Rebel Rising: A Dystopian Romance (Cage of Lies Book 1)

by Susanne Valenti

  "There, much better." He smiled provocatively and Laurie scowled.

  “Fine, I'm coming with you. But do you really think I'd shoot you in the back after you saved our lives?" Laurie snapped.

  “I haven't decided. When I do, you may get your guns back." He smiled again and turned towards the far side of the clearing just as a soft padding sound reached my ears.

  A pair of blue eyes loomed between two tree trunks, the greenish light of the forest reflected within them. They were soon joined by a long snout covered with white fur and two huge, pointed, grey ears.

  The creature's face was covered in fur and lined with razor sharp teeth in a gaping jaw that hung open, ready to bite. A moment later, a colossal, hulking body shrouded in long grey and white fur stepped out into the clearing. The beast regarded us with curiosity, or possibly it was evaluating which one of us would taste the best.

  My first instinct was to scream but then I remembered my shotgun and snatched it from my back instead. I swung the gun up to point at the snarling face and placed my finger on the trigger. I pulled just as Coal threw out an arm knocking the barrel of my gun skyward and sent my shot into the treetops instead.

  “What the hell are you doing?" he yelled, his eyes alight with rage.

  His fingers locked around my wrists and dug in hard until I released the grip on my gun. It fell to the ground and hit my boot as I gaped at him in disbelief. We stared at each other for several moments before I remembered the fanged monster which had now closed the distance between us. I lunged backwards and stumbled on a tree root but Coal held me on my feet.

  “Let me go!” I gasped in panic and he did so instantly.

  The animal sat down and tilted its head as it regarded us. I staggered back again while Coal narrowed his eyes at me and then his gaze suddenly softened.

  “I'm sorry, I should have warned you," Coal said in a low voice. "There's no need to be afraid." He reached out a hand and ran it through the shaggy fur on the animal's head which stood and licked his fingers like it enjoyed that.

  “What is it?" Laurie hissed. She’d moved away from it too, backing right up to the other side of the clearing.

  “She is a dog...or a wolf, we never could be sure. I found Kaloo as a puppy years ago and she seemed to want to stay with me, so she did,” Coal explained as if that made perfect sense.

  “It's a beast," I gasped, eyeing the long fangs and feet as big as my hands. The wolf stood on four legs with her back higher than Coal's hip and her head level with his chest.

  "She is that, but she's my beast. You'll have to get used to her if you want your friend to make it to our camp because I don't plan on dragging him the whole way there."

  "Will she hurt us?" I asked, watching her warily as she stalked about the clearing, sniffing amongst the foliage on the ground.

  "Of course not. Come here." He offered me his hand.

  I didn't move. Laurie took another step back.

  Coal rolled his eyes and made a motion with his hand. Kaloo laid down and rolled onto her back, with her paws in the air. I couldn't help but laugh, though whether out of amusement or fear I wasn't entirely sure. Coal took my hand without giving me a choice in the matter.

  "Seriously, she won't hurt you." He led me over to her and I tried very hard not to drag my feet.

  "I've never met an animal before," I said, resisting a little as he pulled on my arm.

  "Just run your hand over her fur." He guided my hand along the fluff on her tummy and her tail started to thump the ground vigorously. She was softer than silk and as warm as a hot water bottle.

  “Hello, Kaloo," I murmured as I continued to stroke her. Her fur slid between my fingers and there was something about petting her that made my soul hum with satisfaction. "Laurie come here," I urged but Laurie had moved further back still, some of the leaves at the edge of the clearing blocking her from view.

  “I can see she's perfectly friendly from over here, thank you," she called back.

  “We should get going." Coal took the ends of the vines he’d bound to Taylor's litter and tied them around Kaloo's powerful shoulders. She gave his face a big lick and he cuffed her affectionately around the ears. At another sharp whistle from Coal, Kaloo took off through the dense greenery, dragging Taylor behind her.

  I glanced back towards the trees which hid the Lawless Trials arena from sight, hesitating before I followed them. Coal was right, the Guardians would never accept the fact that we’d entered the forest, but following him further into the wilderness felt like an even bigger decision than just stepping into the trees. There would be no coming back from this. I had no idea what kind of punishment we might earn if we went back now. We could be given lifer sentences for endangering the population again.

  It was more than the fear of what might happen if we went back though. There was a scent in the air beneath these trees which called to me on a primal level. It was something I’d never known before and it called my name with promises of adventure and freedom. There was no way I was giving that up the moment I’d found it.

  So I turned my back on everything I’d ever known and headed after the stranger who’d saved my life.

  The further I walked, the freer I felt. Each step was like a shackle being cut loose from my soul. And I wouldn’t be trading that feeling in for anything.

  ***

  We walked for hours. During that time the sunlight which had been filtering through the tree tops creating a green haze filled with spiralling golden dust motes, had slowly disappeared.

  The sounds of the forest changed subtly too. Bird songs and the chitter chatter of small mammals had slowly given way to the call of crickets and other insects that inhabited every inch of the undergrowth. I'd spent hours pestering Coal for information about every small detail of our surroundings until my voice had grown horse and I’d finally fallen silent.

  "We aren't going to make it the whole way tonight. The forest isn't safe when it gets too dark," Coal said as we paused in a clearing. "There's a place to stop beyond this ridge."

  “Why isn't it safe at night?" I called after him as he turned aside and clambered up the small hill.

  "You don't really want to know," he replied with a slanted smile as he reached the summit and dropped out of sight.

  "Yes I do!" I called after him but he didn't reply, leaving me to scramble up the thorny incline with Laurie at my side.

  As we made it to the top of the hill, we found a steely blue lake breaking up the endless forest. The water stretched out before us, its surface clear and silvery with a perfect reflection of the moon and first stars of the night's sky spread across it. Coal was standing next to Kaloo at the water's edge. The huge dog leaned forward to take a drink and ripples spread away from her making the glassy surface shimmer.

  A huge waterfall fell in the distance on the far side of the lake, creating a dull roar that reached out and filled the silence.

  "Any chance you can swim?" Coal looked doubtfully between Laurie and me like he already knew the answer to his question. In a city built entirely of concrete and steel there wasn’t much opportunity for swimming unless you happened to live in one of the upper levels where they were rumoured to have private pools.

  "No," Laurie replied as I shook my head.

  “Do you possess any useful talents?" he teased as he started to pull off his boots, followed by his shirt.

  I tried to think of something snarky to say in response, but the power of speech seemed to have abandoned me again as he undressed and my gaze caught on his cut abs and the swell of his biceps. He was like, next level hot, the kind of hot I’d only ever seen in ads for the Body Perfect building back in the city. If a Viking god made a baby with Queen Cleopatra and that baby had been blessed by Aphrodite then maybe they’d hold a candle to his hotness. But I wasn’t sure. My teeth sank into my bottom lip as my gaze trailed down his body, snagging on the way his pants hung low on his hips and the deep V that led beneath them…

  Coal turned to look at
me, tipping his head to one side as I felt a blush colouring my cheeks. He offered me a cocky smirk and his gaze slid over me slowly and my blush deepened beneath his attention.

  I cleared my throat and dropped my gaze to scrutinise my boots when I couldn’t face the dark promises in his gaze anymore.

  "I’ll swim this stuff across first. Wait here while I unload Sleeping Beauty and I’ll come back for you,” Coal said as if nothing had just passed between us. “Come on Kaloo."

  We watched as he tossed his clothes into the leaf with Taylor and waded out into the lake. Kaloo ran headlong into the water too, dragging Taylor on his oversized leaf which bobbed along behind her as they swam out towards the waterfall.

  “You can close your mouth now," Laurie teased, smirking at me.

  “What?" I asked innocently.

  “You know what," she said and sat down on the bank. After a moment, I joined her, choosing not to comment. Had I just been ogling the half naked man? Yes. Was I going to apologise for it? No. That memory was going up in Maya’s memory hall of fame with burning candles all around it and mood lighting. Maybe even a bit of music playing too…

  We sat in silence, looking out over the lake for a few minutes as the weight of the decisions we’d made today hung over us.

  “Do you think we’d know if we were contaminated?" Laurie asked, a note of fear creeping into her voice while we waited on the lakeshore.

  “I'd like to think so... What are the symptoms?" I picked up a twig and used it to trace patterns in the damp, sandy bank.

  “I don't know."

  I pursed my lips at her answer. Why didn’t we know that? We’d been locked up inside that city for our entire lives, warned about the dangers of the outside world and the contamination which resided out here. We were shown footage of what the twisted creatures the humans left out here had become when the contaminant was set loose all those years ago. We knew that exposure caused you to lose your mind until you were consumed by rage and could act on nothing more than the most primal of desires. But how did that begin? Was it a slow process? Or did it happen in the blink of an eye? And how was Coal living out here just fine and dandy with no signs at all of becoming one of them?

  "I'm sure we would have noticed the signs by now if we were infected," I reasoned, wondering if I really believed that or if I just wanted to. We looked at each other uncomfortably for a long moment and I chewed on my bottom lip.

  “What are we doing out here?" Laurie asked, a desperate look filling her gaze. She was clutching the back of her neck nervously and I had to admit that I had no fucking idea.

  “Sitting in the sand and waiting to cross a lake," I joked because I didn’t have a better answer. We’d just up and walked out on our entire lives. I didn’t even know what to think of the situation we found ourselves in. Yesterday I couldn’t have imagined this and now I was living it.

  "You know what I meant." She tossed a pebble into the water and it splashed loudly into the silence.

  "It's about the best answer I've got." I shrugged unhelpfully and she nodded, looking out over the lake again.

  Laurie scuffed her boots in the dirt as we waited and I watched as Coal and Kaloo reached the waterfall on the far side of the water and disappeared beneath it.

  Something rustled in the bushes behind us and we leapt to our feet, whirling around to look out at the trees. I drew my pistol and Laurie took a knife from my belt, holding it ready before her. The leaves trembled and my finger itched for the trigger. A second later a bird burst through the foliage and headed for the treetops, squawking its protest at our presence as my heart damn near exploded.

  I let out a shaky laugh as I clutched at my chest and Laurie rolled her eyes as we slowly sat back down on the sand.

  “What's taking him so long?" Laurie hissed.

  “Maybe he's not coming back,” I joked.

  “Thanks. That makes me feel much better." She scowled.

  "Why would he drag us half way through the forest just to ditch us?" I reasoned with a shrug.

  Laurie opened her mouth to respond but a soft splashing announced Coal and Kaloo returning and I looked up to see them swimming through the water like it was the easiest thing in the world.

  "See?" I smirked at her and she nodded distractedly.

  “I still don’t know what the hell we’re doing,” she muttered.

  I tried not to stare as Coal climbed out of the lake, but failed abysmally as water raced around every curve and line on his bare chest, accentuating his muscles like it was caressing them.

  Holy shit, I’m gonna need a dunk in that cold water in a minute.

  “Okay, I think if you're careful you can both sit in the leaf together,” Coal said as he moved to steady it for us. “I don't want to leave one of you out here alone, it's too dark now." He eyed the trees suspiciously and a prickle ran down my spine as I looked around at them too.

  “What are you so worried about?" I asked, following his gaze. The trees looked pretty much the same as they had all day, though the shadows held more secrets now.

  As if in answer to my question, a burst of snarling broke the silence from somewhere in the treetops and I stumbled back a step as I tried to figure out where it was coming from.

  “Probably best to find out some other time," Coal said as he helped Laurie to clamber into the leaf and held his hand out to me.

  His grip was strong as he steadied me and I quickly dropped down to sit in the wax foliage before he pushed it out into the water again.

  The leaf bobbed precariously but didn't sink and my pulse spiked as I clung to the edges of it and Laurie shot me a terrified look. Kaloo seemed eager to move and we were soon skimming across the water as she pulled us, a light breeze tugging at my hair.

  Fear held me rigid as we moved across the huge expanse of water but it was slowly giving way to awe. I’d never done anything like this before. Never seen anything like the world that surrounded us either.

  I tipped my head back to look up at the stars and a smile crept across my face as the wind kissed my cheeks.

  I reached out carefully and let my fingers trail in the cool water, the sensation tingling over my skin in the most delicious way.

  Coal swam along next to us, having no trouble keeping pace with our leaf-boat. I found myself wanting to learn how to swim too, it looked like a kind of freedom and I hadn’t had much of that in my life.

  Laurie shut her eyes, waiting for the crossing to be over and my gut twisted guiltily. If we hadn’t tracked her down she wouldn’t have ended up out here with us and it didn’t seem like she was adjusting well. She was muttering something under her breath which sounded like 'I'm not going to drown' over and over again.

  I leaned forward to hold her hand and she cracked her eyes open just enough to offer me half a smile.

  It took a good ten minutes for us to cross the lake and the temperature dropped quickly around us, making me shiver as the darkness deepened.

  Another snarl reached me as we reached the waterfall. It sounded closer to us this time, even with the added distance the water provided. I twisted in my seat, making the boat bob as I looked back towards the shore. I could make out something huge prowling on the bank we’d just vacated and a shiver of fear danced along my spine.

  Coal raised a finger to his lips as he paused to tread water. The animal's shape was just a dark blur on the edge of the lake, I couldn't make out any details aside from the fact that it was huge. Whatever it was, I was damn glad to have all of this water separating it from us right about now.

  The sounds of the waterfall turned into a dull roar as we approached it. Spray speckled my cheeks and I flinched in anticipation as we headed straight towards the rushing water.

  Kaloo pulled us under the downpour without hesitation and I gasped as the freezing water drenched me and created a puddle in the base of the leaf. We continued through to a cave hidden on the other side.

  Coal climbed up onto a rocky shelf with practiced movements and helped us u
p after him.

  Laurie backed away from the edge the moment she was out of the giant leaf, heading further into the cave which had been hidden beneath the waterfall.

  The falling water created a deep roar which echoed around the confined space and I looked back at it in wonder as the light of the moon danced beyond it.

  Coal led me on and we moved a short distance into the cave. The passage twisted slightly, hiding the cascading water from view and deadening some of the noise as we made it into a more open cavern.

  Taylor was spread out on a layer of dried grass which served as a bed and worry gnawed at me as he still failed to wake.

  The cave was clearly well used, there was a stash of supplies and firewood which had been here long enough to dry out sitting by the rear wall. The space was lit by a crackling fire which illuminated the walls with dancing shadows.

  Laurie had already curled up on the far side of the flames, her eyes closed as she chased sleep and I decided not to disturb her.

  I stepped closer to the blackish stone, my lips parting as I took in the twisting patterns of sparkling silver lines which criss-crossed it in every direction. I’d never seen anything like it and my eyes widened as I watched the stone glimmer in the firelight. This world was so full of untold wonders. I felt like I’d just woken up for the first time in my life.

  Coal shifted closer to me, walking up to stand behind me as he looked up at the stone too.

  “I guess it’s easy for me to forget the beauty in the world when I’m looking at it all the time,” he murmured, his breath fluttering against the back of my neck.

  “What are they?" I breathed, fascinated.

  “We think it's some kind of mineral deposit," Coal replied.

  "It's beautiful," I said stepping closer to the wall and running my fingers along the grooves.

  Coal moved to stand next to me, running his finger in a line straight down the centre of the largest silver vein and I could feel the heat of his body as he almost touched me.

  “Are you okay?” he asked in a rough voice, his hand falling from the stone as he looked down at me. “It's a lot to take in, leaving everything you know behind.”