I dodged to the side, trying to avoid letting him pin me with the cliff face at my back. My ankle wailed. I blocked it out.
He had the advantage of both height and weight, my best hope was in being quicker.
Rushing at him as he stumbled from the missed lunge, I tackled him face first into the sludge. I managed to land one punch into his ear before he bucked against me, and knocked me off him into the muck.
I tried to scramble up to stand again so I could kick him, but he turned and lunged again, this time knocking me down fully and pinning me with his weight on my torso.
I was down, but I wasn’t done.
Straining against him, I kicked out with my knees but it was too slippery with the rain and the mud to get a good hit in. I raked my nails down his side and managed to rip his shirt, but lost traction from the rain. And Orin wasn't waiting.
He threw a punch that connected with my jaw, my skull rattling from the force of impact with the ground while my vision snapped left and blurred. “Shit, I didn't mean to—” I heard him say, far away.
I didn't catch the rest, because I passed out.
Chapter 19
Under Stormy Skies
Iwoke up to the taste of blood. My entire head ached. I probed the inside of my mouth with my tongue, wincing when I hit an open cut on my inner cheek. I must have bitten myself when I fell. No missing teeth. Blinking up at the stippled gray sky, Pasha’s face stared down at me.
“Welcome back.” She held out a hand to help me sit up. Nausea threatened at the movement, and I held a muddy hand to my head “Are you alright? Did you fall? Georlan! Get over here!” she called out behind her.
My mind took several seconds to remember everything that had happened. Bending sideways, I barely managed to twist in time before I threw up. Pasha rubbed slow circles on my lower back, pulling stray hair away from my face until the nausea passed.
“No,” I gasped, grabbing at my hair. The sudden movement made the headache roar to life. The cradle braid had several strands pulled out from the sides, and no flowers woven into it. Frantic, I looked down at the ground and let out a sigh ofrelief to see two plucked flowers nearby in the mud. At least Orin hadn't taken all of them.
“What happened?” she asked, noticing the wet red tinge on her fingers from touching my hair, and the flowers on the ground.
Massaging my temples, I tried to push down the throbbing. “Orin,” I muttered. “He saw me climbing and had me get two extra flowers for him, but then when I climbed down he demanded more, too.”
Pasha's eyes widened. “What?”
“He's convinced it’s unfair that Mikaela and I get to take back more,” I said, testing my jaw. It didn't feel broken, only bruised. “Probably left after he knocked me out. I hope he gets lost out here.” I scooped up the flowers off the ground, trying to angle them so the rain washed some of the grime off them. They’d seen better days.
Georlan appeared from between some nearby bushes, heading toward us. “What's the big—” his eyes rounded when they landed on me.
Pasha helped me stand. “Are you, no of course you're not alright,” she said. “It’s only around ten, do you think you'll be able to make it back?”
“Yeah,” I said. “Did you already get your flowers?” Pasha pointed toward a rock I hadn't noticed behind her, where six fresh flowers sat.
“Can you run while holding that many?” I asked. Georlan was holding two of his own as well.
“I'm going to try,” Pasha said, rubbing at cuts on her palm from the bracts. “And if I'm feeling up to it, I'll make another trip back for another half dozen.” She bit her lip, hesitating as if to say something.
“What happened?” Georlan cut in before she could.
“I'll fill you in later,” Pasha replied. She still looked like she wanted to say something.
“Go on,” I urged. Thunder clapped overhead.
“I think...you shouldn't run back. You’re too pale,” she steadied me when I started to tip sideways from the queasiness twisting my innards.
“I second that opinion,” Georlan added. “Here.” He reached down and popped a seam, tearing off a strip of fabric from the bottom of his shirt, wrapping it around the back of my head and tying it on my forehead. “That should help.”
“Thanks. I guess no double trips for me.” I took deep breaths while my balance returned. “I'll be walking my way back.”
“Maybe rest first,” Pasha advised. She looked around, “But uh, do you know which way we need to go to get back?”
