“We're messengers!" I screamed in panic but she just scowled and flicked the safety catch off. Before I could do anything else, a knife flew past my ear and embedded itself in her chest. I couldn't quite believe what had happened. The gun fell from the woman's hand as blood flowed down her chest. Her mouth opened in a silent scream and she collapsed to the ground.
"Evan?" I spun round to look at him in shock.
“She was going to shoot him," Evan shrugged. He looked away from the woman as her lifeless eyes gazed up at the sky.
“You saved my life man. That's both of us now," Taylor said, looking stunned.
Evan shrugged again and moved on down the path. I holstered my pistol, which had made it into my hand somehow, and reached out to grasp Taylor's hand. I tried not to look at the woman’s corpse as we passed her but my heart was still thundering from the shock of what I’d just witnessed.
A rational voice in my head was telling me that it was either her or Taylor but a slightly louder voice was screaming at me that I’d just witnessed someone dying. Dying! She was dead.
Taylor pulled his hand from mine. My nails had gouged red, moon-shaped crescents into his skin, a few of which were starting to bleed. I opened my mouth to say sorry but Taylor held my gaze and I knew that he understood. He always understood.
I clenched my jaw and pushed the vision of the soldier out of my head. She would have killed him and I wouldn't waste any tears on her.
The trenches started to twist and turn, disorientating us.
“I'm not even sure which way is east anymore," I hissed as the minutes ticked by and we only seemed to be delving deeper into the labyrinth.
A guy dressed in the colours of the opposition came tearing down a narrow gap between a wall and a huge lump of twisted metal towards us and I shrieked in alarm. He glanced in our direction, realised we were only messengers, and kept running. A few moments later he was followed by three of our unit who didn't pause either but just ran by whooping and laughing. They were actually enjoying themselves.
One of them bumped into Evan as they passed and there was a tearing sound as his sleeve caught on the guy's knife.
"Sorry man!" the guy yelled over his shoulder as he chased his friends out of sight. Evan glanced at his tattered jacket and used his own knife to cut away the torn material. As he did I noticed a tattoo, a rose tangled in thorns, that spiralled around his wrist.
“What's your deal?" I asked him suspiciously. "That's a Dweller tattoo."
Evan gave me a look that said he didn't appreciate being called a Dweller but I didn’t give a shit.
“How come you're here?" I pushed on. "What did you do?"
He regarded me for a moment before replying. "I killed a man," he said simply.
I took a step back and bumped against Taylor.
"What?" I gasped.
"I'm not like Grey. I didn't enjoy it." He looked at his boots and took a breath. "I found him attacking my neighbour. There was blood everywhere, she was screaming and I just snapped. Picked up a knife and here I am. The Guardians felt that justice had been served but they wanted to send out a message against vigilantism so I got four months as a messenger."
“That's horrible," I said finally.
“It's fine." He looked away from me. "Are we gunna stand around here all day?"
"No. Let's go," Taylor said firmly and we continued down through the gap.
The sounds of shots being fired were getting louder. We crouched by a wall and Taylor tried to pull me back as I tried to get a look at the way on. I shrugged him off with a frown and peered around the corner.
The brickwork next to my face suddenly exploded in a puff of grit and debris as a bullet hit. Adrenaline shot through my veins and I snatched my head back out of view before my attacker could take another shot.
“Are you okay?" Taylor asked anxiously, pulling me around to face him.
“Yeah," I replied, though my heart was beating so fast I thought it might be trying to break free of my chest. He kept hold of me until I shoved him off again. "Quit babying me."
A scream burst through the air close by but was quickly cut short.
“Move up!" and order was barked and the sound of quick, pounding feet moved away from us.
I waited a few moments to be sure they were gone then peeked around the corner again. A body was lying still on the ground but other than that, there was no one left in the small opening.
“It's clear," I told the others.
I ran across the gap, staying close to the ground to gain cover by a big sheet of metal. I checked it was clear again and signalled for Taylor and Evan to follow me. Up ahead we could hear shouting and we paused to listen.
“Which way did they go?" asked a rasping female voice.
“Left I think. Did you see the look on his face when I got his little mate?" I recognised that growl; Grey.
“He cried like a baby. Thought their little red stripes would stop us." The woman laughed.
"Idiots. It just makes them easy targets." Grey again.
“He didn't even raise his gun. C'mon we can catch the other two."
I peeked around the corner and spotted Dolly with her half head of vivid red hair turning to follow Grey down a narrow passageway. A messenger in green was lying dead on the ground behind them. I suppressed a shiver as I ducked back out of sight again.
"He's with Dolly," I whispered to the others.
"I heard she burnt her husband alive in their bed," Evan whispered back.
“Why?" I asked, horrified.
"Apparently he gave her a funny look." He shrugged at me. "Don't ask me to fathom the mind of a psychopath."
"Well they turned left, I vote for right," I said.
“Agreed," said Taylor instantly and Evan nodded.
We moved down the right hand path which started to widen slowly as we went. After about two hundred feet, the walls had moved so far apart that it couldn't be counted as a trench anymore and we were able to walk next to each other. I felt exposed without the walls closing in on us.
A shadow moved ahead of us and we shrank back to hug the wall on the right side of the huge trench.
For a moment nothing happened and Taylor started to move forward again but I caught hold of his arm and pointed at the ridge on the other side of the opening. A dark shape was outlined against the bright sky and as I squinted into the sun, I managed to pick out several other shapes.
"Ambush," I mouthed to the others.
Taylor pointed to his red stripes and shrugged but I wasn't convinced they’d protect us. I looked at Evan who shook his head and pointed back the way we’d come. I nodded in agreement and tugged Taylor's sleeve to make sure that he followed as we snuck back along the path to the crossroads.
"Shall we just keep heading back?" Evan asked, obviously not keen on the idea of following Grey. "I don't think running into him would make for a happy reunion."
I started to agree with him when gunshots sounded from the direction we were about to take.
“Ambush, Grey or gun fight?" I asked pointing in the different directions as I named the dangers down each of the paths. We all looked towards the sound of the gun fight just as a merciless screaming joined the sound of shots.
"Grey is probably long gone by now," Taylor pointed out.
I pushed away a shudder as we headed in the direction my attacker had taken. The gunfire was moving closer and we broke into a run, taking several turns to escape. We pulled up short inside a dug out alcove and tried to catch our breath as we listened to see if we’d been followed.
It seemed like we’d finally managed to put some distance between ourselves and the shooters and we all sagged in relief.
"Has anyone else noticed that we haven't exactly been doing much message carrying?" Evan asked.
“I get the feeling it's just a pointless title. How can they expect us to be passing around messages in this maze? We're just here to be scared straight… assuming we don’t die in the process," I replied.
"If I tell them it's worked already do you think we can go home now?" Taylor asked hopefully.
"Give it a try when we get back tonight," Evan joked and we all laughed.
"Now where?" I asked, peering around the corner.
The thudding of feet approaching reached us and we shrank back into our hidden crevice. I pulled out my pistol and took the safety off. Taylor did the same.
The pounding got louder and three members of our unit swung into view being closely pursued by seven of the opposing team. They sped past our hiding spot and out into the wide, open area outside it.
I knew we weren't supposed to intervene but before I could stop myself, I’d taken a step forward and levelled my gun at the lead pursuer, my finger on the trigger. A hand clasped around my elbow, fingers digging into the tender skin and I gasped as I was dragged back into our hiding spot.
"Do you want to get us all killed?" Evan hissed.
His gaze burned into mine as I glared at him. The moment had passed and the pursuers fell on our men with knives drawn. It was over before I could look away and their screams echoed on the wind as blood spilled over the dirt. Evan yanked me back into our hiding place.
"I could have helped them,” I growled, snatching my arm back out of his grip.
"No. You could have killed one man, then there would still be six of them. Three would have turned our way and opened fire and we have no cover here beyond these shadows. The other three still would have killed those men," Evan snapped.
"You can't know that," I spat at him. My hands trembled as I flicked the safety back into place and holstered my pistol.
"It wasn't worth the risk. If those men were here to fight then their crimes meant they deserved that punishment. Ours did not."
"So we should just let them die? Even if we could have helped?"
“Who are you to say the other men deserve death more? Just because they aren't on our side in this death game we’re being forced to play?"
I could hear the truth in his words, but it still felt wrong to let people die in front of me when I could have done something to stop it. I gritted my teeth and turned away from him as Taylor stepped between us, growling in a way that told me he agreed with Evan. Which was just perfect.
“Let's keep moving," Taylor said finally, tugging on my hand to get me moving again.
I sighed in defeat and let him lead me away from the dead men. Evan may have had a point, but that didn’t mean I liked it. And when I made it back to the city, I knew I’d never watch the Lawless Trials reports on the TV so casually ever again.
We took the path the enemy fighters had arrived from, reasoning that it should be empty now. We walked in silence, taking turns to check around corners and keeping an eye out behind us. I had the feeling that we were being watched, but no matter how much I looked there was no one in sight.
After about fifteen minutes of wandering in silence, we turned into a narrow trench which was almost entirely disguised against the dark bank. The sun had started to move across the sky and clouds had closed in to further obscure the light.
It was dark inside the trench and the ground was shrouded in gloom, but we could make out shapes in the mud hidden beneath the shadows. I moved forward tentatively and nudged the nearest shape with the toe of my boot.
Something gave way under my foot and an arm flopped forward and hit my leg. I squealed in shock and jumped backwards, colliding with Taylor who slapped his hand over my mouth.
"Are you insane?" he breathed in my ear before releasing me.
“Sorry." Funnily enough I wasn't used to touching parts of a corpse.
I bent down to examine the body, a woman in the colours of our unit. I stepped over her carefully and checked the next prone form. It was another member of our unit and as we moved down the trench I counted more and more of our dead.
"Ambush?" I asked the others.
“Must have been," Taylor replied.
“Do you think we're losing the trial?" Evan asked after we passed the twelfth body.
There was a long silence while we all thought about what that might mean. If we couldn't get back out of here we could be slaughtered as the rival army chased down the last of the opposition. We were wearing the wrong colours, which marked us as the enemy, messengers or not.
"We need to take a look at what's going on," Evan finally spoke, breaking the silence that had trapped us.
“How?" Taylor asked.
"We'll have to risk getting up high, but if we can work out where we are, we might be able to find our way to Laurie," Evan replied, looking up at the edges of the trench high above our heads.
"Let's move along until we can find an easier way up," I suggested and we pressed on.
The ground squelched under our feet and the mud was sticking to our boots. It didn't help with being stealthy but at least the sound would let us know if anyone else was sneaking about too.
A shudder ran down my spine, I still couldn't shake the feeling that we were being watched.
Eventually the trench opened up and we entered an area with a low stone building in the centre. We stopped and surveyed it warily.
"What do you think?" Taylor asked in a low voice.
"That if someone was lying in wait in there we would be dead already," Evan replied.
"Do you think we can use the roof of the building to get up onto the bank behind it?" I asked, looking at the way the sloping roof reached up until it was level with the high ground above us.
Evan nodded slowly but he looked nervous about approaching the shack all the same.
"Let's get on with it then." Taylor moved towards the building and we fell in behind him with tension spilling between us.
There was an open doorway in the brick front of the building and no obvious way to climb up from the outside. The roof was made with thick red tiles that had broken away on one side, leaving a pile of smashed rubble on the ground.
We spread out to check the other sides of the building but there weren't even windows for us to use to climb up and the roof was out of reach.
"Maybe there's a way up inside?" Evan suggested. He moved forward cautiously and Taylor and I followed close behind him.
The interior of the building was dark.
The hairs on the back of my neck stood on end and I suppressed a shiver as I stepped over the threshold. Every nerve in my body was screaming at me not to go inside but I ignored the feeling and continued forwards.
The squelching of our feet was cut off as soon as we set foot on the stone floor. It was eerily quiet in the little building. The space was split into several small rooms and we were standing in a tiny entrance hall.
We carefully began to move forward into the nearest room. I glanced about anxiously. A huge, muddy footprint stained the floor next to my boot, far too big to be Taylor's or Evan's.
My head snapped up and my hand flew to my pistol just in time for me to leap back as Grey charged at me. A gun went off somewhere and the noise echoed so loudly in the confined space that it made my ears ring.
My efforts to escape propelled me backwards into Taylor and we both fell to the floor in a heap of limbs. My pistol was knocked from my grasp and skittered noisily across the floor into the darkness of the far corner.
Grey’s charge took him straight past us and he snarled with rage as he swung around again, facing me as I scrambled to my feet.
He roared angrily and charged at me again, catching me around the throat and wrenching me away from Taylor. He slammed me back against the cold, concrete wall and I kicked uselessly as the pressure on my windpipe increased.
I scratched at his hands, chunks of skin coming away beneath my fingernails, but it was no use. His hate filled gaze bored into mine and I could see my death reflected back at me in the icy depths of his eyes.
Taylor yelled out as he tried to prize Grey off of me but the beast flung his elbow back, catching him in the gut and sending him flying.
I stopped clawing at his arm and reached for m
y belt, the cool, metal hilt of a knife skimming my fingertips like a sweet promise.
His grip tightened agonisingly as he choked me. Sparks of light bloomed before my eyes and I felt something pop inside my neck.
I scrambled for the knife again and managed to hook it into my grasp.
I gritted my teeth and swung it at him with all the strength I could, plunging the blade into the thick muscle of his bicep. He yelled in surprise and pain, releasing me so that I fell to the floor and I lost my grip on my knife. I gasped and coughed as air found its way back into my lungs and I scrambled to regain my feet.
Taylor aimed his rifle from the floor and fired. The sound of the shot echoed around the tiny room and blood flew from a wound on Grey's leg. He rounded on Taylor with a cry of rage, kicking him in the face with his good leg before he could fire another shot.
Blood poured from Taylor’s nose and he clutched at it as he fell back to the floor again.
I threw my weight to the side and rolled over, coming up into a crouch and grabbing the shotgun from my back as I did so. I scrambled onto one knee and braced myself as Grey charged at me like a bull, roaring with rage.
I swung the shotgun up between us as my heart leapt in panic and I squeezed the trigger. The force of the recoil against my ribs knocked me back across the floor and my foot hit the wall behind me as I managed to stay upright through some miracle.
But the power of the recoil was nothing compared to the power of the shot which Grey had taken to his huge stomach. He was thrown backwards and smashed into the wall behind him, before collapsing in a heap on the ground.
I panted as I stared at him, not daring to lower my weapon despite the size of the wound he’d taken. Several heartbeats passed but he didn't move.
My hands started to shake and the gun began rattling in my grasp. Strong hands closed around mine and Taylor was suddenly staring into my eyes, pushing the shotgun down. Blood ran down the side of his face but he ignored it.
"He was going to kill you, and he was going to enjoy it. You didn’t do anything wrong," he said fiercely, not breaking eye contact with me. I stared back into his grey eyes and took a deep breath.
Rebel Rising: A Dystopian Romance (Cage of Lies Book 1) Page 13