Vengeance (The Captive #6)(24)

Toweling off, he dressed and left the house. The sun was beginning to set; it would probably be best if he stayed here for the night, but he had no intention of spending any more time in this town than he had to.

He walked back to the steps of the prison, grabbed hold of the lantern still burning on its hook and lifted it to look around the building. He hated the idea of leaving this place still standing with the horror beneath it, but he didn’t know what else was out there, possibly waiting for him in the snow. He might draw it here, if he lit this place on fire.

Turning away, he strode over to the stable and slid open the door. All of the stalls within were open and empty. Whatever had happened here, they’d either turned the horses loose, or someone had taken them. He stared into each of the empty stalls before arriving at the large feed bins at the back of the stable. Hanging the lantern from the hook hanging over the bin, he threw open the lid to find oats inside.

Grabbing an empty sack from beside the bin, he began to fill it with scoops of oats. He had no idea what lay beyond this town, not anymore. He had to start stocking a lot more supplies and find somewhere safe to stash them. Closing the lid on the bin, he returned to Achilles and tied the sack to his saddle before climbing on. He gathered the reins in his grasp and turned the horse out of town. He had no idea where he was heading when he nudged the stallion in the side and into a brisk trot; he just knew he had to get far from here.

He had no doubt Kane had been here now. What had happened in that town would have been something the twisted vampire would have enjoyed thoroughly. Moving deeper into the mountains seemed like the best idea. Whoever had been behind the destruction here would want to keep their maliciousness unknown and hidden for as long as possible. The mountains were the perfect place for that.

***

Tempest weaved her way in and out of the cave. She climbed higher then lower with the flow of the rock beneath her feet as she made her way to the end. When the exit to the cave was only a hundred feet away, she extinguished the flame by rolling the torch around on the floor. Carefully, she unwrapped the rag from the end; she hissed when her fingers blistered from the lingering heat. With a shake of her wrist, she tossed it on the ground.

She kept hold of the torch; she would need it again, if she wasn’t captured, dragged back, and lit on fire as soon as she exited the cave. Her steps were noiseless and carefully placed as she approached the sliver of moonlight filtering inside the constricted exit of the cave.

Turning sideways, she slid cautiously between the rock walls surrounding her. She froze when there was only three feet left until the exit. Unmoving, she stood and listened for any sign of someone outside the cave. Her hands shook as she forced herself to continue to inch forward. No matter how tempting it was, she simply could not stand in this cave and wait for help to come to her.

At the edge of the exit, she placed her forehead against the cool rock and took a minute to steady herself. She wrapped her hand around the rock wall and poked her head out. Her eyes searched over the pathways and rocks carved into the mountains surrounding her. She didn’t see any guards patrolling the mountainside, but that didn’t mean they weren’t there, blending in with their surroundings.

Her gaze slid to the lake situated in the valley below. The sliver of the moon hanging high in the sky reflected in the lake’s clear blue surface. She could almost believe she could walk straight across the pathway the moon had lit across the shimmering water. Almost believe all was right in the world as she gazed down at the beautiful scene beneath her.

Massive boulders surrounded the lake; their jagged formations had been cut from the mountains surrounding it by the water. No one had ever lived on this side of the mountain as there was no land to build on, but she’d spent a fair amount of time swimming in the lake and lying on the boulders, absorbing the sun in the summertime.

Tilting her head back, she examined the sky. The stars were beginning to come to life. Now was the time for her to go.

Releasing the wall, she stepped from the cave and hurried down the rocky ledge lining the mountain. The path was so narrow she could only place one foot on it at a time. One wrong step and she would end up smashed onto the rocks below. The fall most likely wouldn’t kill her, unless it somehow managed to knock her head from her body. However, she couldn’t afford to lie there, for what could be days, while she waited for her broken bones to mend.

After two hundred feet, the path ended abruptly in another rock wall. Stopping at the end of the path, her gaze slid over the top of the mountains again. Everything remained calm and still. She slipped the torch into the rope wrapped around her waist before dipping her foot over the side of the path. She moved it around in search of a rock to use as leverage to climb down. She’d climbed up and down these mountains more times than she could count, but that had always been in the daytime and without the added worry of somebody shouting at her to stop.

Her foot finally found a sturdy rock. She carefully lowered herself over the path and onto the mountain face. Her hands and feet found holds amongst the crevices in the mountain, rapidly allowing her to move down until she finally found the next ledge. Dropping onto it, she kept her back pressed against the wall as she slid down into a crouch.

She rested for a minute before shoving herself to her feet again. This pathway was wider than the one before as it wound down toward the lake below. She broke into a jog, eager to get out of the open and into the shelter of the next cave.

She was only a hundred feet from the entrance of the cave when something moved amongst the shadows surrounding her. A plume of snow kicked up around her feet when she skidded to a halt on the pathway. Her hand wrapped around the torch, tugging it free of her waistband as a figure emerged on the pathway. Her deadened heart leapt into her throat as the moon revealed the white cloak covering the figure before her.