Page 22 of Captive

Novikke exhaled softly. Aruna leaned forward to let his head rest against the bark beside her. His breath puffed against her neck.

Her heart raced. She was keenly aware of the warmth and heaviness of him against her, even when he was completely still. It occurred to her that fear and arousal did not feel so different to the body. It was disturbingly easy to transition from one to the other. And maybe the feeling of narrowly avoiding death was making her crave earthly comforts a little more desperately than usual.

The man with the sword seemed to have been the last of the Ysurans. The footsteps and voices faded and disappeared. Novikke sagged against the tree.

Aruna waited until long after they’d left before he finally lifted his head. He looked over his shoulder in the direction the elves had gone. He took a step back from Novikke, and they both became solid again as his spell broke.

He gave her a look. There was a moment that stretched for a long time, and the air between them felt thick and heavy. She waited, because it felt like something big was on the verge of happening.

But then he turned away, and the moment was gone. Novikke pushed her fallen hair behind her ears.

Aruna knelt over a patch of dirt. He paused, then started carving into it with a stone. “Shouldn’t have shouted at you,” he wrote.

Frowning, she picked through possible responses, then bent and took the stone.

“I think you can do whatever you want to me, can’t you? I’m your prisoner,” she wrote, with calculated venom.

He gave her a disapproving look, like he was offended by having his evils pointed out. Novikke tossed the stone to the ground and walked onward.

???

She was taken by surprise when, the next night, they came upon a night elf outpost in the woods.

She didn’t see it until they were quite close. It was easy to miss in the pitch-black of the night. A small collection of buildings and watchtowers were hidden among the trees. It was all made of aged wood that looked like it had originally been intended as a temporary settlement, but had ended up staying a long time. When she looked closely, Novikke could see dark figures moving between the buildings.

She stopped walking when she saw it. An icy hand gripped her heart and made her jaw clench. This was their destination. He was going to take her in there, and the night elves were going to do who-knew-what to her and then execute her. Because she was a spy. And even if they believed she wasn’t, she was still an enemy.

The worst part was that her death would be for nothing. It wasn’t as if she would be a martyr or a hero. She was not someone whose sacrifice would be for a good cause, and she had no brave face to put on. She was just afraid and alone.

It had appeared so unexpectedly, without ceremony. She was not prepared for it. She was suddenly angry at Aruna for not forewarning her.

When Aruna realized she’d lagged behind, he stopped and turned to her.

She didn’t move.

His face was impassive and unyielding. He seemed less and less human as the moment went on. Maybe she’d been a fool to ever have seen him as anything but inhuman.

She looked around desperately for something to write with. He reached out and took her arm firmly before she could find anything. She dug her heels into the ground and pulled away from him. He jerked in surprise and immediately turned to lock his hands around her wrists.

“Kharasha zeh!” he said. His voice was low. He was trying not to attract attention.

Novikke gave a half-hearted resistance, leaning away from him. She knew it was too late to run. She glanced up at the distant figures at the outpost. He could still change his mind and take her away from there without anyone noticing.

She shook her head. “Please don’t,” she whispered. “Don’t take me in there. Don’t do this.”

His brow twitched, and he almost looked sympathetic. For a moment, she thought he was considering it.

Then he turned, still gripping her wrist, and pulled her toward the outpost.

As they entered the circle of buildings, a dozen unfriendly, unfamiliar faces glared out at her from the darkness. They were little more than faint outlines to her eyes.

It looked like a military outpost. A pair of elves passed them, wearing dark leather armor and carrying ominous spears.

People stopped what they were doing to turn and stare. She wondered if another human had ever set foot here. Probably not, judging by their reactions.

They stopped in front of a door. Aruna looked at her, possibly considering whether he needed to tether her to something to keep her from running. He glanced around at all the eyes on them, and he seemed to come to the same conclusion Novikke had—that there was no chance of her going anywhere. He went inside and shut the door behind him, leaving her alone outside.

Novikke turned to look at the center of the camp. A good number of them were still staring. Most of them looked at her with disgust, and the rare ones who smiled looked like they were thinking of doing something horrible to her. She avoided eye contact.

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