by M. J. Bavis
The tears leaked out, dampening Leo’s jacket. He shushed and stroked the back of my head, in no hurry to let go and I was thankful. I was overdue a breakdown. Leaning on Leo, I shifted everything onto him. His strength flowed into me.
“How did you find me? How did you know?” I doubted Leo could even hear my voice from the rattle of the truck.
“I’m sorry I took so long.” He eased me off his shoulder, his palms cupping my face. “Are you okay?” His thumb skimmed across the bruise on my face, his hands falling to my shoulders, and down my arms until they reached the ropes around my wrists. His eyes feral, he pulled a knife out of his combats and flung the cut rope into a corner of the truck. Palms up, my hands rested on my legs.
“I’m so sorry I took so long,” he repeated. “I never should’ve left you.”
“No, it’s all my fault.” I stared at my hands. “I’ve made so many mistakes.” My voice cracked as fresh tears ran down my cheeks.
“Hey, it’s all right.” His thumb wiped a tear rolling down to my jawline. “You’re going to be fine. I’m gonna get you out of here.”
“I can’t—”
“You don’t have to. I’ll get you out.” Leo pulled a flashlight and scanned the insides of the truck.
I dried my cheeks. “I can’t walk without a crutch. Sebastian broke my leg.”
Leo went rigid, and as he shone the light down, I hitched up the trouser, revealing the makeshift cast. Shadows hid his expression, but the laboured breath was hard to miss.
He backed away slightly and continued to search the truck a beam of light at a time.
“You left,” I said under my breath. “How did you know they had me?”
“I never should’ve left,” he said, strained as if struggling to control himself.
“I told you to go.”
“But it was my decision to leave,” he countered as he went to pick up a metal rod lying half under a cardboard box. “I’ll never forgive myself for it.” He tried bending the rod, and it gave away easily. He placed it back on the floor.
“How’d you know they had me?” I asked again, feeling useless in my sorry state. Leo stood with his hands on his hips, half listening to me, half searching for a plan. I gathered my broken leg had annihilated his escape plan.
“I was travelling home when I remembered something about Sebastian—a fighting technique he used when I sparred with him in his class.” He shook his head dismissively. “I could never place it until at that moment I realised where I’d seen it before. It was a hunch, but I had to make sure. When I came back, you’d disappeared into thin air, and I couldn’t track down Sebastian. So, I did some digging and my leads led me to the old estate Sebastian took you to. But I was too late.”
I lowered my chin into a nod. “They’re taking me to Gorah.”
“I figured. I heard them talk about a ship.” Leo worked his jaw, his mouth a thin line. “How did they…did they…did they hurt you?”
“Other than the leg, it’s just bruises and a black eye.”
“Phase one—weaken the captive by starvation and isolation,” he said as if quoting a manual. “You don’t look too great.”
“I don’t feel too great.”
Leo’s face distorted at my honesty and he gave up searching the truck. He sat next to me, knees bent, hands over them. “They’re likely to stop overnight. That’s when we’ll make our move.”
My insides tied into knots. How could we get away from multiple skilled fighters with me not only being useless but needing support to walk?
“Don’t worry, I’ll take care of it.” Leo read my mind, nudging his shoulder into mine.
“I’m not sure I can fight.”
“Leave it to me. Now get some rest, it might be a while still.”
I pulled my arms across my shrunken waist. Leo’s shoulder tensed as I rested my head on it. I adjusted my position a few times until he relaxed, and wriggled closer to me. His arm wrapped around me, and I fell asleep leaning on him.
I came to as the truck hit a pothole. Neck stiff, I rolled my head up and stretched it both ways.
“How long was I asleep?” I straightened my back, arched it and slumped.
“An hour or so. I have a feeling we’ll be stopping soon.” He moved away from me and stood up to stretch. I shivered as his body heat left me and tugged at my sleeves.
“Do you think they’ll leave me here for the night?”
A frown creased Leo’s forehead. I doubted it had left in the past hour. “No. Someone’s going to check on you. They won’t leave you here overnight, the temperature’s dropping.” Leo took off his jacket and tossed it to me. I wore it like a blanket.
“But…they’ll find you.” A wave of foreboding crept in. “We can’t win fighting from the back of a truck; they’ll have a huge advantage. They’ll end up capturing you too!” I panicked at the thought of Leo getting caught.
“They won’t,” he said, calm as ever. “I’ll hide.” He left the end of the sentence hanging, waiting for me to read between the lines. As I stared at him, he picked up something from the floor, playing with it between his hands, untangling.
“You want me to go with them.”
“It’s the only way.” Leo avoided eye contact. He disliked the option more than I did, but I knew he was right: outnumbered, and me useless, it was too much of a risk.
I wanted to say I understood. I wanted to focus on the logic. Still, I couldn’t stop the tears from pooling.
Quickly, I lowered my head, hoping Leo wouldn’t notice.
In a flash, he was in front of me, lifting my chin up. “Kal, hey. Do you trust me?”
I nodded as much as his hand allowed.
“Then don’t worry. I promise I’ll get you out. I’ll be close. As soon as the opportunity comes, I will get you, okay?”
I sniffled, wiping my cheeks with the back of my hand. I’m pathetic. “I’m sorry. You must think I’m absolutely useless.”
“I don’t think that at all. If anything, I prefer this to the constant bickering about everything I do.” A slanted smile appeared on his face and I appreciated the attempt to lighten the mood.
The truck slowed down a gear and veered off to the left.
“We’re getting off the motorway,” Leo noted.
I took in a shallow breath as he picked up the rope.
I handed back Leo’s jacket, instantly missing the warmth. “Make it real.”
Leo’s fingers grazed the broken skin where the rope had dug in, touched the bandage a little higher up on my left wrist, and stopped. “What happened here?”
“Just…a deep graze.” This was not the time to get into my ill-considered escape attempt. Hopefully, it never would.
Carefully, Leo tightened the knot and I checked his work. He managed to hide the fact the rope was once cut.
“What if they find you?”
Leo smirked, checking that the surroundings hadn’t been disturbed by his presence. “Then I’ll roll over and wave a white flag.”
“I’m serious! You can’t get caught because of me.”
“Relax, I’m not exactly a rookie.”
Of course, he was right. But my heart still thudded.
Whining, the truck slowed further and turned once again. It crawled for a few more metres and then came to halt. I propped myself straight, bracing for what was to come. I failed to see which shadow Leo vanished behind.
I waited, painfully long, for the back doors to open.
Thankfully, the street lights only illuminated parts of the back. The night air brought shivers all over my body, and I tensed up as if to lock in my body heat. The boy soldier, as I called him, jumped in, marching straight to me.
“Where are we?” I kept a keen eye on him.
“Motel. We’re staying for the night.” He grabbed my arm and helped me up on my stiff limbs, gentler than before. “If you play nice you might even get a soft bed tonight.”
“I wouldn’t count on it.”
The blood
in my veins iced over at Sebastian’s voice. He stood outside by the back entrance, arms on the floor of the truck. I held my insides from turning. What if they found Leo? What if they empty the truck? What if they get rid of the truck?
Too many things could go wrong.
Much to my dread, Sebastian jumped inside. “Did you enjoy the ride?”
“Best ever.” The cold, or the fear, was making my teeth clatter.
Sebastian scoffed amused as he came to stand within my reach; the boy went rigid next to me. I turned my head to the side as Sebastian stroked a strand of hair behind my ear, and leaned in.
“You cause a scene outside and I’ll take out the other leg too, along with a few civilians.”
I nodded my understanding, and he moved out of my way. I wondered if Leo had heard the threat.
“Take her to my room,” Sebastian ordered.
The boy pulled on my arm, rougher this time. We were a few steps from the doors when a foot swiped under my good leg, and I stumbled, taking weight on the broken leg. Pain like a bolt of lightning coursed through me. I couldn’t suppress the scream. I swung half out of the truck before the young soldier steadied me by the arm and yanked me back.
“Just making sure you’re not faking that leg of yours,” Sebastian said, pleased, and jumped down to the ground.
The boy shrugged as our eyes met and lifted me out of the truck.
I didn’t dare glance back for any signs of Leo.
Room fourteen was a typical motel room—two single beds, a wall-mount TV, desk, armchair, and an all-white, ceramic bathroom. I was placed on the floor next to a bed and tied to a radiator. The boy helped me drink a glass of water.
“You hungry?”
I’m near starvation. What’d you think? “A little.”
“I’ll see if you’re allowed something from a vending machine.”
The boy’s features were sharp: high cheekbones, narrow chin and nose, forgettable eyes. His neck and shoulders were nearly too big for his head, but regardless of his bulky frame and crew-cut hair, there was an innocence about him the others didn’t have.
“You’re nicer than the others.”
The boy hooked his fingers on his belt. “My uncle once said to treat every captive as a future brother. You reap what you sow.”
My stare trailed him as he went to peek through the window.
“What’s your name?”
“You can call me Kol,” he said as he shut the blinds. “The others have arrived. Someone else will watch you now. It’s been a pleasure.”
As soon as Kol left, Sebastian and another soldier—the Tank—walked in, not even acknowledging my presence. The Tank tossed a duffel bag on the floor and crashed on the bed furthest from me. Sebastian turned on the TV, and sat on the end of the bed, flicking through the channels. I waited for him to throw a meaningless comment, or at least remind me I wasn’t invisible, but when the Tank started snoring and Sebastian settled into watching sports, I relaxed by leaning my head against the wall.
They must not have found Leo.
*
I stirred from restless sleep—annoyed how difficult it was to stay awake—wiggling my fingers to bring life to a dead arm. The TV was on, but muted, shining an eerie light into an otherwise dark room.
Sebastian’s bed was empty. The Tank snored on his back, arms folded behind his head. Probably dreaming of white, sandy beaches.
My limbs ached, and I inched away from the wall to get a glimpse around the corner. The bathroom was dark, the door ajar. Where was Sebastian and how long would he be gone?
I dropped my chin and closed my eyes as a shadow passed on the other side of the window.
Stealthy, Sebastian entered. He stopped in the middle of the room, perhaps assessing if I really was asleep.
A hand came over my mouth.
Chapter 37
My eyes flashed open and widened in relief as Leo placed a finger to his lips, then held up three fingers and flicked his thumb to the door: we had three minutes to get out.
He cut the rope, and I held a grunt as he pulled me to my feet. His focus flickering on the sleeping soldier, he scooped me up and I clung to him as tight as I could, holding my breath until we were out of the room.
It was quiet outside and I couldn’t see anyone standing guard or otherwise loitering under the night sky. Leo carried me past the other motel doors to the side of the L-shaped front of the building. As we cleared the corner, he put me down and checked if we were followed.
“Sebastian,” he whispered, barely audible, and pressed his back against the concrete wall.
“We’ll hide in the woods.”
“No. That’s the first place they’ll check.” Leo’s gaze flickered to my leg. “We’ll be too slow and leave a trail.”
“But it’s dark. Hiding is our best option.”
“It’s my call.” He didn’t wait for my approval but turned to take another glance. I heard hasty footsteps, then banging on doors.
A few weeks ago, Leo would’ve had to physically restrain me from lunging at them. Now, I wished nothing more than to flee the scene.
Seconds later, Leo turned and picked me up, taking me to the back of the building. The treeline was a few metres down the grass-covered slope. Large metal bins decorated most of the back wall, illuminated by the light shining through windows. Leo would have disabled a security camera or two prior to our Great Escape.
As we reached the second set of bins, he carefully put me down.
“Someone’s coming; I’m going to take them out. You—stay there.”
I didn’t get a chance to object before Leo vanished in the shadows. I crouched down, glueing myself to the side of the bin. Soon enough, I heard faint rustling and a beam of light growing larger as it neared me. My instincts geared me for a fight: shapes formed from the shadows, grass folded under combat boots and even through the rubbish, I smelled a hint of testosterone closing. It wasn’t Sebastian or Kol. This one was hard of hearing in his left ear.
I closed my eyes to sharpen my other senses. Leo was close.
A rustle, a faint groan and a thud.
I crawled on the ground for a glimpse. Leo lobbed the guard over his shoulder and off-loaded him in a ditch by the border of the woods. He tied the man’s hands and knees with something he pulled out of his combats and gagged him.
I pulled myself up and waited for Leo.
“Once he wakes up they’ll know you had help.” Leo came next to me and hooked his hand around my waist. “Sebastian will figure out it’s me.”
The thought unsettled me.
“There’s a door at the back that leads to the reception.” Again, Leo lifted me up to his arms.
“You’re taking me back inside?” I questioned but cottoned onto his strategy the same instant. We couldn’t outrun them; we’d have to outsmart them.
We snuck in from an unlocked back door to a tiny entrance hall, leading to kitchen storage. Leo placed me down next to the wall, aiding my hobble past the kitchen entrance and into the hallway. He must have memorised the corridors earlier.
I struggled to keep up, the past weeks leaving a strain upon my body. Movement, even though heavily assisted, exhausted me.
On cue, Leo’s arm tightened around my waist. “You okay?” he mouthed.
I reassured him and took a laboured breath.
“Almost there.”
‘Almost there’ was the manager’s private room, around the corner from the reception desk and small entrance foyer. Leo used a key card to open the door; he’d been well prepared.
The room was like the other bedrooms apart from having a small kitchen area and supporting a nicer finishing touch.
Leo pulled a chair over for me, and strode to the window, parting the curtains just enough to see through.
I could tell why this was our hideout: it had a view directly to the front yard and three escape options.
“This wasn’t exactly ‘plan A’,” Leo admitted. “I heard Sebastian talking with a
nother soldier. They were going to…hurt you. I had to get you out, there and then.”
I caught my breath in long but shallow breaths. “What were they going to do?”
Leo’s neck tensed, and I knew that was all the answer I was going to get. He took another glance outside the window. “They’re doing a perimeter check. Sebastian’s running the show.”
I clasped the armrests, feeling the effects of weeks of damp, dungeon air in my lungs.
“I’d say in about five, ten minutes we can go. How are you doing?” The direction of Leo’s hushed voice had changed. He was currently pressing his ear to the door.
One day I would have to ask him the secret to his kitten steps.
“A little weary but fine.”
“Here, eat this.” He handed me a protein bar from one of his trouser pockets. I took it and devoured it. Leo was back by the window.
“In case we don’t make it out of here, I wanted to thank—”
Leo’s head snapped in my direction. “You don’t think I can get you out?”
“That’s not what I meant. I trust you. But there are a lot of them and I’m useless when it comes to…well, anything.” I motioned at my leg although it was only part of the problem.
“Hey, I don’t want any of that. I’m going to get you out even if it kills me.” Leo sounded casual, but he meant it. He also struck a familiar chord: he was not the first to have said so. Kailen had given up everything to save me, and for what?
A tidal wave of suppressed emotions crashed against me. I felt every inch of my sorry state, physical and emotional, weighing down on me. Threateningly, my chin trembled. I had wasted the past years doing nothing but trampling Kailen’s memory. I had turned my back on everything I believed in, everything that mattered, and created a self I could barely face in the mirror.
My finger trailed the smeared bandage on my wrist. And what was worse, I may be the death of Leo, who gave up years in the hope to set me on the right path. If only I hadn’t left to begin with but faced my demons like a true warrior.
I slumped forward, burying my head in my hands as guilt imprinted its thumbprint on me.
“Kalika, what’s wrong? Are you hurt?” Leo was on his knees in front of me in a second, grasping my shoulders.