Chapter One
I'd done it. Actually done it.
Hunter had been pushing me beyond my limits for more days than I could count. But he gave me a way out of his constant training that first day: 'If you can get away then you're free to spend the day as you wish,' he'd said.
It had taken me over a month but I had finally managed it.
I lay in a soft bed of long grass that rustled gently in a whispering breeze. The sun poured down around me and I drank it in. Summer was finally upon us and I was experiencing the full force of what the sun could achieve. My skin was kissed golden and I wore shorts and a thin vest top to make the most of it.
I'd been dreaming for months about being able to lay down and soak it up without the constant barrage of physical and psychological training that Hunter had insisted on putting me through.
I had had to force my way through the thickest part of the forest, climbing trees and swinging on vines to avoid leaving a trail that he could follow. Wading through the small stream had been a stroke of genius I didn't realise I possessed and finally, I'd made it.
The sun had already removed the moisture from my clothes and I breathed in the scent of the little flowers that peppered the grass around me as I let my eyes fall closed.
The tension in my muscles and the ache of a hundred bruises faded away as the sun's heat filled my veins and my mind drifted towards sleep.
I was transported to a place deep in the forest by a little pond with vines creating a curtain all around me. And of course he was there.
His eyes were blacker than I remembered and I melted into them as he pulled me closer. My breath caught in my throat as I leant towards him. A branch snapped somewhere. His hand curled around my chin to stop me from turning away. My gaze locked with his.
"Where have you been?" I asked. Another branch cracked behind me.
"I'm here now." He smiled that half smile that made the bottom drop out of my stomach.
"But where were you before?" I pressed him.
A shadow fell over us and the light dimmed, making the clearing seem like a more ominous place than it had a moment ago.
"Don't you realise?" he asked but his voice didn't sound like his voice any more.
"Realise what?" I breathed.
Something was wrong but I couldn't make myself pull away from him, I'd missed him too much. A slither of ice press against my throat.
"You're dead," he growled and the pressure against my skin increased as I felt a spike of pain.
My eyes flew open and I gasped at the figure who loomed over me, a knife pressed to my throat. My heart thumped erratically and I fought back against the instinct to panic. Adrenalin pumped through my veins and a dozen different responses flooded my mind in quick succession.
My hand was laying on my stomach and I carefully slid my fingers under the waistband of my shorts to release the small blade I had concealed there.
Once it was in my grasp, I moved. The training Hunter had forced on me had been well worth the effort, even if I did dream of escaping from time to time. Alright, all the time.
I pressed myself back into the grass as I twisted my head to the side. It gave me an extra millimetre of space between that knife and my throat. As soon as the gap appeared, I thrust my own blade up to block the weapon and shoved it back towards my attacker.
I rolled to the left away from him as a kick that had been intended for my face brushed the grass behind me. I continued the roll again and again until I could be sure that I'd moved far enough away and came to a stop on my stomach. I scrambled to get my legs beneath me and regained my feet.
The little knife was still clutched tightly in my left fist and I grabbed a slightly more impressive blade from my right boot.
I dropped into a defensive position with my knees bent and both knives raised before me as I prepared for the next assault. He towered above me, a silhouette in the bright sunlight with a huge knife held loosely in his meaty fist. I expected him to pause and assess the new threat but he was already on the move, barrelling towards me so quickly that I had to spin aside.
I failed to get the sun to my back and was momentarily blinded by it as I tried to ready myself for his next advance. I squinted against the blinding light but I couldn't see him. His run should have propelled him past me and straight into my line of sight, but he wasn't there.
A horrible sinking feeling gripped me as I tried to get ready to defend myself again but I knew I couldn't do it.
Before I could make another move, a big fist grabbed my hair and yanked me backwards at the same moment as a foot connected with the backs of my knees, knocking my legs out from under me.
My head was yanked painfully to the side as the knife was pressed against my throat once more.
"I told you. You're dead. Now you're just dead twice."
I tried to swing my arms backwards, aiming my knives for his legs but he jammed his foot into my back and pulled harder on my hair. My knees dug into the dirt and his huge boot pressed on the small of my back. My left knife slipped from my grip as I gasped in pain.
"Ready to give up?"
He grunted as he increased the pressure against my back and tugged at my hair again. It felt like each individual hair on my head was being ripped slowly and excruciatingly from my scalp. I tried to let my weight go limp to make him drop me but his hold kept me firmly in place.
I yelled out my frustration and swung my remaining knife back over my shoulder in a final attempt to break free. Just as I got my arm back to the furthest point I could manage, he shoved me even harder. The pain running down my spine and along my scalp increased unbearably and I screamed, dropping the knife. I tried to scrabble forwards and relieve the pressure he was exerting on my body but I was well and truly immobilised.
"Just give up. I have you beaten." He almost sounded amused.
"Damn it!" I yelled. "I yield, I yield - let me go!" I was sure my body would break from the pain.
He released me instantly and I tumbled to the ground. I rolled away and turned to face him with my arms wrapped around my knees as the pain receded.
I glared up at the silhouette towering above me as he took a step forwards and blocked the sunlight, allowing his features to be revealed. I used to think he was good looking, but that opinion was wearing pretty thin. I massaged my scalp and forced myself not to jump up and slap that smirk from his face.
Apart from the fact that I had absolutely no chance of landing the blow, I also didn't feel like getting my ass kicked again quite so soon.
"Sometimes, I think you're going to end up hating me and I'll have inadvertently created my own arch nemesis." Hunter grinned down at me as he offered me a hand up.
I glanced suspiciously at the extended limb.
"No tricks, I promise." He tried to adopt a serious expression and continued to hold his hand out for me. Tentatively, I put my palm in his and he tugged me to my feet.
"I was enjoying that nap," I grumbled at him.
"Well I stomped around and made plenty of noise to give you fair warning." He let out his big boom of a laugh.
"I thought I'd finally escaped," I sighed.
"The stream held me up for a while, you even managed to cover your trail after getting back out of it."
"So what gave me away?" I asked.
"Predictability."
"What?" I frowned at him.
"Your trail was practically impossible to follow and I was impressed. But, you've been moaning about wanting to come and sunbathe in this field ever since the day I showed it to you." He winked at me.
"You cheated!"
"The true warrior uses all of the tools at his disposal," he laughed again. It was a sound I couldn't help but love, even if he was laughing at me.
We started making our way back towards the town of Franklin where we'd been staying in Coal and Alicia's house on the edge of the forest. It was considerably bigger than the apartment we used to use and it had become my home in this st
range world.
"I had a good reason to cheat," Hunter said as we walked.
"Couldn't bear to let me win?" I smiled tolerantly as I got my foul mood under control.
My scalp would be sore for a while but I knew that the training was in my best interest.
"Partly, but I probably would've let you have a few hours after hiding your trail so well and for all the progress you've been making," he smiled.
"So why didn't you?"
"Coal's back." He said it so simply, like those two little words were nothing but words. Like they didn't make my whole world just slide back into focus. Like they didn't make my heart beat so fast that he must be able to hear it. Like they didn't make me want to run and scream and jump and do everything and anything apart from stand there staring at him like I'd forgotten how to move.
"Where?" I breathed, even waiting long enough to hear his response was agony.
"His truck was spotted travelling down the highway, he must be nearly back to town by now."
I was running as soon as I heard the word 'highway'. Hunter's booming laugh followed me across the field as I left him behind. The highway was on the other side of town and I was about twenty minutes away. I would make it there in ten even if it killed me.
I hadn't seen Coal in nearly nine weeks, it was like a piece of me was missing and I was about to get it back.
Acknowledgements
A massive thank you to:
My sister Caroline for reading this book again and again and helping me make all the little decisions that got it where it is today.
My parents Steve and Pauline for reading me the stories that made my childhood magical and teaching me to work hard for my dreams even when they seem out of reach.
My husband Richard for listening to me talk about my characters as if they were real people and sharing me with them more often than you might have wanted to.
My dear friend Kirsty for helping me see when Maya was too dazzled by Coal and Taylor was too much of a doormat.
The beautiful Clare for being my first fan even though you had to wade through sheets of A4 to read it.
To all of my friends and family who have been so supportive and encouraging while I waged wars against re-writes and suffered melt-downs over plot holes.
You all knew I could do it even when I wasn't sure.
And most importantly to all of the people who have read and loved my book as much as I do.
A book only comes alive when it is being read by people who love it and I thank you for breathing life into mine.
About the Author
Susanne Valenti lives in Kent, England with her husband and four fur-babies.
Chained is her debut novel and the first in the Cage of Lies saga
To find out more go to www.SusanneValenti.com
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