The land bucked again, pitching me forward into the bushes. As soon as my feet left the ground, everything calmed.Shit. Ass. Shit.I’d figured out what made this level of the justices so dangerous. The moment you stepped foot on the land, it tried its best to get rid of you.
I needed to get back into the trees immediately. Of course I was now a good six feet from the closest tree. A tree which did not have a single branch I could reach.
Except … if I was vaulted headfirst at it? As plans go, it was up there with the stupidest, but I couldn’t think of any other way. Taking a deep breath, I jumped as far as I could, landing below the tree. Bending my knees as I dropped, I prepared myself for the bucking. The ground shot me up into the air, and then I was flying, shifting to try to reach the branch I’d been aiming for, and somehow I managed to grab on. My good arm shook as I used it to keep me steady while I hooked a leg over the bough and pulled myself up and across to rest on it.
The limb creaked; I felt it strain, too small to support my weight. I needed to move. Dragging myself toward the main trunk, a relieved breath left me as I ended up on a sturdier bough. Everything ached as I tried not to cry. This was no time for tears – even though it was starting to become painfully obvious that I was not going to survive this. Unless a miracle fell in my lap, there was almost zero possibility. I was tired, losing blood – the black cloth hid it, but I could feel how heavy and saturated it was getting. And this was only the first level.
Freaking Imperials. Hopefully Lexen would get Qenita to gut them the next time he saw them. “You better avenge me,” I shouted, half delirious.
“You got it, gorgeous.”
The low, deep voice should have startled me from the tree, but I was half passed out and only managed a gasp. My lashes fluttered as I tried to focus on the blurry person crouched in the tree across from me, a large shadow dressed all in black. The brief glimpse of face underneath his low cap was familiar, but I couldn’t figure out how I knew him.
“I’m going to help you, Emma. But you have to trust me.”
That voice too … it was so familiar. And his eyes … sad eyes.
I cried out, losing all thought as he lifted me up. Somehow he was able to hold me and step gracefully along the low branch. Everything after that was pretty blurry, walking through trees, jumping across bushy shrubs, until finally I couldn’t hold on to consciousness any longer.
Heat woke me.My head was pounding as I struggled up from my hard resting place. Well, this was becoming a far too familiar sensation. Unlike last time in the egg, I immediately remembered everything that had just happened.
Swinging my head around, a few droplets of sweat flung off me.Was I in a sauna?At minimum I expected to see a roaring fire right at my side; it was that warm here. But there was nothing in the cave-like room. My skin felt tight as I lifted my right hand – the left was uselessly attached to my injured arm – to rub at the pounding in my temples, trying to relieve some of the pain there. Sharp agony burst behind my eyes, and before I could even move, my stomach roiled and I dry heaved over and over, nothing able to come out as I had not eaten or drank anything since I was taken.
Vomiting plus headache was a terrible combination, and I did briefly wonder if I was going to die in this cave.
Speaking of, how in all of this underworld did I get into a cave? I’d been in the trees. I definitely remembered some coral-trees, and a land that did not appreciate being walked on. The shadowy man … he must have brought me here. Examining my surroundings – basic cave – I looked down to see that the wound in my arm had been rebandaged with a white stretchy-looking material. I still wore my tattered black dress, but there was more gauze along my arms and legs. The stupid heels were also gone, which would hopefully help me to stay upright.
I jumped to my feet – wincing at the increased pain in my head – as a broad-shouldered figure stepped into sight.
“Nice to see you’re awake, badass. I was getting a little worried there.”
I narrowed my eyes, face scrunching tightly as confusion hit me. “Daniel?”
The rasp of his name echoed for a beat. “What … why are you helping me?” I was genuinely confused, trying to catch my brain up on what was going on.
He shrugged. “Lexen is my best friend. He’s been with me through more shit than I could even explain. I will always have his back. Family first, you know.”
My throat went all funny as I tried to ask my next question. “Is Lexen … all the Darkens, are they okay?”
Daniel nodded, which sent shots of relief through me. “They’re fine, searching for you. Lexen…” I was desperate for him to finish that sentence, but he cut himself off, handing me a clear pouch that looked to contain water.
“It’s legreto,” he told me, the word rolling off his tongue. “It will help restore your energy, speed up the healing.”
I eyed him closely, lifting the spout to my lips and tipping it back. I had no choice except to trust him. On my own I was dead. And right now I needed to rehydrate more than anything.
“I cleaned and stitched your wounds,” he continued. “I can’t do much more to help you because using my powers will alert Laous. Overlords are connected, and for now we’re staying off the grid. Off the network.”
As more of the cool liquid slid down my throat, I sighed. It was sweeter than water, almost like it had been flavored with fruit. Before I knew it, I had emptied his pouch.
“Crap, sorry,” I said, holding it out to him. “I didn’t realize I was drinking so much.”
Daniel just waved me away, those rich cinnamon eyes flashing as he watched me. “That was all for you. I’m well aware of Laous’ penchant to starve and dehydrate his prisoners. Makes them more pliable.”
“How are you related to Laous?” I asked, unable to see one thing about that crazy asshole in Daniel.
Daniel’s face took on a dark expression, giving him what I had dubbed “the Lexen look.” “He is my uncle. He killed my father and took the overlord major position, even though it should have rightfully gone to me. Laous’ marks were not inborn, they were placed there through a marking ceremony. This can happen if there are no naturally-born overlords, but since I was alive, it should never have gone down like that.”
That urge to hug him came over me again. He was a plethora of contradictions, clearly a bad boy on the outside, but his eyes … shit, they spoke to me on a level of pain that I’d rarely seen in another.
