Thunder roared, halting them while they looked at the darkening sky.
‘Either a storm’s rolling in or Jesserlie is creating one.’ Bear peered at her arm. ‘We’ll need to change that dressing soon.’
‘By the sound of things, we’ll be soaked through to the bone soon enough, so it’ll clean then.’
‘Adoria,’ Milon whispered, and Scarlen turned at once to see no one behind her. She turned back to watch Bear trying his best not to leave too much of a trampled trail behind. He hadn’t heard her brother’s voice, else he would have stopped.
It’s my wound. Making me drowsy, hear things.She assured herself over and over before following Bear.
‘Don’t trust the Rebel,’ whispered Milon, and she froze once more, only her eyes frantically searching for him. ‘Come this way. I know a safe nook.’
A mixture of relief and confusion filled her. How was Milon making contact?
‘Down here, Adoria.’
Upon the ground, hiding in the thicket, was a wispy, pale-green flame flickering, bringing her to her knees for a closer look. It snaked in the breeze, the bright blue eyes of Milon’s peered back inside the glow, and her heart thumped.
‘Reach for me, Adoria. I can save you.’
Mindlessly she touched the top of the flame, the tips of her fingers prickling on contact, then a fierce burn ripped through her hand. ‘Argh!’ Her flesh red and raw from the scald, her gaze on the withering green fire as Milon’s eyes slowly melted, his scream ringing in her ears. ‘No!’ she cried, reaching for him again, but Bear snatched her hand away.
‘Smithson, stop.’
The flame disappeared, and Scarlen sat on the damp ground, shaking, clutching her knees.
‘It’s not real,’ he told her, and she met seriousness in his glare. ‘Jesserlie plays tricks in here. Whatever you saw wasn’t real.’
The burn on her hand objected. Her fingers trembled before him, showing him exactly what was real.
‘We need to get you to the pond. The water will help.’ Bear lifted her to a stand, but still she shook, her thoughts with her brother.
‘The voice sounded real.’
Bear nodded. ‘Yeah, the witch is strong and likes to torment people. All she wanted was to injure you. It adds to the entertainment in here.’
With her sanity in tatters, Scarlen yelled upwards. ‘Isn’t this enough?’
Bear quickly covered her mouth with his hand as she went to rage some more. ‘Shush. You’re telling the others where we are.’
My brother! How fucking dare she?Taking a calming breath, she gave a curt nod for him to let go, as he was right. She needed to be quiet. Composed and able to concentrate. ‘I’m sorry.’
‘Don’t be sorry, just be careful.’ He scanned the area for threats, then guided her towards the pond.
Scarlen was too shaken to move, but something made her follow, her pains reminding her of the reality of her situation,keeping her away from thoughts of her brother. It wasn’t easy, as his beautiful eyes, the same as their little sister’s, had gleamed as always, aching her heart for home. The home that existed when their father wasn’t around. What a different place it was then.
Ria.She remembered. Both Milon and Lancen called her Ria. She should have known it wasn’t him. Were there other idiots in the Zone or just her? She hoped she wasn’t the only source of entertainment. Bear definitely wasn’t giving the watchers a performance. She needed to take a leaf out of his book and keep things simple. If only she could climb a tree again. Stay out of everyone’s way until the horn blew.
Thunder boomed again, and the rain trickled at first, then poured, slapping the treetops that gave little shelter. Within moments she could feel the cold and dampness settle into the marrow of her bones, but she was too angry to care what Jesserlie did next, and as the rain turned to purple hail, she cared a little after all.
‘It’s staining us,’ Scarlen announced the obvious as she watched her hand turn a shade of amethyst. ‘And it’s stinging my burn.’ She flapped her sore hand, hoping for relief, but the colourful hail continued to blast and seep into any flesh it could find.
Bear’s amber top was dyed with streaks of lilac and deep purple, the different shades blending in swirls, and he looked like the fairy in one of her storybooks back home. The thought and the madness of her life had her laugh.
‘Shh!’
But she couldn’t stop laughing. It was so surreal. The eyes in the flame, the unusual hailstones, the injuries to her body, the prison, the fucking prison she was confined to. Gazing up at the Rebel through damp lashes, she cracked once more, as her company, her companion in the War Zone, a Rebel of all people, lost all expression.
Nothing was remotely funny about her life, but there she stood, shivering, insane, and purple.I’m fucking purple.
