Chapter 12
March 21st - Outskirts of Grythen
Zaelem
Noticing movements far away, Zaelem switched to combat mode immediately. Aren’t those from the Emergencies Department?
“Apparently, we haven’t got time for explanations,” he said, muttering more to himself than to Kismette. What the hell are they doing here?
He found his answer when he crept to the edge of the line of short trees and saw Jaelon yelling commands in his revolting voice. That bloody faggot.
He turned to Kismette immediately and briefed her of the situation military-style. She stared at him vacantly for a moment, not registering the gravity of the state they are in. After a long pause, she uttered a syllable.
“Huh?”
Zaelem felt like strangling her. Deep breathe, man, deep breathe. He counted to ten mentally before letting his breathe out.
“An army is out there searching for us now. We are in grave danger, can you understand this part?”
“Oh. My… really?”
Zaelem ignored the doubt in her face and the annoyance bubbling up in him. “You can try to sneak past them now, but if they found you-”
“Why can’t we go together?” Kismette cut him off.
“Because they recognize me. All of them do,” he emphasized. “There is no way you can escape safely if they find us together. Now, listen to me. If they don’t see you, go to Grythen’s Stone immediately and find Evelynn. You should be safe there. Follow the path back to my house and continue going straight and you should be able to reach there. Just knock on the door behind the stage. If they do notice you, stay calm and pretend that you are passing by. As long as Jaelon didn’t see you, you will be able to pull this off smoothly.”
Kismette looked ready to burst into tears anytime soon. “Be brave,” he coaxed, but his tone was firm.
“I… I can’t do it! I’m scared, what if it ends up all wrong? What if-”
Zaelem exploded. “This is not the time to whine and think that you can your own way, okay? You need to get out of your comfort zone! Life doesn’t have any absolutes, Kismette! You always have to take chances. I will be going some time after you… we will meet again,” he ended the sentence in a much softer tone, his voice barely coming out in a whisper.
“You promise?” Kismette stuck out her pinky.
Zaelem could not find the nerve to smile at a time like this. Never had any training prepared him for the treatment of a dangerous wanted criminal in his own country. He hooked her last finger in his quickly. “Promise,” the veteran warrior replied, his face grim as Death himself.
Kismette
Kismette’s heart was racing by the time she reached the edge of the trees.
“Go,” Zaelem urged from his hiding place. She swallowed hard, as though she could drown all her fears in one gulp. Trying to creep past the two soldiers searching the area near them was harder than she had thought. They seem to be watching every movement, as though they expected Zaelem and her to be strolling by any moment.
The first wary step she took sealed her doom. On hearing the sound of her footsteps, both the soldiers came charging towards her.
“You, there, stop right now!”
Kismette didn’t even attempt to run. She stood rooted to the ground, staring at them while the blood drained from her face. What should I say? Will they know I’m lying?
“What’s your purpose here?” asked the man who arrived first.
Kismette opened her mouth, but words got stuck in her throat. She tried again, but nothing came out.
After a nerve-wrecking minute of silence, the darker-skinned man nudged the first man. “She’s a mute,” he said, signalling that they should search elsewhere with a nod of his head towards a specific direction.
“Darn it! I thought we were close to finding something,” the other man scowled. They turned to leave.
What a miracle! Kismette licked her lips and breathed out slowly, not realizing that she had been holding her breath all the while. That wasn’t so difficult after all.
She continued down the path towards Grythen’s Stone as little as she could, trying not to step on dead leaves. Every step she took lasted a forever and every movement she made generated a din. The trees here were short and thickly filled with leaves, which provided great camouflage but hindered her sight too. She could hardly make out where she was going.
The leaves on the short trees shook violently all of a sudden. A skinny man with messy brown hair stepped out and stood in the middle of the path with arms crossed, blocking her way.
“Hello, pet. Where do you think you are going?” he asked, his lips twisting into a disgusting smile as he reached out a hand to grip her arm.
Kismette let out an ear-piercing scream.
Previous: Chapter 11
Next: Chapter 13