Betta strode past me as she started to run down the dirt road that led to my prison accommodations. She was careful to keep close to the shadows of each building. The moon was a mere sliver, and didn’t offer much light, which was good since it meant we wouldn’t be as visible, but it was also bad because it made it more difficult to see in the dark.
I wasn’t sure where Betta was going, but I didn’t question her. She seemed to have a plan and that was more than I had. Instead, I simply followed her, my heart growing more optimistic all the while. She continued to jog down A Street, which ran into the main street like all the side streets did. It was the main artery of the compound. But instead of continuing down the main dirt road, Betta took a quick right at the end of the cul-de-sac. I was still a few feet behind her, struggling to keep up due to my exhaustion.
Like a stealthy burglar, Betta clung to the shadows of the building, scaling the walls until she reached the rear of it. Then she glanced over at me as if to make sure I was right behind her, which I wasn’t. In response, she tapped her foot to let me know I needed to hurry up. With a deep breath, I forced myself onward at a hurried speed until I caught up to her.
Once I did, she made a beeline for the barbed wire fence that ran around the perimeter of the compound. It was probably ten feet from the back of the building. Luckily, there were no windows on the rear walls of the building, so no one could see us. Not that anyone should have been awake at this hour anyway. Whatever hour it happened to be …
I wasn’t sure how Betta planned to get us past the barbed wire fence. We couldn’t climb it since it was topped with coils of razor-wire. And it wasn’t like Betta could cut through the fence either. As soon as she attempted that, the magic wards, which were located all over the compound, would immediately be tripped.
And the last thing I needed was to get caught during an attempted escape. Get caught and Luce would have it out for me even more than he currently did. And there was no telling what might become of poor Betta.
I didn’t worry long about it though, because Betta didn’t try to scale the fence or cut through it. Instead, she reached down, her hands disappearing into a large bush, which stood between her and the fence. She pushed the bush out of the way, revealing a gaping hole below the fence that led to the other side. It had to be at least four feet deep and was easily wide enough for both of us to fit through it.
I could only wonder how Betta had managed to dig such a large hole without anyone seeing her. And what was even more perplexing was how she’d camouflaged the hole with a bush that appeared to still be alive even though its roots had been severed. But it wasn’t as though I could ask her—not here and now, anyway.
She took off her backpack and then handed it to me, her lips tight and her overall expression one of determination. I watched her get down onto her butt and scoot forward until she was at the threshold of the hole. Then, leaning back onto her hands, she pushed her feet down inside the hole and followed with her body, being sure to bend as far back as she could to avoid the bottom of the wire fence. When she made it to the other side, she smiled broadly as she motioned for me to pass her backpack through. I did, and once she retrieved it from the other side, I realized it was my turn.
“Don’t touch the fence,” Betta whispered.
With a nod, I took a deep breath and glanced down at my outfit. The baggy shirt and pants weren’t the best apparel for this sport. They would have gotten caught on the bottom of the fence for sure. Hoping Betta wouldn’t mind, I immediately tore off my shirt. I rolled it into a tight little ball, which I passed to Betta underneath the fence. Then I untied my pants and slid them down my thighs, before bunching them up and pushing them through the hole under the fence, as well. Now, clad only in my bra and my panties, I pushed my legs through the large opening in the ground. I sidled back and forth, working my way down into the hole and making sure the bottom of the fence didn’t make any contact with me.
When I arrived on the other side, Betta immediately handed me my shirt, which I threw over my head. Then I yanked on my hospital pants. Once I was dressed, we didn’t waste any time in pushing through the shrubs and bushes, as we headed into the forest that bordered the compound. I didn’t wait to tighten the waistband of the pants, but followed right after her, tugging at the drawstrings all the while.
At the thought that I was free, I couldn’t restrain the smile that immediately started on my mouth.
It was the first time I’d smiled in a long while.
EIGHT
“So how did you manage that?” I asked Betta once we were far enough away from the compound that I thought it was safe to speak. But as soon as the thought crossed my mind, I had to correct myself. It didn’t matter how far away from the compound we were, because as long as Luce had access to my mind, I would never be safe. And neither would Betta because as a human, it was even easier to break into her thoughts.
“How did I manage what?” she asked as she paused in her jog-hiking to retrieve a flashlight from her backpack. Once she had it in hand, she gave me a smile that said she was proud of herself with regard to the whole escape plan. I wasn’t sure why, but I couldn’t bring myself to tell her that no matter where we went, Luce would find us. And even though I was coldly assured of as much, I still said nothing. Instead, I allowed the unrealistic flame of hope to continue burning inside me, even if I knew I’d have to put it out sooner or later.
Apparently at not receiving a response to her question, Betta glanced back at me from where she was doing her best to weave through the thick forest foliage and lead the way through the dark trees that created menacing shadows in the moonlight. The forest was so dense and the night so dark, that I found it difficult to see. And the scant light offered by the moon as it peeked through the umbrage of tree branches above us didn’t offer much help. As to where we were going? I had no clue.
“Betta,” I started, now determined to tell her she had to make her own way because the two of us would only get caught. I figured if given the option of going after one or the other of us, Luce would choose me. For once.
“You mean how did I just spring us both?” she interrupted, her smile still just as broad as it had been.
I exhaled as I shelved the conversation about Luce tracing my mind for the time being because I had to admit I was curious as to how she’d done the impossible. “Yeah, I’m perplexed,” I admitted. “How were you able to come see me without anyone knowing what you were up to?”
“That was the easy part,” she answered as she jumped over a small rivulet that snaked before us and disappeared into the undergrowth. She checked the compass which she held in her left hand again before glancing up at the horizon, as if it might ensure her that she was going the right way. “I’m a human which means I’m basically invisible to the tribe.”
“Why do you say that?” I asked, legitimately curious because I’d never thought of our human workers in such a way.
“If you’re a human, no one really watches your comings and goings because no one really cares.” Her tone of voice said she wasn’t exactly upset by her commentary. She was more matter-of-fact than anything else. “And as far as being able to get through your front door, Luce had already magicked me with the ability to come and go through the wards since I was in charge of delivering your meals.” She checked the compass one more time before replacing it in her sweatshirt pocket. Then she glanced back at me again and grinned knowingly. “He just never thought to set my hours,” she finished with a laugh.
“Okay, so that explains how you were able to get through my front door, but how did I manage to get through it?” I continued, shaking my head because this was the part that really didn’t make any sense to me. “The last time I tried to escape, I got a shock that was so strong, I never tried it again.”
“So we gotta go west,” Betta said under her breath as she checked the compass one more time, and then holding it out in front of her, began to veer toward the left-hand side. “Right,” she started, ap
parently back on track with the subject of our conversation. I promised myself that I’d send her on her way as soon as she explained how she’d “sprung” us. I figured the information was important for me to know, because if she left any clues as to her involvement, maybe there would be a way I could cover her trail. At this point, I was as good as caught, so Betta’s safety was my primary concern.
“How did you manage to free me?” I reminded her of my earlier question.
“Well, I got some help with that one,” she admitted.
“You got help?” I asked with a frown, because I couldn’t imagine anyone offering to help her break me out. I was more than aware that I wasn’t exactly popular when it came to my fellow tribespeople.
“Yep, one of the breeders who’s also an Elemental happens to be my best friend,” she finished, glancing back at me as I wondered if she was only doing that to make sure I wasn’t falling too far behind. The truth was that I was finding it very difficult to keep up with her, which wasn’t that much of a surprise because I was still dealing with the intense exhaustion that had claimed me the evening before with Jack. As to that bizarre encounter, it still hadn’t fully registered with me. Instead, I’d pushed it to the back of my mind because I had more pressing matters to consider—chiefly, this escape attempt.
“Who?” I started, unable to conceal the surprise in my tone, because I wasn’t aware there were any Elementals who were friends with humans. There was definitely a separation of class and rank that characterized the tribe as a whole.
As soon as I asked the question, Betta immediately shook her head. “Can’t say,” she responded, continuing to shake her head vehemently. “I mean, who’s to say Luce isn’t going to ransack that head of yours first chance he gets? Right?” she asked, turning back to face me before she started nodding as the weight of her words settled into my gut. She had no idea how right she was … “So, I don’t want you to have any information about my bestie if he does.”
“So you do know that Luce can trace me? Well, for that matter, he can trace both of us,” I started as I again considered the fact that Luce could very well break into my mind at any moment and find out exactly where we were—just like he’d done back in the cave. “Then you realize we aren’t safe anywhere for that exact reason?” I continued, suddenly wishing she could have shared her plan to escape with me sooner so I could have talked her out of it. Or at least talked her out of taking me with her.
“Oh, shoot!” Betta continued with a little, carefree laugh. “I almost forgot!” Then she stopped walking, pulled her backpack off and dropped it to the ground, bending over to unzip it. “Good thing you reminded me,” she said as she searched through the pack, finally finding what she was looking for. She stood back up and handed me a vial. In it was a white powder that looked like all-purpose flour. “I was so freaked out about getting away that I nearly forgot one of the most important pieces to my plan—the protectant!”
“The what?” I asked, glancing from the vial back to her wide eyes.
“The part about blocking Luce from your mind,” she continued with a shrug. “It’s not that big of a deal because I did sneak a bunch of protectant into your dinner last night.” Then she glanced up at me with raised brows. “Which I hope you ate?”
“Some of it,” I muttered as I eyed the vial in her hand again. “So what is that stuff?”
“It’s from my best friend,” she answered quickly as she popped the cork top off the vial of white powder, the protectant as she called it. “It’s a charm which she concocted that blocks anyone from tampering with your mind.” She smiled broadly as her eyebrows reached for the dark night sky. “As in, Luce.”
“What?” I asked, frowning at her because I wasn’t convinced. “I’ve never heard of any powder, charm or anything else that could do that before.”
“You’ve never heard of a lot of things my friend has come up with,” Betta answered with a self-impressed nod. “No one has.” Her attention fell to the vial which I was now inspecting at eye level. “Just tip a little bit onto your finger and inhale it up your nose,” she instructed. “Then Luce won’t have a clue as to where we are or where we’re going.” She paused for a split second. “And seeing as how you didn’t finish all your dinner last night, you should probably get a move on.”
“I just inhale it?” I asked apprehensively.
“Yep,” she answered. “I’d show you exactly how to take it but I already took my dose this morning and my bestie told me to be careful about taking too much. Guess it makes you like loopy or something,” she said with a laugh and a shrug.
“Hmm,” I grumbled.
“Come on, it won’t hurt you,” she continued. “It sort of tastes like Root Beer. Well, at least that’s what my friend attempted to make it taste like. I will say that even though her spells are pretty amazing, she hasn’t really gotten the whole taste variable down.”
I didn’t say anything but continued studying the smallish vial, making no move to take the cap off, because, in general, I didn’t trust any magic unless I knew what it was and where it came from.
“You better get on with it,” Betta warned. “The longer you wait, the more likely it is that Luce will get a read on us.” She took a deep breath. “And we really don’t want that.”
She had an excellent point. And regardless of whether or not her friend’s potion powder really worked, it was better just to take it, on the very slim chance that it might. Turning the vial over, I shook a bit into my palm and immediately got a whiff of something sweet, but it didn’t quite smell like root beer. I brought my hand to my nose, closing one of my nostrils as I snorted the stuff with the other. I didn’t taste anything or feel anything right away—other than the sudden and overwhelming desire to sneeze, which I did. A few times while Betta giggled at me.
I felt my eyebrows lift in surprise as I studied the small vial again and wondered who this friend of hers could be. “And you said she’s a breeder?” I asked dubiously as I glanced up from the vial, feeling the oncoming of another sneeze. I immediately recalled Gus’s explanation of the breeders as basically idiotic women who were only useful for their ability to reproduce. Betta’s friend didn’t exactly strike me as idiotic.
“Yeah, she is a breeder,” Betta continued like I shouldn’t have found the point strange. With her backpack in place, she started forward again, but not before holding the compass out before her like it was a dowsing rod and she was searching for water.
“Um,” I started, still trying to bridge the gap between her friend being intelligent and also a breeder. “It sounds like your friend is pretty gifted when it comes to spells and such,” I continued, my eyebrows raised in surprise.
“Yeah, she’s incredibly gifted.”
“So you must see the disconnect here?” I asked, finally. “If she’s such a great Elemental, why is she a breeder?” I didn’t mean to sound exasperated, but I couldn’t really help it. I was still completely exhausted by the whole incident with Jack where I’d randomly burst into flames and yet hadn’t felt any pain and, furthermore, was still alive to ponder it. But I still wasn’t in the right frame of mind to think about that right now. It was better to focus on navigating through this forest so we could hopefully put as many miles between us and the compound as possible.
“She’s a breeder because no one realizes what her strengths are,” Betta answered simply as she continued to dodge bushes and rocks that interrupted her.
“How in the world could anyone have overlooked her strengths?” I asked incredulously, shaking my head because her response didn’t make any sense to me.
“Because she’s quiet,” Betta explained with a shrug. “She isn’t one of those people who constantly tries to prove something. She isn’t a show off. She’s reserved and shy. She lives on the sidelines, in the background.” Then she glanced back at me and smiled almost sadly. “Just like me.”
I didn’t know what to say to that, so I didn’t comment. Instead, I continued asking Betta que
stions about her friend, all the while wishing I were better at the whole consolation thing. Of course, I’d only recently become acquainted with my emotions, so I supposed my inability to process or deal with them made sense. On some level. “So Luce overlooked her?” I asked.
“Everyone overlooks her,” Betta responded with a frown. “Everyone except for me,” she finished and glanced back at me with a short smile. “And even though I’m just a human with no abilities, she didn’t care. She was happy to be my friend.”
“You shouldn’t think about yourself that way,” I said, believing my words, but hoping they came across that way, all the same. “What you just did took a huge amount of courage and planning. Not everyone could have done that.”
“Thanks!” Betta answered with a grin that said she was proud of herself. And she should have been. “There really was no choice for me in the matter though.”
“What do you mean?” I asked as I felt myself slowing down again. I was just so tired, it was difficult to keep up with her. And the uneven terrain of the forest floor wasn’t doing me any favors either.
She shrugged. “I knew what was happening to you,” she answered in a small voice. “I saw the way Luce treated you, and I saw the way the men treated you.”
I swallowed hard at the reminder, not at all comfortable with the fact that Betta knew what had been going on. The more I thought about it, though, the more I realized that there was no way she wouldn’t have known. But it still bothered me because I wasn’t the type of person who dealt well with people feeling sorry for me. I couldn’t even stomach it when I felt sorry for myself.
I cleared my throat and shelved the feelings, figuring they wouldn’t do me any good. “Well, really, was my fate any different than what your friend is now living?” I asked with a frown. I inhaled deeply as something occurred to me. “In fact, I’m surprised I’m here with you now instead of her.”