Unbound (The Captive #7)(40)

Her feet had barely touched the ground when Daniel wrapped his arms around her and embraced her. She’d barely been able to stand the touch of anyone all week, but she lifted her arms to hug him back. He needed this hug, and she needed him. The piece of bark digging into her palm fell from her hand as she clung to her brother. So like their father, he was a source of calm in a world that had become utter chaos for her.

“You’re safe,” he whispered.

“So are you,” she breathed. “It’s so good to see you.”

“You also.”

“Braith?” she choked out through the lump in her throat.

His arms tightened around her. “He was still unresponsive when we left the cave.”

“And dead.”

“Yes.”

Aria slumped against him, somehow managing to stem the flow of tears burning her eyes and clogging her throat. If she started crying now, she’d never stop, and they had to get out of here before one of Sabine’s followers returned.





CHAPTER 16


Daniel

“Amazing,” Daniel murmured as he watched the door hidden perfectly in the floor of the old barn swing open to reveal a set of stairs leading into the darkness below. Aria had filled them in on everything they’d gone through this past week and all they’d achieved with the rebels. He still couldn’t help but be impressed with what the rebels had accomplished here.

“You should have seen the one in the tree,” Aria said to him over her shoulder; her ruby-colored eyes briefly met his before flitting away. “You would have really appreciated it.”

“I do just hearing about it,” he assured her as she stepped onto the first stair.

The set of her shoulders and the color of her eyes belied the aura of calm she tried to project. His heart ached as he watched his little sister. He would do anything to take away her suffering, to protect her from what was to come, but he was helpless to do either of those things. All he could do was protect her as much as possible.

No matter what unfolded, he would keep her safe if it was the last thing he did.

“I will go first,” Xavier said and rested his hand on her arm to pull her back.

She gave him an exasperated look and blew a loose strand of hair out of her face. “It’s safe, Xavier. I’ve been here before.”

“I will still go first.”

Aria hesitated before moving aside to let him lead the way below. The door at the bottom of the stairs opened before they reached it to reveal William. Daniel breathed a sigh of relief. Aria had told him they’d split up and that William and Tempest would be here, but he’d been afraid to believe her, until now. William gawked at them all for a minute before breaking into a grin.

“You always did like to rescue the strays, Aria,” he said as he slapped Xavier on the back. He hugged Aria before turning to embrace Daniel. “You have no idea how good it is to see you,” he whispered in Daniel’s ear.

“I can imagine it’s been a fun-filled week,” Daniel replied as Timber closed the door behind them.

“Oh yes, death, mayhem, and trying to keep that one from getting herself killed.”

“I can hear you,” Aria grated and flashed them both a fulminating glare as William stepped away from him to shake hands with Max and Timber. “My glasses?”

Tempest walked forward to hand them to her. “How did you find them?” she asked.

“They had themselves cornered in a cave,” Aria replied.

“Not cornered,” Max replied defensively.

“Were you going to dig your way through the solid rock at your back if you were spotted?” Aria demanded.

Max grinned at her as he folded his arms over his chest. “But we weren’t spotted, and if I recall, you’re the one who almost gave away your position by nearly dropping bark on their heads.”

Aria scowled at him but refrained from commenting.

“Really?” William asked, unable to keep the disbelief from his voice.

“Sabine was there,” Aria muttered. “I should have better anticipated my reaction to being so near her. I won’t underestimate it again.”

Daniel stepped away from them to examine the small room they’d entered. Beams ran across the ceiling, not more than three inches separating them as they kept the earth above them from caving in. The beams were at least a foot wide and thick; the wood they’d used to create the ceiling looked to be a good six inches thick. He spotted a small vent in the side of the wall and itched to trace its pathway to the earth above, to see how they had created the ventilation system.

He’d designed a concept extremely similar to this one when they’d still been rebels hiding from vampires. At the time, the caves were being raided, and though they were taking out vampires in those raids, they were also losing fighters. No one would think to look for them under the earth.

With the war and the events that had transpired after Aria and Braith had gotten together, he’d never had a chance to start the underground buildings, but these rebels had. He would have loved to watch the building process take place. He enjoyed being on The Council, keeping the peace and working with the vampires for that peace, but he missed building and his designs. He still sketched often, but it wasn’t the same as seeing his sketches come to life before him as they once had. When all of this was over, if he survived, he would make time to design and build more often, to enjoy doing something he loved so dearly once again.