Page 26 of Beholden
If no one fetched me by the morrow, I would have no choice but to plead with the overseers to aid me. If I explained my plan, would they be inclined to assist my leaving? At the very least, would they convince the guards to allow me to cross the bridge without trying to stop me?
My nerves quivered at the prospect.
At a sudden rumbling and cascade of stones from overhead, I ducked and covered my head with my arms.
Ty halted his tapping. He placed a hand on the wall as though taking the mountain’s pulse. His eyes widened, and he grabbed Vilmar. “We need to leave.”
“No.” Vilmar easily shook off Ty’s hold. “I’m staying now that we’re this close.”
“The stone will collapse—”
Before Ty could complete his warning, the tunnel shook again, bringing with it an ominous crackling and crumbling. Vilmar glanced at his manservant and then at the low ceiling.
As a crack in the granite widened, I could only stare.
“Run!” Vilmar shouted.
Before I could move, larger rocks began to break and fall against me. I couldn’t keep from crying out in pain. In the next instant, Vilmar thrust me down and spread out over me, the curve of his body sheltering me from the onslaught.
For several infinite moments, an avalanche of rocks fell and would have snuffed out the torch if I hadn’t protected the flame by cupping my hands above it, regardless of the stones battering me. When silence finally descended, dust and debris clouded the air.
Above me, Vilmar groaned.
“My lord. Are you hurt?”
Something wet dripped onto my outstretched arm. Through the haze I blinked and saw a spot of crimson on my sleeve. Another drip splattered and then another.
Blood.
Vilmar was injured.
I pushed him upward, and he groaned again. Rocks clattered and tumbled from him. He’d taken the majority of the blows while sheltering me.
My pulse sputtered. How badly was he injured?
I twisted until I was free and, at the same time, lowered him to the ground. I raised the torch and assessed him. His eyes were closed, and his face was pale. A rivulet of blood ran down his cheek, likely from a gash somewhere on the back of his head.
A quick look around showed that Ty was unconscious and bleeding too. From where he lay, I could tell he’d tried to throw himself over Vilmar but hadn’t succeeded in time. Rocks of all sizes littered the tunnel, but thankfully, it hadn’t collapsed on us entirely.
On the other hand, rubble now blocked the passageway leading back to the main drift, and we were trapped. In order to free ourselves, we would have to lift the stones away one by one. If Vilmar and Ty were too wounded to aid me, I’d have to do it by myself.
What if I couldn’t move the rocks? What if they were too heavy? And what if I couldn’t escape this cave-in to make it to the Choosing Ball on time?
No, I couldn’t think so negatively. I had to shove my fear aside. First, I needed to tend to Vilmar and Ty. Then I’d work as best I could to clear a way out.
After lodging the torch into a crevice in the stone wall, I knelt in the narrow passageway next to Vilmar. I hesitated only a moment before I unbound the leather strap holding his hair back. Then I slipped my fingers through his thick brown locks and felt along his scalp until I located the slick spot where he’d been cut.
At the probing, he moaned.
I raised my skirt and reached for the edge of my chemise. Now frayed and gray, it ripped with ease. I bunched it and pressed it onto his cut. His eyes flew open, and he started to sit up. “Careful. You are injured.”
He closed his eyes and fell back. “Are you unharmed?”
“I am faring well.” Other than a few scratches and bruises, thankfully, I was uninjured.
“And Ty?”
“If you are able to hold this to your wound and staunch the flow of blood, I shall check him.”
