Page 15 of The Hidden Falling
“They cannot take Sarah or find Eridian, Josh. They just can’t,” I stress, looking out my window at the forest that continues on until it reaches the surrounding cliffs. I can just make out the dead trees resting atop of them, never changing, never moving. “We have worked too hard and too long for our home here, to find some sense of peace and safety. If they find it, I don’t know what we will do. We’ve never been in a situation of potentially being discovered.” I bite my lip as I think. “We could fight, but if Edward is correct in that letter, we aren’t strong enough to face who’s coming. We could evacuate, but where would we go? We can’t stay in Eridian if they find us, but this is the safest place for us in Vrohkaria. We can’t even go into another region without a letter of free passage, and the lands are more dangerous to roam than ever. We could be lucky enough that they don’t find us, but what if they come across Solvier in the forest? Would they send more people if there aren’t enough to capture or kill him? They wouldn’t just see him and leave, and they would definitely find us then. It would just be a matter of time.”
I get up and walk toward my window, resting my head on the cool glass and closing my eyes against the onslaught of so many emotions running through me. Fear. Panic. Stress. Worry. Dread. They rush through so quickly that it isn’t until a hand lands on my shoulder from the side that I realize I’m struggling to get air in my lungs.
“Breathe, Rhea,” Josh says calmly. I listen to him taking deep breaths in, and then exhaling slowly. I stay still, focusing on his breathing until I’m mirroring him and getting some much needed air into my lungs.
When my breathing calms, he moves to stand behind me, leaning down to rest his head on my shoulder and look out toward the forest. He takes my left hand in his, rubbing his thumb over the back in small circles, comforting me. We’re both silent while I continue to breathe deeply, squeezing his hand in mine as I lift my head off the glass and relax back against him.
“I don’t know what will come or will happen,” he tells me as gently as he can. “We’ll figure it out, we always do, don’t we?” I nod my head. “You won’t let them get to Eridian, and if they do, you will do everything you can to keep the pack safe, no matter what. You won’t roll over, and neither will the rest of us. I know you’re scared about what it would mean if they found this place. So am I. But I will be with you through it all, together like always, as a family,” he vows, giving my cheek a nudge with his, rubbing against it gently. I feel Runa directly at my cheek beneath my skin, feeling the contact for herself. “I follow you by choice, not pack, you know that.”
He brings his right forearm up in front of me from my side, and I look down at the design he has covering his skin there. It’s the same one Kade and I also have on our forearms, with only small differences in the designs that we put there ourselves. We all have a few blank spaces left so we can add to the design when we choose.
I trace his forearm with a finger, following the ancient writing, lines and swirls before moving over the marking of the blood link that rests above the blank center, pressing down slightly on it and feeling the tingle in my mind at the connection. I continue downward until I reach his wrist where the runes of our Gods are, the symbols for Zahariss and Cazier intertwining with each other. One full circle at the bottom, one outlined above, slightly overlapping each other with a crescent moon inside each. The tattoos are a sacred marking of my family, given to those who are deemed worthy of their chosen people. We also have other markings that can be given to those in your inner circle. The differences don’t diminish the value of such marks upon your skin, they just mean different things to different people.
Seeing the markings so clear in front of me, to look upon what I could lose, gives me the determination to calm my panic and clear my thoughts. I have had much fear in my life, and I won’t let it rule me. The cost would be too high.
“We fight,” I tell Josh, with steel in my voice. “Protect the pack at all costs. Protect Kade no matter the cost.”
I feel him hesitate before he nods his agreement as we look out toward the forest, lost in thoughts of what may come. I won’t let our home fall into the hands of the Highers, and I won’t let them take any of my pack members back to where they escaped from. We have a home here, and I won’t let them take it.
Even if the cost is myself.
Eight
Rhea
Iturn,givingJosha quick peck on the cheek and move back toward my desk. Josh leaves without another word, his aura pulsing beneath the surface of his skin as he tries to control his emotions to gather everyone.
I pick up the letter and small crystal off my desk, then crouch down to the bottom drawer. Biting the end of my finger until blood swells to the surface, I place my bloodied finger onto the drawer. I watch as the red liquid soaks into the wood, whispering under my breath as dark runes appear, then change to a pale green. I move my finger away and open the drawer, putting the letter and crystal inside, nestled safely amongst the other important items I have in there.
That done, I stand and head back for the stairs again, closing my office door behind me. I slow my walk as I near the top of the stairs, passing Kade’s bedroom door quietly on the landing and listening for any movement inside. Only the sound of his soft snores reaches my ears, letting me know he’s still asleep.
That kid sleeps so deeply sometimes. It makes me wonder what keeps him sleeping so soundly when we have hearing like ours.
Moving on to enter my bedroom, I grab the things I need from my dresser and head for my bathroom, flicking my wrist until the room is bathed in light. White units and shelving greet me with splashes of green from my towels and a few plants I have in here. Apart from that, it’s all white and dark wood. I open the shower door and turn the knob, letting the water heat up as I place my clothes down next to the sink. Glancing up at myself in the white framed mirror, I let out a defeated sigh at myself.
My lightly tanned skin looks pale, my ice-blue eyes tired, and my ashy-blond hair definitely needs a wash, looking like an animal made its home there while I slept.
I look a fucking mess.
Walking in the shower and going about my normal routine, then change into some dark leather pants and t-shirt. I add a blade to the holder at my hip from my stash in the bedroom and call it a day. Padding barefoot back down the stairs to the open plan kitchen and dining room, the countertops gleam with their light color as I make my way to the liquid of life.
I grab a clean mug and make a coffee before hopping up on the counter and looking at the large dining room table in front of me. Josh, Taylor, Kade and I made it when Kade mentioned he wanted to eat together with just us and a few others sometimes. Not being able to get what he said out of my mind, we made it happen for him, just like my parents made theirs. We have had many meals together at this table. It even still has Kade and Cassie’s little carvings they made together on the top where they sat next to each other, giggling and smiling at secrets only they knew.
He hasn’t sat down in that seat since she died.
Swinging my legs back and forth, I wonder if I can find and warn Solvier after I speak with the pack. He can go for days on end without being seen, but I doubt I even have the time to try and find him. If he doesn’t want to be found, he won’t be. It’s as simple as that, but he always seems to disappear when I need to talk to him.
Edward’s letter said the search party for Sarah set out over two months ago, and he only found out about it yesterday morning, which has me the most worried. Why was he excluded from the decision to send the Elites into The Deadlands? Edward taught me all about Vrohkaria, its laws and how the Highers ruled over it. He also taught me how the Highers work together. So for an important decision like this to be made, all the Highers would need to be present to cast a vote to approve or deny the task, with the Lord Higher getting the last vote. Yet, Edward wasn’t present. He wasn’t even told.
The Elites carry out important and deadly tasks across Vrohkaria. For some of the strongest members of the Elite to venture into The Deadlands and be away from their work for this long is unnerving. Why is Sarah so important? She never told me who she was, and I wouldn’t pressure her to tell me, but what do they want with her? Her pack abused her, starved her, drugged her, and chained her. But they want her back, for what? So they can continue doing it?
“Fuck that, and fuck them,” I growl aloud in the open space.
If the Elites knew where they were going, they could reach us in about thirty-three days on foot. No one knows of Eridian apart from the pack and Edward, even Ellian would have been spelled to forget when he met up with Edward after porting out of here. Those spells are hard to come by though, so they are only used by Edward when it’s absolutely needed. So unfortunately, if the Elites found this place, we couldn’t just spell them all and send them on their way like nothing happened.
We do have one witch in our pack, Anna, but she isn’t strong enough for a spell like that. It takes days for her to recharge one port stone, which from my knowledge, is basic magic. But she doesn’t work with the type of energy that’s needed for recharging them, so it’s a blessing she can even do it at all.
My legs swing faster as I think over the best way to deal with the Elites. They could be dead already, torn apart by the creatures of The Deadlands, but unless we find evidence of that, we have to assume they are still on the hunt for Sarah. We have the element of surprise. We could track them down and redirect them, or maybe I could bait some creatures and let them deal with them. But in doing so I would be seen, and if one or more Elites somehow survive, they would go back and inform the Highers, causing them to rain disaster upon Eridian.
