by E. L. Todd
They entered a maze of underground hallways until they cut back to the main tunnel. Aleco was dashing through the deserted hallways until they found the central passage. They walked through it until they spotted the red door up ahead. He turned to Accacia. “Stay here,” he commanded.
Accacia nodded. She didn’t want to participate in the battle. She waited in silence until she heard his call up ahead.
“Come on!”
She ran across the soil and around the curve of the tunnel. She spotted seven bodies littering the floor. Aleco was removing his signature three-bladed throwing knife from a man’s throat. She stopped and stared at the destruction. He unsheathed his guildsmen sword. “Come,” he yelled. She followed him to the red door. He approached the left side and pointed her to the right side. “We need to insert our blades together, simultaneously. If the timing isn’t exact, we’ll be stuck here,” he said. “It has to be perfect.”
Accacia unsheathed her sword and approached the opening. Her hands shook as she gripped the sword; its weight and texture were unlike anything she had ever felt. Her fingers ran across the hilt and she felt the smooth surface of the stones in the pommel of the blade. The power of the weapon hummed in her skin. She glanced at the lock within the door and forced herself to concentrate. They had to get out of there.
“On my count,” he said. “One, two, three—” They inserted their blades together and turned the lock. Accacia heard the audible click within the mechanism and sighed with relief—it worked.
The doors opened with the same loud boom as they had when they entered the Serpentine Guild Hideaway. The heavy entryway swung open and revealed the empty cavern on the outside.
Aleco turned to Accacia. “Now run like hell.”
Aequor Forest
20
The pair dashed through the forest with all the speed they could muster. The trees blurred with the darkness as they sprinted past the foundations of Aequor Forest. Accacia relied upon Aleco’s shadowed form for direction. She was surprised by his agility considering he had just been beaten to the brink of death. She ignored the growing knot in her side and followed his trail.
Aequor Forest faded to the background as they ran through the open plains, heading to the east of the Continent, their destination Morkarh. The moon was the only source of illumination over the mounds of hills. She stumbled behind him as her feet caught on the invisible holes in the earth. Accacia massaged the spasm in her waist and breathed through the pain. They hadn’t stopped for hours and exhaustion was creeping through her. The sun was inching over the horizon, announcing the coming of morning. They had been fleeing all night, and she wouldn’t last much longer.
Aleco noticed her slowed pace. “Come on.”
Accacia leaned forward and caught her breath. As far as she could tell, they weren’t being pursued and no one was chomping at their heels.
Aleco marched up to her and grabbed her by the elbow. “Do you need me to carry you?”
She took a deep breath. “No.”
“Then let’s go.” He continued his pace.
Accacia inhaled one more deep breath before she followed him. She forced her legs to carry her to his side, but trailed behind him as they ventured forward. Aleco noticed her exhausted state. They would stop just before sunrise.
The evening was freezing and the dry bite of the cold announced the approach of winter. If Aleco hadn’t been running so fast, the midnight ice would cause him to shiver and Accacia would simply freeze to death. Aleco predicted the coming season would be exceptionally fierce and unforgiving. Plants would be annihilated, farm animals wouldn’t survive the cold, and food rations would be even smaller than usual. He enjoyed the winter season, but knew most didn’t; and for good reason.
Aleco turned into the last line of trees before reaching the expansive desert that surrounded the city he despised so much. He was annoyed to return to the sandy province so soon. Within a week, the desert would be blanketed with snow and converted into uninhabitable tundra. Morkarh was a city built in an unfortunate location for human activity. The summer months prohibited any significant precipitation, which caused the desert to be a dry and arid landscape, unsuited for farming and cultivation. The winter months provided precipitation, but in the form snow and ice, which was inaccessible for crops and animals. The city was damned.
Signs of the end of the fall season were everywhere. Red leaves littered the ground, crunching under their feet as they searched for a hiding place. The dryness of the cold stung his nostrils and dried the skin of his lips, which cracked and peeled at the loss of moisture. Aleco licked his lips instinctively, making them feel even more parched.
Accacia was overcome with fatigue, and he knew she needed rest. He found a secluded thicket surrounded by oak trees and determined it was the best place to stop. He encouraged her to lay down and she did so without question. He curled up beside her, wrapping his heavy cloak around both of their bodies, hiding their forms from view. He squeezed her to his chest and kissed her lips, which remained immobile to his touch; she had already fallen asleep.
“Sleep well,” he whispered.
Accacia moaned in her sleep and startled Aleco from his dreams, which, for the first time, were wonderful. He looked over at the object of his fantasy and smiled at her slight form. Her body was pressed against his with her arm wrapped snugly around his waist. She buried her face in his neck and he felt her warm breath fall on his skin.
Guilt flooded his mind as he remembered the content of his dreams and what had transgressed behind the privacy of his eyes. He smiled at the memory. He pressed his lips to hers and kissed her, attempting to wake her up pleasantly. She moaned again, and Aleco hoped the topic of their dreams were the same.
Accacia sighed as her eyes fluttered open. She focused on Aleco’s grinning face before her.
“Did you sleep well?” he asked.
She nodded as she stretched her arms outwards. Accacia gazed at the sky. By the position of the sun, she knew evening would arrive soon. She had slept all day. “Are they following us?” she moaned.
Aleco dropped his smile. “I am certain they are,” he said. “We just haven’t seen them yet. We’ll cross the desert after nightfall and lose them in the city.”
Accacia nodded with her eyes closed and she sighed again. Even in sleep, she was the most sexually alluring creature he had ever seen. He forced himself to steady his emotions for fear he would frighten her with the intensity of his feelings. She belonged to him now, and he treasured her like a priceless gem. He stared at the contours of her perfect face, counted the eyelashes of her eyes, and felt the curve of her wet lips with his finger, longing to kiss her the same way he had before they escaped the Vast. Unable to fight the urge in his soul a moment longer, he grabbed her face and kissed her deeply, parting her lips with his own and breathing into her mouth. He leaned over her, felt the small of her back with his hand and pulled her closer to him as he continued his embrace. Her lips returned his affection and she gripped his shoulder with her free hand, pulling him closer. He was losing control. His hand glided up her shirt towards her exquisite breasts, which he had seen twice, but never had the honor of touching. Suddenly, she ended their kiss and pulled away.
She sat up and crossed her arms over her chest, looking away from him. She gazed at the surrounding trees in the glade and counted the number of fallen leaves covering the ground. She rubbed her arms with her hands, trying to dispel the cold of the evening air, and immediately missed the warmth of Aleco’s embrace. She hated what she was about to do.
Aleco waited for her to speak, but when no words were forthcoming, he broke the silence. “What is it, Accacia?” he asked. He touched her on the shoulder, silently begging her to return to his arms. He was clueless to what had caused her sudden departure. He wondered if his venture underneath her shirt was unwelcome and had offended her. It wasn’t his intent to disrespect her; he assumed she wanted him just as much as he wanted her.
Accacia rose to
her feet and Aleco’s hand slipped from her shoulder.
“Accacia?” he repeated, as he stood up. He could only guess how frightened she felt. He knew the emotions of the past few days were coursing through her for the first time. She had left the captivity of one man to be caged by another, then the man she loved was almost executed. It would take time to deal with it all. He reached out to her, but she stepped away from him.
“We need to discuss something before we continue,” she said to the ground. Accacia hated herself for doing this, but she knew it had to be done. She couldn’t continue this relationship when she constantly compared him to Drake. Aleco had broken her trust when he physically abused her, in addition to the hurtful words he said. She couldn’t let him love her, and couldn’t possibly love him in return. Accacia was glad they had both survived; however, she hadn’t foreseen this problem.
Aleco felt his heartbeat quicken. Why couldn’t he hold her during this discussion?
“I’m listening,” he said.
“I want this relationship between us to end.” She sighed. She shifted her weight and looked at the tip of her boots, wondering what he was feeling as she spoke. She knew Aleco had already been hurt, and she didn’t want to damage him even more. “I want to return to our previous arrangement.”
He swallowed the lump in his throat. His head was spinning in pain and confusion. Aleco didn’t understand what was happening. “What do you mean?” he asked.
“The romantic aspect of our relationship is over. We are friends, nothing more.” She saw his body flinch at her words from the corner of her eye. He looked like he had been shoved from behind. She still didn’t look at him, unable to meet his gaze.
Aleco heard his heart pound in his ears and felt the blood course through his veins like a pressured hose. He sensed his heart shatter, the shards of it flung throughout his body, piercing every muscle and tendon in his chest cavity. Pain grabbed his heart like a clenched fist and squeezed hard, stopping the expansion of his lungs and wrestling the breath from his esophagus. He was being stabbed by the Kadnit Knife again. The betrayal of her words surpassed the actual trauma. Confusion flooded his mind at her sudden coldness. He didn’t understand what had caused her to do this. “Why?”
She said nothing for a moment. Her fingers ran through the silk strands of her hair then rested on her throat. “I—I just don’t want that kind of relationship with you.” The pain in Aleco’s voice broke her heart. She knew she had to be clear and concise about her wishes if she wanted Aleco to respect them. She may not trust him, but she knew he would never take her against her will, at least she hoped not.
“Then why did you kiss me?” Aleco fought back the tears behind his eyes, tears he hadn’t let himself have since his mother died right before his eyes. Somehow this hurt even more. He hadn’t known Accacia for a long period of time, technically, they were still strangers, but they had experienced so much together. Aleco felt a connection to her he hadn’t felt with any other person. He was certain she felt it as well. Aleco felt like an idiot for letting his emotions become so intense in front of her and wished he could hide his damaged heart better.
She clutched her hands together and stared at her intertwined fingers. “I don’t know,” she said. “It just happened.”
Aleco’s mind raced over the past two days. He remembered how she pulled away from his initial kiss but returned his embrace when he was being dragged away to be executed. Then, she kissed him passionately before Devry came to their cell that night. The reason for her sudden affection dawned on him. “You thought I was as good as dead anyway,” he said to himself more than her. “You never had feelings for me. It was just your pity that drove your kiss.”
She finally looked at him. Accacia knew he would figure it out eventually, but she hoped he wouldn’t be so upset by the revelation. It was obvious how much she had hurt him.
Anger coursed through his body at the rejection of his affections, a tragic end to the blissful feeling. He saw the pity in her eyes and that only fueled his internal rage at his own idiocy. He reminisced about their physical exchange and remembered the taste of her lips. The quiet moans of pleasure that escaped her mouth when she ran her hands through his hair; no one could be that convincing. “You’re lying,” he said as hope returned to his heart. “You enjoyed it as much as I did. What is the real reason? After everything I’ve done for you, I deserve your honesty.” He clenched his fists as he stared her down.
Accacia immediately felt frightened at the turn of events. She expected his anger and hostility, but it didn’t diffuse her uneasiness. What she feared had come to pass, his body shook with rage at her betrayal. Accacia didn’t know how badly he would hurt her this time, and prayed it would be over soon.
As he stepped towards her, Aleco saw her body flinch and she protected her head with her arms, preparing for the oncoming attack. He stopped in his tracks and saw the fear etched into her face. He understood why she rejected his love. “I’m not going to hurt you,” he whispered. “I never will again, Accacia.” He pulled her arms down and looked her in the eyes. “I promise.”
“Please don’t touch me,” she whispered. He looked too similar to Drake when he was angry. She shook with fear as the trauma he inflicted upon her flooded back. Just the tone of his furious voice was enough to make her cry.
Aleco’s eyes watered at the command. Their relationship had changed in such a short amount of time. He released his hold and stepped back with his hands in the air. “After everything that has happened, how can you not trust me?” Now he knew the cause of denial. She did enjoy his affection and the closeness they shared, but she feared him because of his mistake. He assumed she would forgive him, but it was obvious she hadn’t.
“I appreciate everything you have done for me, Aleco, I do. I know you are a good man with a noble heart, but I can’t trust you,” she said. Her self-hatred increased with every word. She didn’t expect him to understand her fear of him. She knew if she confessed her comparison to his twin, he would be insane with rage, insulted by the similarity. “I’m sorry.”
Aleco’s heart dropped to his stomach. He had suffered a painful beating to spare her then secured her release and helped her escape. He even chose to embrace death rather than return her to Drake, but she couldn’t let this go? Even after all of that? Aleco felt the pain radiate from his body. The only reason he had attacked her was because she violated his privacy, reliving his most private and painful memories. She had no right to violate him in such a way. He knew his reaction was wrong, but he felt like he was taking all the blame for the incident. It never would have happened if she stifled her curiosity. “I can’t believe this,” he said. “I messed up, Accacia. I know I did. I let my anger get to me, I admit that, but your actions were just as unforgivable as mine. You invaded my personal thoughts against my consent. Then you convinced me you cared for me, but you were just pretending because you thought I was going to die. Do you have any idea how much that hurts?” he asked. “If I can forgive you for that then surely you can forgive me for this, Accacia.”
Accacia turned away as if slapped. Aleco bore his heated gaze onto her face, and she could feel the flames of anger burn through her skin. She knew what she did was wrong but the actions weren’t equal in her eyes. She would never forget the way Aleco gripped her arms to her side, bruising her skin with his strength, and the way he glared at her in anger. It was too similar to the night Drake stole her virtue, how he pinned her weak arms to her side and raped her. In both situations, she was helpless to the abuse, unable to get away. How could she ever be with a man who brought her so much pain?
Aleco dropped to one knee. “Accacia, I am very sorry about what I did to you. It won’t happen again. Please take my word for it,” he begged. “Trust me, Accacia. I would gladly give my life to protect you. Damn, you must know how I feel about you.”
Accacia said nothing as she stared at him. She wanted to believe him, but knew she couldn’t. He may be sweet and tender in t
he best of times, but what about the worst? There was nothing he could say to convince her otherwise. Yes, she felt safe with him against other foes, but she didn’t feel safe with him against himself. She wanted to get away from the traumatic life she had before, but she never could if she was constantly reminded of it.
“Accacia let me in. I won’t hurt you,” he said. “You obviously feel something for me.”
“I’m sorry, Aleco.”
“Please,” he begged. She could see the tint of red around his eyes. She hated hurting him like this.
“No,” she said. “When I look at you, I see him.”
Aleco dropped his gaze to the forest floor. He sat in silence as he let the finality of the conversation come to an end. He tried to find something, anything, he could say to change her mind, but could think of nothing he hadn’t already said. He didn’t want to lose her, but he knew he already had.
He rose to a stance and walked away into the trees, disappearing from her view. He left his pack at the campsite so she knew he intended to return. She looked up into the sky and watched the stars shine brighter at the sun’s departure. She wrapped herself tightly within her own arms and hoped she hadn’t wounded Aleco’s pride too badly. She reflected on the past two days and the tenderness he showed her. She assumed his intentions were purely physical but the gentleness he showed her made her wonder if there was something more. Accacia didn’t know what to think.
Aleco returned from the forest an hour later. He shouldered his pack and hid the remains of their campsite then tightened the strings of his boots before concealing his face in the hood of his cloak.
“Let’s go,” he ordered. The coarseness of his voice had returned along with a façade of indifference.
“Aleco—”
“Save it, Accacia,” he silenced her. “One more thing before we never speak of this again,” he said as he stopped her. “I am nothing like Drake. I’m not him. So stop looking at me like I am.”