Page 14 of Hunting for her Heart
Although she should feel the same bond we do. If she shares the same beliefs on fated mates as all mainlanders do, she may not even understand what she’s feeling toward us.
I continue slowly circling the tree, and once I’ve made it back around to where I started, I decide to climb. When Imove in close and reach up to grab a place to hold, to hoist myself up, I notice a hole in the trunk and move my head to look inside.
It appears empty at first, but as I start to pull myself up, something blue catches my attention. Letting go of the trunk, I step right up to the hole and look down, inhaling sharply when I see her curled up in a ball at the bottom of the hole, fast asleep.
How did she even get in there?
She definitely didn’t fit through the small hole. Looking up, I see there’s nothing above her. She must have climbed in from above.
Clever girl.
The problem is, I can’t get to her. I won’t be able to reach her from above, not without her standing up. I glance around and make sure we’re alone as I contemplate my next step. If I wake her up, she’ll be terrified, and I’ll never get her out of there. I need to stay hidden until she tries to come out on her own, then I can reveal myself to her.
Glancing down at her frail form, I decide she’ll need food and water when she wakes up. Remembering that I passed a stream a few minutes back, I run there as fast as I can, drinking and refilling my canteen for her. I find some berries and nuts in the nearby bushes and tie them up in a large leaf before running back to her hiding spot.
Luckily, she’s still alone and hasn’t moved. She must be exhausted. Earlier, I noticed the dark circles under her eyes, and I ache to know what put them there. Why had she been unable to sleep properly? How had she gotten so thin and dirty? When we saw her back at the camp, she looked like she’d been trying to run, which doesn’t make any sense.
Everyone who signs up for the Mating Hunt does so willingly.
Since the hole is too small for me to reach through, I hoist myself up above her, as quietly as I can, so as not to wake her.
Staring down from above, my fingers ache to reach down and pull her out. Unfortunately, she’s out of my reach. Slowly, I lower the water canteen down by its strap, setting it gently between her hip and the inside of the trunk. Then I reach down as low as I can and release the bundle of food. It lands on top of the canteen, and she doesn’t react.
I know I’m being extra gentle, but it still worries me that she is so out of it that she hasn’t stirred at all in my presence. She’s so vulnerable right now. I’m grateful I’m the first one to find her.
Once I climb down to the ground, I pace the clearing, looking for the best vantage point to hide in so I can keep an eye on her, but also be ready to stop any threats that come our way. When I look back at the tree, I realize the best spot is right there.
Placing my back against the trunk she’s hidden in, I lower myself to the ground, my spear across my lap as I watch for incoming threats. If she looks out the hole, she won’t be able to see me down here, and by sitting against her tree, nobody will be able to get to her without going through me.
It’s the perfect spot to sit and wait.
Chapter Six
Willow
Slowly, I blink my eyes open. Darkness surrounds me and I tense up with fear as my hands press to the walls closing in around me.
After a few deep breaths, I remember where I am. The walls aren’t moving. I’m inside the tree trunk. I’m unable to stretch as the space is too small, but as I move, I feel something on my hip. I feel around my side and pull out the large object, wondering why I didn’t see it in here before.
But then I realize it’s restingon topof my hip. When I pull it around, I lift it in front of my face, trying to see what it is in the dark, and I feel something topple off it, landing near my feet. The moon must be full tonight, as I’m able to make out the large object as a water canteen.
I don’t question where it came from, as my throat suddenly feels so dry that I fear it might close up if I don’t drink some right now. I hum in approval, wiping the back of my hand over my mouth after drinking a third of the canteen in several greedy gulps.
I reach between my feet to find the other item and frownat the bundle of leaves. It’s been tied up with a small vine, and as I turn it over in my hand, I realize it’s wrapped up like a present with the vine forming a bow at the top.
Curious, I pull at the bow, and the whole package easily unravels in my hand, revealing a large leaf filled with berries and nuts. I lick my lips as I stare down at it. Then I tilt my head up and look at my peephole and the opening above.
There’s not much to see from here, especially in the darkness. Somebody had left this here for me. Why hadn’t they tried to capture me? Or wake me?
Looking back at the food, my stomach rumbles as the hunger presses in. It’s been well over a day now since I ate anything, maybe even closer to two. I don’t recognize this food, though. But what reason would someone have to leave me poisonous food? Would anyone out there have a reason to try to kill me?
The Mating Hunt sounds like a savage ritual, but I can’t think of a reason any of the men in it would want to poison me. I pick up a berry and run it across my lip before pulling it back and squashing it between my fingers, letting the juice rub into my skin.
Many plants have other bad qualities besides poison. It could be paralytic or psychoactive, making me act in ways I normally wouldn’t.
I pick up a nut and assess it. It looks similar to a walnut, without its shell. Which means someone shelled it for me. It feels safer than the berry, so I place it on my tongue and pull it into my mouth. After ten seconds, when nothing strange happens, I chew and swallow it down.
I lift my red fingertips and rub them together, no pain or numbness. My lip still feels normal too. I touch it with my fingertips to make sure it’snot swollen.
