Page 8 of Fallen to Thievery
“Fuck you!” I screamed over his laughter, my throat burning. My blood was simmering as he lowered his head to look at me, his laughter subsiding. Blood trickled down his face. The white of his eye was stained red by the blood, but he seemed unbothered by it. It made him look like a demonic maniac as he grinned down at me. I stared right into his soulless eyes. I wasn’t going to let him see how scared I was. Evil men like him got off on it. No, I wouldn’t give him the satisfaction. If he was going to kill me, then I would doeverythingin my power to make it an unsatisfactory experience. Becausefuckhim.
We stared each other down. All the disgust I felt towards him gleamed in my face, while he smirked at me.
Bastard.
“You’re quite the fighter. I underestimated you, cupcake.” His mouth was still upturned in a mocking smile.
“Don’t call me that!” I spat, yanking my arms down, trying to get free. Trying to get away from his cruelness, unsuccessfully.
“Then what’s your name?” he pressed.
I turned my head away defiantly, not answering him. Movement caught my eye. It was the other two hurriedly struggling through the dense vegetation.
Did I run through that?
The woman froze as she caught sight of us, my captor still pinning me down with his body. “Grayson, what are you doing?” her voice sounded bewildered. She quickly brought her hand up to where her mouth would be, stepping backwards, visibly distressed from letting his name slip.
My eyes shot back to him. Death had a name.Grayson.
He winked at me, mockingly. “Don’t worry, we’re just getting to know each other,” he answered the woman, picking a leaf from my hair. I winced. “We can have some more fun another time,” he said low enough that the others couldn’t hear, but it echoed loudly in my head.
He pushed off me, pulling me up with him by the zip-tie around my wrists. My muscles were screaming, and I could suddenly feel every nick and cut along my body. But it was nothing compared to the sick feeling in my stomach.
I saw his face. I knew his name. And he wanted to havefun.
“We’ve wasted enough daylight. We need to move.Now,” the driver urged from farther away.
I turned to walk towards them, deciding to stay as close to the woman as I could if I were to survive this. Grayson gripped my arm, holding me back. He lowered his head to my ear.
“Next time,” he whispered coldly, “I’ll just shoot you in the back.”
It made me shudder, and it made him chuckle.
We walked for miles and miles. I kept close behind the woman, who was softly talking to the driver now and again. There was no way to hear what they were talking about, but their mannerisms towards one another made it clear they weretogether. Grayson was deathly quiet at my back, my hair standing on end every time I felt him close by. My breathing was uneven, not from the walking, but the panic coming up my chest.
I beseeched the forest to keep me safe and alive. I begged the trees to show me a way out and lend me their calm.
I distracted my mind with the plant life we passed to keep myself together, reciting their scientific name and then their common name. It kept me from spiralling. Up ahead was a meadow filled with beautiful pink, purple and blue flowers.
Verbena hastata or Blue vervain. Rosa gymno…I paused.Vervain. It is commonly used to make tea or tinctures for its sedative effects on the nervous system. But what most people didn’t know—mixed with Jimson Weed in the right doses, it can render a person unconscious for hours.
My heart lurched. There was Jimson Weed all over the place. It might help me get away. I didn’t know how I would give it to them, but it was something. It was hope.
As we neared the meadow, I made a show of stopping and looking at the flowers in it. The overwhelming fear in my gut made me swallow involuntarily, my heart beating in my throat. As calmly as I could manage,my feet wandered over to the Vervain and I picked a handful of flowers, being careful to leave as much of the stems as possible. I needed as much of the plant as I could possibly get without it raising suspicion. Turning back, I kept my eyes on the flowers, as if admiring them. The woman and driver were still walking and didn’t seem to notice my deviation, but Grayson was watching me intently, his brow furrowed. My hands started to shake.
“For my grave,” I rasped, my throat closing with panic.
Grayson arched a brow and one side of his mouth quirked up, just a bit.
Did he buy it? I kept walking, keeping my eyes on the forest floor. I needed to find Jimson Weed. There was a bush to my right, but I couldn’t walk over there and just pick at it. It had no pretty flowers. He would definitely know something was up. About a mile farther, the forest answered my prayers. Up ahead, laid two seed pods in our path. Excitement welled in my chest. When I reached the seed pods, a Vervain stem slipped from my hands. I bent to pick it up and quickly grasped the two seed pods as well. My heart thundered. Did he see it? My clumsy sleight of hand? The spikes of the seed pods pressed painfully into my palms, but I welcomed it. It kept me distracted. Kept me from writhing out of my skin with terror. And a small dose of its toxins would be good for my frayed nerves.
For a while, I kept anticipating a hand on my shoulder, a voice demanding to know what I was up to. But there was no hand grasping me and he never spoke a word. We continued walking in silence. I focused on my breathing, telling myself over and over to stay calm, to keep control.
The breeze started to turn chilly, and the last rays of sun barely reached our path. The forest sounds started to change. The chirping of the birdsdied off and the small animals that scurried in the forest canopy had found a hiding place. The sounds at night in Frostford Forest had always made my skin prickle. And for good reason.
It seemed my kidnappers were also aware of the‘No wandering around at night’rule. They were also on edge, increasing their pace with the setting sun. Our loose group became tighter and on alert.
I enjoyed their unease. It felt good having them feel just a smidge of what I’ve been feeling. From the sounds echoing around us, I knew we weredeepinside Frostford Forest. Where most people didn’t dare venture. Dad never took us this far in. We always stayed near camping grounds and other human settlements. This was insane.
