I just need to rest here. Just for a moment.
“You keep going, Konnor. I’ll bring her when she’s ready. We won’t be far behind,” Raiden tells him, and Father must agree because those same gruff hands squeeze mine, and then they’re gone.
“Are you alright?” Raiden asks, wiping strands of sweat-drenched hair off my forehead. The touch is too intimate, made even more so by the fact that I cannot see him, and I flinch away.
“I’m fine. I just got some debris in my eyes.” I wipe at them with the palms of my hands, and blink hard.
“Let me help.” And before I can say no, he’s grabbing my head, tilting it back, and pouring water over my eyes. I try to bat him away, but he holds steady.
“You’re worse than a child,” he scolds. “Now. That wasn’t so bad, was it?”
I sputter while clearing the leftover water from my eyes and face. But I blink hard a few times and discover I can finally see.
My lips press together in a tight line. The caves are in shambles. Huge stalactites have crashed from above, shattering into millions of pieces. Several of the tunnels have caved in on themselves, and the pathway leading up to the gardens is crumbling in multiple areas.
“We cannot stay here, Arina. The soldiers are getting closer. It’s time to move.” The urgency in his tone brings me to my feet, and I strain to listen for any sign of the intruders. But there is nothing. Only the sound of stones settling into place.
Raiden grabs my hand and pulls me down a tunnel I have never been allowed to explore. There are large beams of wood holding this tunnel up, making it more stable.
“Where are we going?” I ask.
“Your father and the rest of those who evacuated will have gone this way, back toward home.”
I don’t think he can mean my home. The soldiers had to have been coming from Lukasia, which means we are heading more in the direction of Ophis Isle.
Another explosion rocks the caverns before I can confirm, and I don’t know if it’s intentional, but Raiden throws his body over mine, shielding me from harm.
His body pressed to mine makes my skin crawl with an unfamiliar sensation. Something deep in my core claws its way to the surface. Before I can name it, he’s moving away.
He runs down the tunnel faster than I can keep up, but I try anyway.
Finally, I reach him. He’s cursing and kicking a wall of boulders that has cut off the tunnel. There are shouts of fear and agony coming from the other side of the pile.
My body moves of its own volition, climbing the rocks before Raiden can stop me. There’s a small hole, and if I can just reach it, maybe I can move them out of the way. Then we can get to them, and I can help whoever—
“Arina!” Raiden yells. A warning. “There isn’t time. We have to lead the soldiers away from here. It’s the only way.”
“No! We have to help them. Someone is hurt, and I can help them!” I scream back at him, even as my hand slips on a loose rock.
“This is how you help them,” he pleads.
Then I hear them. The last blast must have done it, because Lukasian soldiers’ voices echo down the tunnel.
Surely they won’t have heard us, though. There are so many other tunnels to explore, and the entrance to this one is far enough away that—
“Now, Arina!” Raiden grits out softly through his teeth.
There is a small internal struggle between my heart and my head. I jump down from my position halfway up the rocks, conceding.
“How can you leave them?” I ask.
“Let’s not pretend you haven’t spent every free moment here looking for a way out,” his words pierce through my heart, a blow I did not expect to feel.
I refuse to look at him as we make our way out of the escape tunnel. “Besides, there is nothing I can do from here. I haveto focus on the things I can control, and right now that means getting you somewhere safe. I promised to protect you, Arina, and Iwillkeep my promise. Even if that means hauling you over my shoulder and carrying you out of here.”
I back away, moving out of reach.
His answering smirk feels out of place when we’re about to be fighting for our lives. “Better hang onto this blade, little snake. They’re not going to show you any mercy,” he says, handing me my dagger before we reach the mouth of the tunnel.
