Betta nodded as if my points were valuable ones. “Well, your fates were different in that my friend is treated better than you were,” she offered and then shrugged. “At least a little better.”
“How do you mean?” I watched her check her compass again and then check the horizon. Even though I was sure it would be morning soon, the sky was still dark with heavy clouds. As soon as I glanced up, I felt a large raindrop hit me square on the nose.
“She never received so … many men and never so close together,” she answered as she dropped her eyes and appeared to be uncomfortable with the words coming out of her mouth. “It was pretty obvious that Luce was doing all he could to hurt you.”
I wasn’t sure why, but I laughed. It was an acidic, sarcastic sound. “Yeah, physically and emotionally.”
“And I hated him for it,” Betta continued as she looked back at me.
“You hated him?” I asked, unable to conceal my surprise because I’d figured that everyone in the compound worshipped Luce, that he could do no wrong.
“Yes,” she answered. “I hated him because I knew the person you were before he broke you.”
“You did?” I asked, suddenly feeling incredibly hollow inside as soon as I remembered the person I used to be—the strong, confidant and independent person I used to be … As to the person I’d become? I didn’t even know who or what I was anymore.
“Yes, I used to just watch you when you would train the recruits,” Betta continued, her voice taking on a certain sadness. “I always admired you—how strong you were and how you could put all those men in their place.” She glanced back at me and smiled warmly. I found I couldn’t look her in the eyes. My gaze, instead, fell to the ground as more splashes of raindrops hit my skin.
“That doesn’t explain why I’m here with you now instead of your friend,” I said, not at all comfortable with where this conversation was headed.
“I would have brought her with us for sure,” Betta started, but then she sighed and shook her head. “But she would never have come.”
“What?” I asked incredulously. “Why not? She can’t actually like being a breeder?”
“No,” Betta answered. “I’m sure she doesn’t, but it isn’t a matter of whether she likes it or not.”
“What do you mean?”
She shrugged and I could tell she was upset. “My friend is resigned to whatever happens to her. She believes it is her duty to do whatever it is Luce asks of her. So even though you and I realize that being a breeder is way beneath her, she doesn’t think of it that way. She thinks she’s fulfilling her role and benefitting the tribe.”
“But you must have told her she’s wrong?”
Betta shook her head. “It wouldn’t do any good. She believes in the tribe and she believes in Luce.”
“Yet she helped you and me escape?” I asked as I studied her. “And I imagine she was responsible for making sure no one noticed the huge hole you dug underneath the fence?”
“Yes, she was responsible for that,” Betta admitted. “And as far as helping us out … even though she believes in the tribe, she believes in me more, I guess.”
“So she believes in the tribe, but you don’t?”
“No, I don’t!” Betta railed back at me and then took a deep breath as she got a faraway look on her face. “I’ve dreamt of escaping for as long as I can remember. I always wanted it to be with my friend, but once I realized that was never going to happen, I decided I had to do it for myself.” She glanced back at me and smiled. “And for you.”
“Thanks, Betta,” I said softly, meaning the words with all my heart.
“You bet!” she responded with a wide grin and then glanced up at the sky as the rain started in earnest.
“Looks like you should have checked the weather before you busted us out,” I said with a smile, not minding the cold rain as it bled through the leaves and branches overhead and hit my face. The truth was that I actually relished the feeling, relished the fact that I was outside and away from my horrible prison. I was as free as the birds who started singing to one another as they flitted from tree branch to tree branch. I was as free as the drops of rain which fell from the dark sky.
I. Was. Free.
“Even if I had seen the forecast, I couldn’t have waited any longer,” Betta answered as she plopped off her backpack and unzipped it, producing a rain jacket which she handed to me. “Here.”
“Thanks,” I said as I accepted it and pushed my arms in and then zipped it up. It didn’t do much for warmth but at least it helped to keep me dry. Well, at least the top half of me anyway. “So where are we headed, exactly?”
“Um, we are headed to Highway 83.”
Highway 83 ran northerly through Montana. The compound was located maybe twenty miles or so away from the highway and stuck smack dab in the middle of the forest.
“So that means we have, what, eighteen miles left to walk?” I asked, not meaning for my voice to sound so defeated, but there it was. Eighteen miles sounded daunting, especially given the fact that I was having so much trouble keeping up with her as it was.
“Um,” Betta started as she chewed her lower lip and then checked her compass again. “Yeah, about.”
“Okay,” I said and then took a deep breath.
“So it should take us maybe ten hours until we reach the highway,” Betta announced, her voice sounding hopeful. Of course, with the rate that I was walking it would be more like fifteen. I didn’t correct her though.
“Okay.”
“Do you think ten hours is realistic?” she asked, her voice soft but I could tell she was worried that I was slowing us both down.
“I don’t know.”
“Are you,” she started and then paused for a second or two. “Are you okay, Bryn?”
Her question surprised me even though I wasn’t sure why it would. Of course she would have noticed that I was progressing at a snail’s pace. “Yeah, I’m fine,” I answered noncommittally. Even though I wasn’t sure if I was fine and guessed I probably wasn’t, I didn’t want to get into the conversation regarding what had happened the night Jack visited me. I just wasn’t ready to face it yet. And I had a good idea that once I was ready, I’d want to do it alone.
“Okay,” she said and offered me a quick smile. But I could tell by the expression on her face that she wasn’t convinced. Moments later she turned around and faced me squarely. “Are you pregnant?”
“Oh God, no!” I responded, not meaning to sound so offended, but I couldn’t help it. I even felt my face flush and was immediately grateful to have the cooling rain. “I can’t get pregnant,” I said in a softer voice, having not meant to sound so abrasive. “I think I’m barren.”
“Oh,” Betta said, and I could tell she wasn’t sure if she should congratulate me or offer her condolences.
“I’m happy about it,” I continued, not wanting her to feel any more sorry for me than she already did.
“Oh,” she continued, her expression still one of subtle confusion. “Okay, well that’s good then.” I just nodded as she continued. “I thought maybe that’s why you were walking so slowly and why you seem so tired.”
“No, that’s not why,” I said but let my voice disappear into the quiet of the forest because I didn’t want to discuss why I was so exhausted.
“Okay, well, if you ever want to talk,” she started.
“Thanks, Betta, but I don’t right now,” I said and then sighed. “I need to reserve all of my energy for this walk because it’s going to be a long one.”
And that was the truth.
***
It turned out that the Protectant lived up to its name and reputation, because after another eight or so hours of walking through the forest towards Highway 83, there was still no sign of Luce. Betta informed me that we needed to inhale more of it every six to seven hours, but that was fine by me. Aside from the sneezing attack that would commence for the next twenty minutes, there really weren’t any side effects. And I w
as actually beginning to like the strangely sweet flavor that coated my throat.
“Is this stuff addictive?” I asked after I inhaled my next round.
“Shouldn’t be,” Betta responded, pulling her windbreaker tighter around her as she plopped the vial back into her pack. “Why?”
I shrugged. “I don’t know. I just seem to be yearning for it after a while.”
“That’s all in your head,” she said with a laugh and started forward again, leading the way by maybe five paces or so.
The rain had stopped for the last couple of hours and now the air was cold and refreshingly clean. The birds continued to call to one another while the other woodland creatures rustled through the undergrowth. Even though I was beyond tired, I did manage to continue forward, although my speed seemed to diminish by the hour.
“Do you need to rest again?” Betta asked as she looked at me with concern on her face.
“No,” I lied, but I couldn’t bring myself to ask for another rest stop because I’d just had one twenty minutes ago.
“Are you sure?” Betta asked, doubt lacing her tone.
“Yes,” I answered, finding it difficult even to speak. I couldn’t help but think something was wrong with me.
“Bryn, you really don’t look so good,” Betta said as she stopped walking and turned around to face me completely, worry obvious in her gaze.
I started to feel light-headed and leaned against a nearby tree for support. I sunk into the tree, allowing it to support my head and most of my body weight as I fought to catch my breath. When I finally found the strength to glance up at Betta, my eyes wouldn’t focus, and she appeared as a blur.
“I just need to rest for maybe a second,” I said as I closed my eyes and my feet suddenly felt as if they were miles from my body.
“And what traveling nomads do we have here?”
I heard a man’s voice and opened my eyes a sliver, only to find the blurry outline of an incredibly tall man looming before me. He was dressed in black. I heard Betta’s gasp but couldn’t bring myself to glance in her direction. Instead, I willed myself to focus on the man, to make sure he wasn’t Luce or one of Luce’s minions sent to capture us.
“Bête Noire, you certainly appear the worse for wear,” he continued as I recognized his voice.
Sinjin.
I was about to respond when I felt my knees beginning to wobble. A split second later, I felt broad arms surrounding me as everything went dark.
NINE
I didn’t know how long I was out, but when I came to, the first thing I felt was a humming, pulsating sensation that vibrated up my chin and into my right cheek. The more I focused on it, the more it seemed to be coming from beneath me. I opened my eyes and immediately took in the blurry view through a window which was covered in rain drops. When I glanced down, I noticed the rich black leather upholstery of a car door. My head was apparently propped against the side panel.
“I think Daenerys Targaryen will take the throne.” It was Betta’s voice. She sounded so matter-of-fact, casual even, that I figured even though I didn’t know where I currently was, I had nothing to worry about. “I mean, she’s got dragons, right?”
“You are correct,” Sinjin responded, sounding slightly amused. I rolled my head in his direction and found him behind the wheel of what looked like a sports car. The black upholstery continued throughout the interior, contrasted by a bright red stripe that ran horizontally through the passenger’s and driver’s doors, as well as the middle console and the glove box. I was sitting in the passenger seat.
As soon as I recognized Sinjin, an onslaught of conflicting feelings attacked me all at the same time. First, intense relief and euphoria, followed by the familiar sense of magnetic attraction I always had towards the incorrigible man. But those happy emotions were about to become tarnished by something else, something angry and regretful.
Why didn’t he come for me sooner? Why did he wait so long? I asked myself as visions of the horror I’d been enduring over the last few weeks returned to torture me anew. Did I rank so far down Sinjin’s and my sister’s list of priorities that he waited a full three weeks to come for me?
“Right!” Betta continued. Then, I heard the sounds of rustling coming from what I imagined was a bag of chips or something. “So from, like, a logical standpoint, it naturally follows that Daenerys would be the most powerful because no one else has dragons, right?”
“So one would naturally assume,” Sinjin answered as he downshifted and took a sharp turn quickly. The car hugged the road and merely purred, like it was eager to take the hairpin turns. And, given Sinjin’s penchant for fast vehicles, it probably was.
“Right! And don’t forget that Daenerys also has that huge army too,” Betta added. She was sitting in the back middle seat, but leaning forward, stretching her neck between us. It sounded like she was also munching on chips or crackers or something else crunchy.
“I have not forgotten,” Sinjin said with a quick smile as he eyed the road ahead of him.
“I think I’ve figured it out,” Betta asserted, between mouthfuls.
“I must admit, my dear, that I find it quite bizarre that you were able to enjoy the luxury of cable television in Azkaban Prison,” Sinjin said with a smirk.
“Yep,” Betta responded with a few nods. “I’ve even seen the Harry Potter movies, Mr. Smarty Pants.”
Sinjin chuckled deeply and then faced her in the rearview mirror again. “Have you read the Game of Thrones books?”
“No,” Betta answered immediately, crunching on another mouthful of whatever she was eating. As to where she’d gotten it, I had no clue. “And if you have, don’t tell me what happens! I don’t want to know the ending, thank you very much.”
“Of course, I would not think of ruining the surprise for you,” Sinjin said with another handsome smile. His grin drew me in as much as it angered me, again, due to my unresolved emotions regarding the vampire’s lack of timeliness.
If Sinjin knew what I’d had to go through, what I’d faced, and what it did to me, I wonder if he would have responded more quickly and come after me sooner? I thought to myself. Anger burned inside my heart as I thought about the fact that if Sinjin had come after me as soon as Luce took me, I wouldn’t have been reduced to no more than a shell of a person, a hollow husk of the woman I used to be.
Not that it really matters, I reminded myself. You made your own bed and you had to lie in it. You knew that when you made the choice to protect your sister and niece at all costs. You can’t blame Sinjin for everything that happened to you! It wasn’t his fault. And what’s more, if you were given the opportunity, you would have made exactly the same decision again.
I didn’t say anything as I watched him for a few more seconds. Then I suddenly wondered if Sinjin, the car, and Betta were nothing more than a trick of my mind, or a simple dream. The change of scenery seemed so abrupt and out of place. Last thing I remembered, Betta and I were in the middle of the forest, in the rain, with myriad miles left to walk until we reached the highway. And now …
“Where are we?” I asked. My voice sounded scratchy and tired. But I actually felt rested. The intense exhaustion that had been my former companion was gone. Because of that, I had to wonder how long I must’ve been out.
Sinjin turned to face me and beamed widely, his perfect, white teeth gleaming beneath his full lips. His ice-blue eyes were more stunning than I remembered them. “Sleeping Beauty has awoken!” Then he eyed my hospital issued clothing with little to no interest. “And she certainly appears to be the worse for wear!”
“How are you feeling, Bryn?” Betta asked as she peered over my seat and rubbed my upper arm consolingly. There were chip crumbs and salt particles around her mouth.
“Better,” I answered, even though my voice didn’t sound any less rough. I glanced over at Sinjin again and pushed myself up higher so I wasn’t slouching. Once I was more upright, I took better stock of the car Sinjin was driving. It was a two-door. My
initial instincts regarding it being a sports car turned out to be spot on. “How long was I out?”
“A long time!” Betta responded. “Like, five hours maybe.”
I was initially surprised, but after how well-rested and refreshed I felt, I figured it made sense. “How did we get here? And where is here?” I asked, directing my attention outside the windows where miles of forest flew by.
“Well,” Betta started. From the clicking sound of her jaw, I surmised that she was now chewing on a piece of gum. “You and I were in the forest …”
“I remember that part,” I interrupted. I didn’t mean to sound so grumpy, but there it was. “What happened after Sinjin showed up?”
“Betta, if I may?” Sinjin interjected with a boyish, flirtatious smile.
“Oh, sure,” she answered, blowing a bubble and then popping it. She gave him a quick and somewhat embarrassed smile in return.
Sinjin glanced over at me and quirked a brow in that roguish fashion of his that either grated on my nerves, or turned my insides to mush. I wasn’t quite sure where I stood on the subject at the moment. I felt a little bit numb to my surroundings, as if the shock of knowing that Sinjin had finally come to rescue me wasn’t exactly sinking in.
“When I came across you and Betta in the forest, you fainted perhaps only two seconds after my greeting; and then, your little friend here proceeded to attack me,” Sinjin explained.
“Attack you?” I repeated. When I glanced back at Betta, she nodded, smiling like she was proud of herself.
“Yes, quite so,” Sinjin continued, raising his eyebrows at Betta in the rearview mirror before he faced me again and frowned. “Apparently, your kind failed to describe my species in a positive light or even truthfully. Instead, our dear Betta assumed my intention was to drain both of you of your blood before devouring your flesh as if I were a base wolf.” He raised his left brow, looking in Betta’s direction, and frowned as she giggled. “Of course, I had to inform dear Betta that a creature of my pedigree would no sooner think of committing such a barbaric act than admitting the King of the Fae was anything more than an oversexed man-ape.”