Chapter 12

Pain stabs up my leg with every step. It sharply gives way. I skid to the ground, letting out a grunt of agony. It doesn’t help that Dylan can barely stand, never mind walk. I force myself to my feet, grab him, and keep stumbling forward.

Surprisingly, I hear no pursuit after us, which scares me even more. Surely Thorn was lying. There’s no reason to believe her.

It occurs to me that I can’t really bring him back to Eclipse. But I can’t leave him in Cobra either. They’ll kill him. And I need answers before that happens.

Remembering the abandoned cave that is located a few feet out of Eclipse territory, I head in that direction. I always love to sit there, and let the wind carry my thoughts, the sun hitting my face, warming me up.

“Just a little longer,” I mutter, not sure if I am talking to myself or Dylan. He groans softly, and I can see the pained expression on his face.

Suddenly, a rustling sound reaches my ears. I freeze, uneasiness creeping up my spine.

“Llygon,” Dylan whispers. As it scurries out, I relax, glad to see that he is right. I don’t have spare energy to clash with any predator. Or Thorn.

Something else pounces after it. “And a Borcea,” I add, watching the little bat with tiny flowers growing on its back. It half-flies, half-hops in pursuit of its prey.

At last, we reach the abandoned hut. The plants grew since I last have been here. The vines hang down low into the darkness beyond, the smell of moist soil filling my nose.

“Here.”

The moment I say it, Dylan collapses onto the soft moss, gritting his teeth.

“You better not die on me, because I didn’t drag you all the way here for nothing,” I mutter, my eyes darkening, Thorn’s piercing words echoing in my head.

“Stay here.”

I climb out, grabbing and breaking the hard shell of a sweet dirnut, and head to the small stream. I rinse it out, then, filling it with water, I stumble back. Dylan is exactly where I left him. His breathing has gotten shallow and weaker.

I study his body, looking for the worst injuries. There is a deep gash at the bottom of his neck, looking inflamed and painful. I reach for the cotton, drench it in water, and press it against the wound. He groans. “You’re fine,” I mumble. It comes out harsher than I intended. Lifting his face with my other hand to see better, I realize there are shallow nicks, most likely made from a sword. He clenches his jaw, struggling against my grip. I ignore him.

I dab at them, apply the paste, and bind the bandages, pulling a little harder than usual. Then, I move to his face, wiping away the blood. I refuse to look at him. “Stay still,” I snap when he winces.

Bandaging his head, I look down at his hands, which are shaking and covered in dirt. What if these are the same hands that—

I push away that thought before it can get into my head.

I continue with this routine until the worst of his wounds are cleaned.

I stand up, watching his chest rise and fall with every breath.

My hands curl into fists as a rush of anger hits me. It would be so easy. So easy, because I have the advantage here. So easy…

Just one hit—

I shake my head. Not until I have the answer to my questions. After that… well I’ll decide when I get to it. I suddenly notice yellow, flaming light streaming through the vines onto the ground. I turn towards the entrance.

The sun is hitting me right in the eye. It’s sunrise. Oh no.

“I have to go, Dylan,” I hiss quickly. Taking one fast glance at Dylan, I move as fast as I can back to Eclipse. I relax slightly when I see no one out yet. Dashing back to my room, I take a quick shower under the dim, fairy lights, and clean myself up. But it can’t erase what happened last night. Nothing can wash away the choices I made, his voice, the weight of his body leaning on me for support…

I jump as a knock on my door startles me. Quickly, I shove my weapons and the healing tools into my drawer. “Come in,” I say breathlessly.

Saber clicks my door open. His eyes dart around the room. “How did you sleep, Raven? Why are you up so early?”

I fidget nervously. “Pretty good, what about you?” I ask, ignoring the last question. “Great,” Saber says. His amber eyes are full of life. I’m secretly relieved he let it slip, as I suppress a yawn. “Tired still?” Saber teases. I nod slowly.

My mind drifts back to the escape with Dylan. I don’t even know what to do anymore. What if Thorn’s right?

“Raven?”

“Wha-huh?” I ask, snapping back to reality. “I asked if you were still tired,” Saber presses, cocking his head curiously.

I smile lightly. “Just a bit.”

He lies down beside me on my bed. “Honestly…same.” My eyes widen when I look over at him. “How come? You always seem so…happy,” I murmur softly. The expression on his face slowly changes to a wistful look. “I always try my best to stay like that. I don’t want to be a burden on everyone. They all expect me to be worry-free, the person who makes everything better. But who’s going to make me feel better when I’m struggling?”

“I’m so sorry, Saber, if only I knew…” I trail off, and meet his gaze. “That’s okay,” he replies, putting on a smile. I move closer, and gently reach for his shoulder, resting my hand on it. Just for a second. “Thank you, Raven,” he whispers. “But promise you’ll tell me if you need anything?”

I nod. “And for you too. You don’t have to care for others when you’re tired.”

Saber nods, smiling quietly to himself. He pauses, and suddenly sits up, like he remembers why he’s here. “Right, um, Axel wants us in the training area.”

“Oh, alright. Just let me get ready first,” I say.

He smiles faintly, and backs out of the room. “See you there then!”

“Sounds good,” I call as he closes the door behind him. I quickly change into my training gear, grab a few weapons, and the dagger. The dagger…

My mind flashes back to last night. Dylan’s wounds. Thorn’s smug look. My parents. I shake my head, and walk out of my room, testing my injured leg lightly on the ground. When it didn’t hurt, I try running. Little pain. I brush it off in relief.

“There you are,” Axel says. “What took you so long?”

“I had to change,” I respond.

“Alright.” His eyes narrow slightly, but he lets it go. “I’ll leave you all to train.” Solar moves closer to me, nodding. “We got it.”

As soon as Axel got out of sight, Solar turns to me. “Ready?”

“Yea,” I say, taking out my dagger.

I want to see Dylan. He has the real answers to my questions. But…how can I do it when I’m stuck here? Maybe I’ll find a time when can slip out. Then I can confront him.

“Raven!” Solar scolds as I clumsily trip, trying to dodge. “Focus!”

What if I saved the same person that killed my parents with no mercy? What if that was what Thorn wanted after all? What if—

“Raven!”

I look up again to see Solar standing there with annoyance, tapping her foot impatiently. “What has gotten into you today? You’re normally so into it!”

I shuffle my feet guiltily. “I’m sorry.”

Solar sighs. “Just keep going.”

The rest of the afternoon is scorching hot. Sweat drips down my neck as I dodge another one of her blows, and tackle her to the ground. “Got you!” Solar wriggles beneath me. “Okay, okay!”

Despite the training, my mind keeps longing to go to the abandoned cave again. “Are we done?”

“I think so, it’s getting really hot,” Solar pants, wiping her forehead with her shirt. “I’m going to take a shower.”

“See you, Solar! Have fun,” I add. She smiles playfully, and runs off.

“Sure!”

Finally, time to myself. I rush to the cave, panting with exhaustion. I duck under a branch, pushing past a clump of leaves, and stepping carefully over the thick tree roots.

“You look…tired.” His voice shakes slightly.

I glance over at Dylan. He’s sitting, his back leaning against the wall. The bandages are off, and it looks like he went for a dip in the lake. “You’re sober?” I ask quietly. He tilts his head. I avoid looking at him. “Yea. Hi, Raven.”

My hands reaches and finds the dagger, clutching the rough hilt tightly between my palms. “Good. Now you can tell me why you killed them.”