Page 12 of Glass and Bone
“I wanted to. I also wanted to preventthemfrom attaining their desires.” He winks at me, and I swallow the bile forming in my throat. He slides the cold blade across my neck, superficially slicing through my skin, leaving a line of burning flesh. But I ignore it. Just as I ignore everything else that is burning or throbbing. If I focus on it, if I let myself dwell, I won’t make it. I won’t get out of this.
“Who? Who were you preventing?” I demand, hoping he’ll keep answering my questions. He removes the dagger from my neck and sits up with an irritated sigh. I stay still underneath him, my eyes refusing to leave his.
“Noterra. If they win, then we all die. They already took everything from us, we can’t let them gainyou. Gain anheirto continue their reign.” He scoffs at the thought. From us? Who is he? If he’s answering my questions that means he’s not intending for me to leave. I swallow again.
“If I don’t arrive, they’ll find another to take my place.” He shrugs.
“Then I’ll find her too.”
“Who do you and your men belong to, Aleksander?” He shakes his head. “Who are you fighting for?” I yell, but he just rolls his eyes, irritated.
“All in due time, princess.” He rises to his feet and fixes his pants before bending down to grab my arms. He is holding the dagger in his right hand, and I realize this is my chance. I kick out at his wrist, and he drops the blade. I lunge forward and try to grab it, but he kicks me out of the way, and I land awkwardly on my shoulder, pain shooting down to my elbow. Abandoning it, he saunters over to me again, his eyes filled with fury.
“I wasn’t going to kill you yet, but now you’ve pissed me off.” I suppress the pain and roll onto my back, kicking out again, this time striking the apex of his thighs. He yelps loudly and drops to his knees, his face twisting in pain.
I twist out of the way, grabbing the dagger with my bound hands at the same time. I clamor to my feet and throw myself at him. I feel as the dagger pierces through the back of his neck with little resistance and I nearly faint at the sight of it. Surprise and disgust drying my mouth like chalk. I tighten my grip and still as I hear the gurgling fill his throat. His hands reach behind him, frantically searching for the dagger to hold onto, but he can’t get to it. His fingers scratch at my arms, leaving lines of red on my flesh and I fight against the pain clouding my senses.
He starts to sag and lean back against me as he slowly suffocates on his own blood. The taste of copper invades my tongue as blood sprays my face, and I clamp my mouth shut. I push up against him, a scream of frustration letting loose from my lips, but I lose my balance and he lands on top of me. Hot, tangy blood pours out of his neck onto my chest, soaking me in his life’s essence while he twitches. I gasp as I absorb his weight and try to get him off of me, but I can’t. After a few seconds, he stills completely and the strained breathing stops.
I pull out the dagger and throw it to the side. Using my knees and hands to push him up, I struggle to slide myself out from underneath of him. It takes every bit of energy I have and elicits a loud cry out of my mouth. My heart is beating rapidly, my breathing ragged as I try to understand the last few hours. I scramble away from his body and grab the dagger. Gripping it in one hand and placing it against my wrist. I move the other hand up and down quickly, cutting the rope in between with my shaky hands. Panic bubbles through me, my heart lodged in my throat.
My limbs are vibrating as I absorb everything that has transpired. I can feel the dull ache inside me as the blood andhimsteadily drip down my thighs, an unnecessary reminder that this man just raped me. My head is throbbing, my knees on fire. Once my hands are cut free, I freeze. Before I can even prevent it, burning hot vomit explodes out of my mouth, mixing with the black blood on the forest floor. My tears join in as they stream down my face.
No prince will want me. I’m tarnished, my father will have me killed, if King Evreux doesn’t kill me first. Where do I even go from here?
Oh gods.
Cupping my face with my bloody hands I let out a sob. I don’t know what to do. I feel a strange sense of electricity coursing through my veins, but the only explanation I can find is adrenaline. Adrenaline because I justkilleda man. I’ll never get that noise, that sight out of my head.
You’ll have time to grieve later, Elaenor, get up and run.
I jolt at the sound. The voice filling my head is not my own, but still feels familiar. As if it’s a part of me. Taking two slow and steadying breaths, I push the panic down for later.
Just take deep breaths, Elaenor. In and out.
Glancing around frantically, I see the glass arrowhead poking out of Aleksander’s pocket, slightly illuminated by the moon. The glass is completely stained crimson as I pull it out of his trousers. A sick combination of my blood and his. I shakily stand up and look down at the disgusting creature laying in a still lump on the forest floor as I shove the arrowhead into what’s left of my dress pocket. I bend down and grab the silver dagger, gripping it tightly in my hand.
I can’t let this break me. I can’t let this be my story. What happens from here on out will either paint me a victim or paint me as someone who is strong and resilient. While I want the latter to be true, all Ifeelis victimized.
Broken.
I fearfully look around, hoping, for once, that I am alone. I listen, trying to hear any movement in the trees beyond this small clearing, but it’s hard through the pounding in my ears. Once I am certain the other men aren’t around or hadn’t followed us, I turn the opposite direction of their camp and run.
The trees all look the same, making the world feel as if it is an endless circle that I am just running around. Nothing to guide me, besides the faint moonlight barely illuminating my path, I press on. I have been out of Chatis for less than a day and my rider was murdered, as I am sure he didn’t survive, I was raped, and now I am out in the middle of the woods without the faintest idea of where I am, slowly bleeding out from the wound on my thigh, barely any clothing to cover me, and a hoard of savages hiding in the trees.
I murdered a man. He deserved it, but I figuratively and literally have his blood on my hands. How do you even move on from that?
The tears pour down my face as I try to ignore the pain I am in, mixing with the sticky blood that coats my skin. I can feel my thigh burning, the pain growing stronger with each step that turns into a limp.
“What did you get yourself into, Elaenor?” I whisper to myself, breathless.
Keep going.
The voice in my head doesn't startle me this time, it just propels me forward. Exhaustion creeps over me as the adrenaline starts to leave my body. I don’t know how long I am running for. My head is throbbing, blood steadily dripping from my ear. I press on, wanting nothing more than to quit and then I see the light.
A break in trees just a few yards away with the sounds of voices and laughter filtering through, carrying me forward. I know I am nowhere near the palace grounds, but I hope the people on the other side are friendly and not an extension of the men I just met. I keep shuffling forward until I am inches from the light and see fire pits scattered right through the break in the trees along with white and silver tents.
White and silver.
