Page 118 of The Weaver

And she wasn’t about to let some sticks stop her.

If Rekosh survived, then her sacrifice would be worth it. She needed him to live. The thought of him being killed…

No. My matewilllive.

She had to believe he would.

Ahmya wriggled and maneuvered through the maze of branches, breaking off sticks to clear her path. A cry emerged through her gritted teeth as a thorn caught on her dress and dug into the skin of her back, but she didn’t stop. She clawed at the ground and dove forward. The thorn cut along her spine, pulling her dress taut before the silk came free with a rip.

As soon as her torso emerged from beneath the wall, she shoved herself up onto her feet and ran.

Behind her, a female vrix growled a curse. Branches snapped, cracked, and rattled.

With her arms pumping at her sides, and her boots pounding the ground, Ahmya glanced over her shoulder. Her blood went cold. She could just make out Ogahnkai’s huge, dark figure through the gaps in the wall. The female vrix was tearing a path directly through the branches.

Ahmya’s eyes darted around, seeking a place to hide. The trees were too thick and lacked branches low enough for her to climb, and the undergrowth would leave her too exposed.

She halted abruptly, her oversized boots nearly tripping her, as she caught sight of something partially hidden behind the leaves of a fern-like bush.

A fallen, hollowed-out tree.

There was no time for caution. No time to worry about what might’ve lurked inside. Without hesitation, Ahmya raced to the log and ducked inside it.

Her palms and knees scraped over the rough, damp wood, and she turned, carefully scooting back from the opening.

Thanks to the foliage, her view of the jungle was extremely limited, turning the world around her into a vast unknown.

She struggled to control her breathing, but her heart was racing so fast, so strong, that she couldn’t seem to take in enough air. Any louder, and her heartbeat would be echoing along this small natural tunnel.

Sounds drifted to her from outside, oddly muted by thesurrounding wood, which made them seem otherworldly. Shouting, wood cracking and splintering, growls and grunts, and drifting amongst it all like a feather caught on the wind, the whisper of flames.

After brushing off her palm on her dress, Ahmya clasped it over the puncture wound on her forearm.

She had no idea what was going on out there. It sounded like chaos, which was the best she could have hoped for, but was it enough? Had Rekosh been able to?—

A faint tremor coursed through the log.

Ahmya froze.

Another tremor followed, then another, and another, each stronger than the last. And each was accompanied by new sounds—thethumpof heavy legs coming down on the ground and the clanking of gold adornments.

Oh God…

Movement near the log’s opening made her breath hitch. Huge, thick vrix legs came into view, along with a dangling length of silk. Ahmya could just make out the tiny hairs on those legs, all standing up.

“I cannot see you, little worm,” Ogahnkai said in vrix, her voice vibrating through the log, “but I smell you.”

The female lowered herself slowly, menacingly, her body blocking out the opening. With a growl, she thrust a massive arm into the log.

Ahmya covered her mouth, muffling a terrified cry, and kicked her legs to push herself back as the shadowy limb swept around the space within the hollow, seeking blindly. That big, clawed hand slammed into the floor and roof, tearing chunks free and making bits of debris rain onto Ahmya.

Though she was beyond Ogahnkai’s reach, everything with Ahmya screamed that this was much, much too close. That she needed to flee, to run and run and run until her legs gave out, and then she needed to crawl. She needed to do everything shecould to put as much distance as possible between herself and this monster.

Ogahnkai’s claws raked the log’s inner walls, splintering the wood with a cracking so loud that the sound threatened to swallow Ahmya up. Beams of light punched through the ceiling as the log fractured against the vrix’s onslaught.

Ogahnkai snarled and abruptly withdrew her arm.

Ahmya’s ragged breaths burned in her chest; she felt no relief, found no respite from her fear. The female vrix shifted away from the opening, and her heavy steps moved around to the side of the log before falling silent.

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