Page 22 of Twisted Empire

7

Tatum

I was a deer in headlights.Trapped, terrified, frozen in fear.

The small clearing around the hollow was charged with dangerous energy, and my heart pounded so loudly I could hear it. I tried to run away but I couldn’t make my legs move, no matter how much I willed them to do my bidding.

With the moonlight slicing through the trees, I could make out most of the new arrival’s face. I recognized him. I’d seen him at some of the Lodge parties, and I’d also spoken to him a couple of days ago as part of my hostess duty during one of the daily feasts.

His name was Matthew, if I recalled correctly. He worked in some sort of financial field and had three kids. I thought he was one of the nicer ones—as nice as a high-level Crown and Dagger member could be, anyway—but I guess I was wrong. His eyes were glinting with pure malevolence as he looked at me.

Elias stepped in front of me, shielding me from the man. “How did you catch up to me so fast?” he asked.

Matthew grinned. “I guess I thought of the exact same thing as you.” He tapped the side of his head. “I figured she might head to the one place no one would expect her to go. For a girl who was about to be hunted in a forest, that one place would be the forest itself. Everyone else would expect her to run in the opposite direction, as far away from the woods as possible.”

“Damn. I thought I was the only one who came up with that idea,” Elias said smoothly. If he was feeling any sort of worry over this situation, it wasn’t evident in his tone or posture. He seemed confident, strong.

Matthew held up one hand. That was when I realized he was holding a knife. “You found her first. You want to do the honors?”

“Yeah, I think I’ll have to.” Elias moved one hand around to the back of his jacket. When it lifted, I saw something I hadn’t noticed before. There were multiple knives in sheaths attached to his belt. He also had a gun.

He pulled out a large silver dagger and turned to face me. “I think I’ll make this kill with a knife,” he said, a smirk stretching across his handsome face.

A bolt of fear shot through my veins, and my stomach knotted. Then I realized he was saying it to me, not about me. He was still on my side all the way.

I held my arms up and out in front of me, pretending to cower to avoid raising the other man’s suspicions. “Please, don’t do it!” I whimpered.

“Aw, she’s begging. How cute,” Matthew said with a sarcastic sneer. “Go on, Elias. Do it.”

“I will.” Elias whirled around and charged at him. With a roar of fury, he plunged the knife into his abdomen. The blade met soft flesh and made a horrifying squelching sound as it sank deep, shiny metal disappearing inside Matthew until the black handle was pushing against the broken skin. He lurched as he cried out, an agonized squawk mixed with guttural chokes.

“Too bad this one wasn’t a trick knife, right?” Elias said, wrenching the dagger out and tossing it aside.

Matthew sank to his knees and collapsed to the forest floor, convulsing and trembling like he was rabid, thick blood flowing freely from the gaping wound on his abdomen. I turned away as his pleas for mercy turned to strangled gasps.

Elias returned to my side and took my hand. “Run!”

I did as he said, my feet flying along the uneven ground as his flashlight lit a path through the woods. I kept hearing the sound of that knife sinking into Matthew’s flesh, playing in my head like a song stuck on repeat. It didn’t make me feel bad. I felt energized. Justified.

“Why didn’t you shoot him?” I asked as we veered wildly off to the left. “It would’ve been quicker.”

“Would’ve also been very loud,” Elias said, right hand squeezing my arm as he pulled me along the new path. “For all we know, some others could’ve had the same idea as him and headed into the forest. The sound of a gunshot would’ve led them right to us.”

“Oh. Good point,” I said, sucking down a deep breath. Elias was much better under pressure than me. When I was this scared, my brain seemed to switch off entirely.

We reached another clearing. Elias stopped abruptly and turned to face me, eyes lit with concern. “Shit. I should’ve thought of this sooner,” he said, one hand nervously rubbing at the back of his neck. “Are you supposed to run like this?”

I nodded. “It’s fine.”

“Are you sure?” His eyes traveled down my front, coming to rest on my stomach. “It seems like it could be unsafe.”

“Don’t worry, I’m sure. I read about it in some sort of health magazine they had lying around in my old doctor’s waiting room. It said pregnant women are fine to do their usual exercise routines in the early stages, as long as they feel up to it and don’t add anything new or anything too vigorous. I’ve always been a runner, so it’s fine.”

His shoulders slumped with relief. “Okay. As long as you’re sure.”

I smiled and rubbed his arm, touched by his concern. “I am. I’ve been running on the treadmill in the gym nearly every day since I’ve been here, and before all this, I used to go jogging around Roden every morning.”

Elias nodded. “I hope you’re up for a long run, then. We won’t reach the road for at least an hour.”

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