The Tainted (The Tainted Series Book 1) (18 page)

Dropping into a crouch, Rebecca scanned the surrounding forest. It was fairly dark, but her eyes had already begun to adjust. Although everything around her seemed calm, she couldn’t shake the eerie feeling of being watched.

After a long moment of silence, Rebecca shifted her body and prepared to run. She took a deep breath of air and then burst forward, sprinting through the trees.

It all happened at once, in a flurry of action. The entire forest suddenly began moving with her. Shapes all around her, more than she could count, were rushing through the undergrowth, racing toward her at an alarming speed.

Rebecca dodged and weaved through the trees, her breath coming in heavy gasps. She hadn’t yet recovered from her last run, and her entire body was screaming out for her to stop, but she forced herself to keep going, her fear fueling her blistering sprint.

More than once, she felt the hot breath of someone far too close, and would change directions immediately, diving into thicker undergrowth. She ignored the thorns tearing at her clothes and skin, barely feeling the heavy branches slamming into her as she raced forward. All that mattered was escaping, finding some way to save herself.

It wasn’t long before Rebecca’s legs began to give way beneath her and her lungs were searing with pain from overuse. She knew she’d be forced to stop soon, or risk passing out. Trembling with fright, she scanned the surrounding woods for any possible escape, but there was none.

Not knowing what else to do, she came to a sudden halt beside a large tree, pressing her body against it. Her breathing was strained, her heart raced, and her knees kept collapsing forward, her legs struggling to hold her weight. She listened to the sound of several footsteps racing around her in the dark forest, panic gripping heavily at her chest.

“Find her,” a harsh voice yelled from somewhere in the distance. “Find her now, or I’ll have your heads!”

It was so dark in this deep part of the forest, yet she could still detect the movement of black shadows amidst the surrounding trees. There were so many of them, probing the darkness, all searching, she knew, for her.

Rebecca watched, desperately trying to control her panting breath, as the shapes sped off into the distance, each one gradually disappearing into the darkness.

Finally, when she was sure she was alone, she collapsed forward, hands on her knees. She raked in the air that her lungs so fiercely craved, and her body began to violently shake. Her panic still threatened to overtake her, but she fought it back. She was still alive and that was all that mattered.

Suddenly, she heard a twig crack somewhere to her right, and her breath caught in her throat. She pressed herself even harder against her tree, desperately scanning the surrounding wood.

“My, my, my, what do we have here?”

Rebecca turned to see a tall, green-uniformed figure towering over her. The man’s dark, malicious eyes concentrated on hers, and a satisfied smirk curled up the side of his mouth.

“Take her,” he barked.

Out of nowhere, a gloved hand pressed over her mouth and pulled her into darkness.

Rebecca awoke to a throbbing pain that was emanating from every inch of her body. Even the area behind her eyes hurt, as if tiny blades were being driven into it. When she tried to take in a much needed deep breath, her lungs erupted in a fit of heavy coughing that sent sharp pains throughout her aching body and turned her empty stomach. Once her coughing subsided, she curled her aching body into a tight fetal position on the rough, cold, stone floor, refusing to open her eyes. Yet, even without her sight, she knew exactly where she was. She’d been here before, many times, but only ever in her dreams or, more accurately, her nightmares.

The damp, icy air made goosebumps rise up all over her exposed flesh and the acidic stench of filth and decay burned her nostrils. As terrifying as this cell had been in her dreams, the reality of it was far worse. Pulling her hands up over her face, Rebecca fought back the tears that threatened to surface.

She had no idea how long she remained curled up on the floor, but she stayed awake the entire time. After a while, she ultimately succumbed to her tears, her heavy sobs shaking her entire body and echoing off the bleak, stony walls.

She cried until the tears ceased flowing. Her sadness was replaced by an emptiness that seeped down into her soul.

Finally, Rebecca sat up and scanned the cell. It was exactly how it had been in her dreams. The thick stonewalls around her were covered in dirt and grim that had built up over the ages. The only sound came from the slow, rhythmic drops of water that fell from the ceiling in the far corner of the cell, and the slivers of light that flickered through the small, barred window on the door only added to the feeling of desolation.

The damp, cold air felt as if it were creeping underneath her skin, all the way down to her bones and joints, and no matter how tightly she embraced herself, she was unable to generate any warmth.

Rebecca rested her head on her knees and exhaled slowly, trying to control the anxiety that again threatened to overtake her.

Suddenly, a loud clunk came from across the room, as a heavy metal bolt was pulled back. The rusty hinges on the door creaked heavily as it slowly swung inward, sending dancing flashes of torchlight cascading across the floor.

Rebecca kept her head down, listening as two different sets of footsteps entered the room. Then, once again, the door was swung shut and the bolt replaced.

“Are you done feeling sorry for yourself?” A harsh voice spat at her from near the door.

Rebecca looked up and met eyes with a harsh, tall man in a strict, green uniform. She recognized him instantly as the man she’d seen in the woods before being taken. He was no less frightening now in the cell than he’d been in the forest. His face was thin, with cheekbones so sharp they threatened to pierce through his taut skin. He was older and slim, but held an air of power about him that made Rebecca cower. His mouth was a stiff, straight line across his face, and his dark brown eyes held nothing but hatred.

Rebecca shifted her gaze away from the imposing figure and scanned the area around her. She thought she had heard some other movement, possibly someone else entering the room, but her limited vision could see nothing in the darkness that surrounded her.

“I know you’re an impure, there’s no use trying to hide it.” The man stepped closer to her, slowly bringing his hands back and clasping them behind his back.

“I…I don’t know what you mean.” Rebecca’s voice wavered and she refused to meet the man’s gaze.

“Don’t play games with me girl, I don’t have the time,” he snapped back at her, taking yet another step closer.

Rebecca’s body started to shake with fear as she tried to press herself back even further into the corner. “Really…I don’t know what you want.”

Suddenly, the man made a swift movement with his arm and a thick vine shot up out of the ground, wrapped around Rebecca’s neck, and wrenched her into an upright position. She struggled against the tightening vine, pulling as it closed ever stronger around her throat, slowly closing off her airway.

The man took a final step toward her and leaned over until his face was only inches from her own. A malicious grin split his taut mouth as he watched her struggle. “You think you’re brave? I guess I’ll have to break you of that.”

The man stared at her a moment longer, watching her fight for air, then turned around and nonchalantly flicked his hand. The vine instantly loosened its grip and Rebecca fell to the floor, desperately gasping for air. As she lie trembling on the ground, waves of despair and terror washed over her, plunging her into a state of utter panic.

At some point during her fit of severe anxiety, Rebecca passed out. Now, she was slowly waking, her whole body extremely sore. Her neck hurt the worse of all. It felt as if someone had stepped on it, each inhale causing sharp, stabbing pains to radiate from her throat.

She sat up, lightly holding one hand around her sore neck. Nothing had changed in the cell; it was still as desolate and depressing as before. There was no way to tell what time it was or how long she’d been locked up, as there were no windows to the outdoors, only the flickering light from the torches on the other side of the door. Feeling her panic slowly rise up again in her chest, Rebecca took a deep breath, willing her mind to calm. For now, there was no way out, and panicking would only make her situation harder to handle.

It had been such a strange sensation when the evil Aillil had attacked her. Just like in the woods, she’d known it was going to happen. She’d dreamt it all more times than she could count. Yet, even with such a warning, knowing exactly how he was going to react, knowing that he was going to strangle her with the vine, she had somehow felt powerless to change what was occurring. It had felt as if she was once again inside the dream, absolutely incapable of altering what she knew was going to happen. What good were premonition dreams if she wasn’t able to change her fate?

Rebecca’s stomach cried out for food. She couldn’t even remember the last time she’d eaten, and, as far as she could tell, the Aillil weren’t planning on feeding her anytime soon.

Using the wall to help her stand, Rebecca carefully pulled herself up. It took a minute for her lightheadedness to subside before she could move and, once she did, every single step made her cringe in pain. She was shivering in the freezing air, but determined to keep moving. As sound and thick as the cell walls appeared, she had to see if there was anything in this room, anything at all, that might help her escape.

She’d made it to the opposite wall, when a loud clunk came from the door. Rebecca instantly threw herself backwards, trying in vain to disappear into the shadows.

The door swung open and she heard footsteps enter, but as hard as she searched, she couldn’t see anyone.

“I…I know you’re there,” she called out, unable to hide the waver in her voice.

Suddenly, a man appeared in the center of the cell, staring straight at her. He was very different than the Aillil that had come earlier. He was far younger, no more than a year or two older than her. He was tall and lean, but still formidable in appearance, standing stiffly with his hands clasped behind his back.

His light brown hair was combed neatly to the side, framing his rather handsome face, which held a surprisingly soft expression. In fact, he seemed to be looking at her more inquisitively than anything else. It was mainly his eyes, though, that drew her attention. Even in the soft torchlight, they shone a bright yellow-gold, like the eyes of a hawk or eagle, so intense they seemed to pierce straight through her.

Not realizing she was doing so, Rebecca began to lean toward him, away from the wall. She’d seen those eyes somewhere before. Actually, there was something so incredibly familiar about this man in general that she couldn’t shake the feeling she’d met him before. Though, somehow, she knew it hadn’t been in one of her dreams.

“You’re cold.”

His voice shocked Rebecca back to reality and she quickly pinned herself against the wall again. She remained silent, just staring at him, unsure of how to treat this interaction.

“And you’re hungry.”

Almost on cue, her stomach grumbled loudly.

“I brought you these.” The man took his hands out from behind his back, causing Rebecca to flinch. However, to her great surprise, the man pulled out a blanket and a small loaf of bread.

Rebecca stared in shock at the items, and then back up at the man. “Why would you do this?”

The man shrugged.

“Why should I trust you?” She said, glaring at him.

“I suppose you don’t have to,” he said as he bent down, placing the blanket and loaf on the ground, all the while maintaining eye contact with Rebecca.

As he stood up, he nodded to her, “I must return before I’ve been gone too long.” Then, without another word, he spun and left the room, closing and locking the door behind him.

Still stunned and confused by what had just happened, it took Rebecca a moment to pull herself off the wall and make her way over to the items on the ground. Picking them up quickly, as if they might disappear if she didn’t, she made her way back over to her original corner of the cell. She tightly wrapped the blanket around herself and then sat, curled up and wedged into the corner.

Rebecca stared at the bread, wondering if it could be poisoned. Finally, resigned to the fact that she’d rather die from poison than starvation, she ate the entire loaf without another thought.

For a long time, Rebecca sat curled up in the warmth of the blanket. All her muscles had grown tight and achy from the constant shivering, and only now did they relax a little. However, after struggling several times to fall asleep, she realized she was fighting a losing battle.

With one hand keeping the blanket wrapped around her and the other holding onto the wall, she stood up again. Starting in the opposite direction as she’d gone before, Rebecca once more began walking along the walls of the cell, probing for any weak spots and searching for anything on the ground that might be of some use to her.

Rebecca became so immersed in what she was doing that she didn’t hear the footsteps approaching from the other side of the door, or see the torchlight beyond the small, barred window dim. She was inspecting a small crack in the stone wall near the floor. It wasn’t much, but it was the biggest one she’d found yet. Bending over, Rebecca reached out, attempting to dig at the crack and possibly widen it even more.

Suddenly, a thick green vine shot out of the crack and constricted around her wrists, crushing them together. Rebecca wrenched back in surprise and fear, the blanket sliding off her shoulders as she fought for freedom.

Pulling her foot around, she stamped on the end of the vine, frantically trying to kill or break it, but it only swelled in size, tightening its grip around her arms.

“Eventually you’re going to have to fight back,” a snide voice called from the other side of her cell door. She recognized it as the voice of the first Aillil--the evil one.