Hunted: Alba's Story (Destined Book 5)

by Kaylin Lee

  Stefan nudged me, pointed to the magic stirring in my palm, and nodded approvingly.

  “Just in case,” I mouthed.

  He grinned. “Good plan,” he mouthed back.

  My heart beat like a drum, but for some reason, the usual symptoms of panic hadn’t yet arrived.

  Either I was getting better at managing panic, which seemed unlikely, or something in my recurring symptoms had changed. Perhaps—

  Damian and Anton leapt back as a large crate tumbled through the tunnel entrance and hit the cave floor with a loud rattle.

  “Who goes there?” Damian shouted, sounding nothing like the gentle young man who’d just wished me good night hours earlier.

  “Don’t shoot me, Damian,” came a gruff reply from the tunnel. “Just brought supplies. Thought you might be nearly out.”

  Damian’s crossbow wavered slightly.

  Anton kicked the crate with his boot, turning it upright and revealing the distinct crest of the Asylian government alongside the words Caution—contains suffio.

  “Si?” Damian’s voice was low and uncertain. “Is it really you?”

  “’Course it is.” The man shuffled in the tunnel. Another crate fell to the ground beside the first, this one marked Coffee. “I told you I’d be back.”

  “That was a year ago,” Anton said sourly.

  The man in the tunnel was silent for a moment. “Well, I’m back now. Coming out. Don’t shoot me, Anton, not until you see what I brought you.”

  A pair of thick-soled, dirty boots stuck out from the tunnel, then the rest of the man followed, landing nimbly on his feet in front of Damian and Anton as they lowered their crossbows.

  The man ran a hand over his square, stubble-covered jaw, his green eyes flashing as he looked over the brothers. “Good to see you, boys.” His gaze met mine, and he froze. “You.”

  I lifted my palmful of magic as anger surged through me. Their seventh brother was none other than my abductor. “You’re Si?”

  Damian looked over his shoulder at me and frowned. “You know each other?”

  Si shook his head rapidly and widened his eyes as though willing me to keep quiet.

  “He kidnapped me!” I shrieked. There was no chance I’d keep quiet about that. “He’s the reason I nearly died alone in the woods! If Drew hadn’t found me and saved me, I would have—”

  “But I let her go.” Si held up his hands as the pool of magic in my palm grew larger. “I let her go! She’s here, isn’t she? Everything turned out fine.”

  “Fine?” My voice rose to a new pitch. “How could you possibly—”

  “Just a moment.” Si eyed me suspiciously. “How did you end up here, anyway?” He strode forward, pulled Drew and Stefan away from me, and shoved them behind him. “Be careful, boys. This girl may not look like much, but she’s a powerful mage.”

  May not look like much? What a rat. I lifted my hand, ready to blast him in the head for daring to suggest I couldn’t be trusted after what he’d done to me. He’d come closer than I wanted for the optimal impact, but I could probably still do a bit of damage.

  Before I could release the magic, the fright in Drew’s eyes sank in. I dropped my hand and let the sparkles dissipate.

  “I didn’t know they were your brothers,” I said flatly. “Trust me, I’d never have asked them for help if I’d known. When you abandoned me, I tried to rejoin my team. I’d just found them when the Masters attacked. I ran through the woods, fell into a river, and got completely lost. Drew found me the next day and brought me here to recover.”

  Si looked me up and down. “You fell in a river? Right. The water’s all snowmelt this time of year. If you really fell in a river, you’d be dead by now.”

  “I almost did die.” I wrapped my arms around my torso, suddenly cold at the memory. “Like you said, I’m a mage. I used my power to keep myself alive. I’d almost run out of magic by the time I met Drew. If he hadn’t brought me here …”

  Drew edged around Si and offered me an earnest smile. “I was only doing what any gentleman would do for a maiden in need.”

  Si rolled his eyes, but I smiled at Drew. “You are a true gentleman, Drew.” I glared at Si. “Unlike a certain brother of yours.”

  Drew’s gaze bounced between me and Si. He looked distressed.

  “Alba …” Damian cleared his throat. “It’s late. We’ll sort this out in the morning.” He gave a subtle nod in Drew’s direction.

  Whoops. Drew idolized his oldest brother, didn’t he? “Fine,” I mumbled. “I’ll sleep by the hearth again.”

  Si crossed his arms and glared at me as I marched past him.

  There was a pained grunt from behind me. “Damian? What are you—”

  I looked back from the suffio hearth. Damian whispered something to Si then pushed him in my direction.

  Si heaved a dramatic sigh as he ambled across the cave toward me. “You can stay in my bunk, Alba. I’ll sleep on the floor.” He frowned when I didn’t move. “Go on. You’re lucky my brothers are so nice. Although I don’t see any of them giving up their bunks for the fair maiden,” he called over his shoulder.

  Damian narrowed his eyes. “Would you just go to sleep, Si? I think you’ve done enough damage for one night.” He beckoned me. “Come on, Alba. Don’t worry about him. Get a few more hours of sleep, and we’ll deal with this in the morning.”

  I shot Si a hard glare, hoping I managed to convey that he was absolutely not forgiven and that I’d tell Damian all of Si’s crimes against me as soon as Drew was out of earshot the next day. “Sleep well,” I hissed. “Enjoy the floor.”

  Si ignored me and stretched out in front of the hearth, not even bothering to remove his boots.

  I marched across the dirt floor to Si’s bunk and made a show of snuggling comfortably into his thin mattress and even thinner blanket.

  “That’s what I get for coming home,” Si said sourly as Damian flicked off the luminous lantern by his bunk. “Brought you boys presents and everything.”

  Chapter 17

  “Oh, Princess Alba …”

  Something soft tickled my nose. I slapped it away, curled up on my side, and pulled the blanket over my head.

  “Oh, Princess Albaaaaa …”

  The same light tickling moved to my feet, which were now exposed by the obnoxiously short blanket. Perfect. I kicked hard.

  “Ow! I take it back. You’re definitely no princess.” Light flooded my eyes as Si ripped the blanket off me. “But at least you’re finally awake.”

  “I told you not to wake her!” Drew stomped across the cave, his face set in a fierce scowl. “Mages need a lot of sleep. Way more than regular people like us.”

  “Oh, that’s right, you did tell me,” Si said innocently. He set the blanket back on me. “Back to sleep, Princess.”

  I sat up and stuck my tongue out at him. “I’m awake now. Thanks, Si. Such a gentleman, as always.” Drew looked uncomfortable, so I swallowed the tirade threatening to break through. “Where is everyone?” The cave was quiet and empty save for the three of us.

  “The mine bell rang hours ago.” Si smirked. “But I guess you needed more beauty sleep, because you just snored right through their departure.”

  “I don’t snore. Not like the rest of you bullfrogs, anyway.”

  “Si.” Drew put his hands on his hips and narrowed is eyes at his brother. “Alba is the fairest maiden in the land. She obviously doesn’t need beauty sleep. Maybe you need glasses like Damian.”

  “My vision is perfect.” Si’s cheeks heated, and he wouldn’t look at me. “Always has been.”

  “Hmph.” Drew turned to me and bowed. “Would you like victus for breakfast, my lady?”

  “I’d love some. Thank you, Drew.” I added extra sugar to my voice and hoped Si noticed that none of it was directed toward him. “I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

  Drew beamed and held out his arm like a miniature prince to lead me to the other side of the cave. I tossed a triumphan
t smile over my shoulder at Si, but he was staring at the dirt floor and missed my moment of gloating.

  Drew and I made two small bowls of victus and sat at their wooden table.

  “Si, do you want victus too?” Drew put down his spoon and looked at Si hopefully.

  I clenched my spoon. If that lazy, horrible brother made sweet Drew mix a bowl of victus for him, I’d—

  “’Course not. That stuff is disgusting. I’ll hunt my own breakfast.” Si stomped past the table and lifted his crossbow from where it rested by his battered, dirty pack.

  “There’s no more game.” Drew looked confused. “I thought you knew that. Isn’t that why you came back? To rescue us?”

  Si paused with one hand on the tunnel entrance. “What are you talking about? Of course there’s game.”

  Drew shook his head. “It’s gone, Si. No game. No plants. Nothing within a day’s walk of the Hollow.”

  Humor glinted in Si’s eyes. “Well, I walk a bit faster than you, kid. I’ll find something. Maybe get some dinner too. How’s that sound?”

  Drew’s knobby shoulders tensed. “Damian and Anton already tried that last week,” he said quietly. “They were gone for two days. There’s nothing, Si. We just eat victus from the mine now.”

  Si ran a hand through his messy, dark hair before setting his crossbow against the side of the cave. “Explain.”

  “The weather’s been bad for the last year. Cold and windy every day. The game started disappearing and so did most of the plants. But we could still get by.”

  I set my spoon in my bowl as Si joined us at the table, his expression unreadable.

  “Then what?”

  “There was a big storm a few weeks ago.” Drew shivered and wrapped his arms around his torso. “We couldn’t leave the cave for a whole day. When we finally went outside, all the plants were dead. Even the birds were gone. Now all we have are the victus rations from the mine and the vegetables we saved before the storm.”

  Si still looked disbelieving. He rubbed his beard, his brow furrowing. “Then why are you still here?”

  “’Cause of the gate.”

  “Gate?” Si asked. “You can’t be serious! No self-respecting Badlander would let a gate stop him from roaming free.”

  “No!” Drew looked at me with pleading eyes. “Not that kind of gate. You know. They’ve been gated. Gated at the mine.”

  Si shot me a puzzled look. “You know what he’s talking about?”

  I shook my head. “Gated … I don’t know. Drew, your home is hidden from the Hollow, right? And hidden from the mine’s owners. Isn’t that what Damian told me last night?”

  Drew heaved a long-suffering sigh. “Yes. But if they stop working at the mine, they’ll hunt us and bring us back, because of the gate. Then we’ll have no choice but to live in the Hollow until … until …”

  “Until what?” I hated the distress on his sweet face.

  “Until the gate is … gone.” He looked confused for a moment. “Well, I dunno. Damian didn’t tell me that part. But we can’t go anywhere, not really. They can find us in the Badlands and in the cities too. They’re only letting us stay outside the Hollow ’cause Damian promised we wouldn’t run away. We’re gated.”

  “Obligated,” I said quietly, meeting Si’s eyes over Drew’s head. “They’re in debt.”

  The sheer horror that flashed across Si’s face made my chest tighten. “How? Why?” He ran a hand over his face and shook his head. “This isn’t happening.”

  I tapped on Drew’s arm to draw his attention away from Si’s reaction. “Drew, when did they get …um … gated?”

  “Anton got sick. He went to work every day but still missed his quota three days in a row, so they docked everyone’s victus rations for the week. Then Damian had to buy some from the mine store. But we don’t have any marks, so they got gated.”

  “That’s not so bad. Now they just have to pay back the marks they owe, right?”

  Si was rubbing his temples. “Right. How long ago did this happen?”

  “Um … it was after you left. Maybe half a year?” Drew shrugged. “But it’s not just the marks for the victus now. It’s the … attention. That’s what Damian says.”

  “The interest.” Si’s voice was low and rough. “I can’t believe this.”

  “Why?…” I glanced between the two of them, feeling uneasy. Anton was starving to death. Survival was more important than paying back what was no doubt an exorbitant interest rate. “Couldn’t your brothers just run away and live somewhere else in the Badlands?”

  “A Badlander can’t leave gated.” Drew stared at me like I’d said something horrible. “We would never do that.”

  Si ran a hand over his forehead, shooting an uncomfortable glance at me. “Badlanders always take care of their debts, Alba. That’s just how it is. They can’t leave it unpaid.”

  “Besides, even if we did …” Drew shivered “It wouldn’t work. Some other miners from the Hollow tried that, but they found them. They can find anyone.”

  “Who are they? Who can find you?”

  “I’m guessing he means the mine’s owners.” Si looked oddly flustered. Why wouldn’t he meet my eyes?

  “And who owns the mine, Si?” I barely recognized the hard sound of my own voice.

  “An Asylian family runs it.” He finally looked at me. “Galanos. I have a feeling you’ve heard of them.”

  Chapter 18

  “Alba, I didn’t know about the debt.” It was eerie to see Si look so helpless. “And they didn’t know … what I … I mean, they didn’t …”

  Sure, he didn’t. My hands shook as I pushed the bowl of victus away. I couldn’t look at Drew. “Where’s my uniform?”

  “You mean your old clothes? I put them in the cupboard. Did you want—”

  “I have to go.” I found the dirty, black shirt, pants, and jacket wadded up in the third cabinet I opened. “Excuse me.”

  “Hold on.” Si stood between me and the tunnel to the river, where I’d planned to change back into my old clothes.

  “No.” I tried to push past him, but his torso was as solid as a boulder. “Si.” My voice wavered. “I’m leaving. Are you going to kidnap me again?”

  “Alba! No, of course not.” He scowled. “But you can’t leave until you hear me out.”

  I crossed my arms. “Sounds like kidnapping to me.”

  “Fine. Call it what you want.” He leaned against the rock opening to the tunnel, blocking the way. “Just listen.”

  “Well?” It took all my strength to keep my voice even. Lady Galanos had forced me out of Asylia. Someone had arranged for Si to kidnap me and bring me to the Masters, and from the panicked look on his face, I was almost certain it was the Galanos family.

  And now here I was, stuck in the home of orphaned brothers who just so happened to be in debt to the Galanos family. I thought I’d escaped Bri’s fate, but all I’d done was run deeper into Lady Galanos’s grasp.

  “I didn’t know about the debt,” Si repeated stubbornly. He glanced at Drew. “They told me I had to take the job or my brothers might have an accident at the mine. I didn’t know about you, or what the job was. I just wanted to keep my family safe.”

  “What job?” Drew interjected. “What does that have to do with Alba?”

  “Don’t worry about it, kid.” Si sent me a pleading look. “It was just a big, stupid mistake. And everything turned out fine.”

  “Fine? Nothing about this is fine. And I need to leave.”

  How long before Damian realized he could probably hand me over to Lady Galanos and wipe out his brothers’ debts in an instant? I had a feeling his gentleness toward me wouldn’t last beyond that moment.

  And what about Anton? The tall, gangly youth was slowly starving to death on their limited rations. Surely he would hand me over without a second thought if he knew the Galanos family wanted me.

  And the Masters already had my sister.

  Can’t have both of us. Run.


  I never should have stayed here. I should have pressed on to Asylia as soon as I’d recovered enough to leave.

  “Move, Si. I’m leaving.”

  He shook his head. “You can’t.”

  I wrapped my arms around my torso, clutching the dirty Sentinels uniform like a security blanket. “Watch me.” One way or another, I’d be out of here the moment he turned his back.

  “Are you even listening? Alba, you can’t!” He strode forward and stopped just within arm’s reach, his body tense, like he was holding himself back from simply grabbing me again. “We already know they want you. If you leave the cave, they’ll find you.”

  “How?” I swallowed. “The Galanos family is in Asylia.”

  He shook his head. “The family keeps a residence at the Hollow. I saw their caravan pass by last night. They’re here.”

  “But I need to get back home.”

  “You can’t leave the cave. My brothers may have debts, but the Galanos family doesn’t control us. No one controls us. True Badlanders would rather die than be enslaved. You’re safe here with us.”

  I bit my lip. Every instinct urged me to run, but I couldn’t deny the fierce sincerity in his tone. “But what if your brothers disagree?”

  “They won’t. I raised good boys, Alba. You can trust me.” He scowled. “And if they dare to disagree, I’ll set ’em straight. You can trust me,” he repeated. “Didn’t I let you go?”

  “Only after I healed you!” I shook my head, the indecision flooding through me once again. “If I hadn’t, you would have handed me over to the Masters.” I stepped away from him. My feet were cold, even in the little cave, but it’d be better to risk freezing to death than to be handed over to the Masters like Bri.

  “You were going to give her to the monsters?” Drew bellowed.

  “No.” Si ran a hand through his hair. “Listen, Drew, it is complicated. You’re too young to—”

  “I’m the one who saved her when she was lost and injured in the forest,” Drew said stubbornly. “And you’re the one who tried to give her to the monsters. That’s not very complicated.” He marched to my side. “C’mon, Alba. If you want to leave, let’s go. I’ll help you get out of here without anyone finding you.”