainwash you in any way she can so get out of here fast. Otherwise you will be stuck here for life.”
I nod, “I understand, but you will make it back here. And don’t worry about me, I’ll be fine, and so will you.”
Flynn doesn’t look convinced, but he takes a seat next to me, our hands remain joined. We sit this way until I hear the jingle of keys outside the door. Flynn leans in toward me as the door opens. “Remember what I told you,” he tells me quietly so only I can hear, “Don’t trust Salina and get out of here as soon as possible.” Then he bridges the few inches between us and his lips brush mine quickly before he pulls away and follows the guard out of the cell. I am left sitting alone wondering if I will ever see Flynn again.
