Chapter 4

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It was raining. The thundering heavens menaced the creatures of the earth, making them seek shelter in fear. The toiling trees hardly managed to hold out against the howling wind. The storm was raging, and the black winds had been freed to wander in the sky, brawling and racing one another.

The meadow, which was initially empty, filled with the screaming of a small girl who burst in through the trees. She was running with all the strength she could master, but her breaths were shallow, her legs had grown weak, and whoever were chasing her were getting closer with each passing second. The slippery grass would slow them down, though not for long. She peeked over her shoulder and saw them running after her.

She sprinted even faster, ignoring the rain that was pouring and mercilessly whipping her face. She abruptly came to a stop. She has reached a dead end and she had no way to escape. As she desperately searched for a way out, she noticed a crack in the rocks, a tiny opening that barely fit her small body. If she made it that far, maybe she could make it. That gave her hope and she resumed her running, but she had misjudged her luck. In a state of despair, she tripped over the slippery ground and clumsily fell down. That was all it took for her pursuers to catch up with her. The girl felt someone seizing her leg and screamed.

. . . . . .

  Ines immediately opened her eyes. She was back in her room at the inn.

    'Come on Peter, wake up!' someone banged on the door.

Matthew's shouting brought her back to reality. It was only a bad dream, she reasoned. She rubbed her throbbing head and her fingers touched something that felt like a bandage. Why is there a bandage around my head?, she thought. Then all of a sudden, everything came back to her, the mission, the fighting in the forest. That bastard will get it for what he did, she promised to herself. She was deep in thought when the door burst open by a very much frustrated Matthew.

'What the hell are you doing? I've been shouting my lungs out for hours!'

Ines rolled her eyes. She would have kicked him out of her room, but she needed answers.

'Give me a break, Matthew.' Ines started firing him with questions. 'What happened? Did they get away? And why am I in my room?'

'Take it easy buddy. The team brought you back last night. You seemed to have hurt you head pretty badly, so we carried you up here.'

Ines processed the information. It seemed they had safely made it back to the camp, while she was unconscious. Matthew saw her trying to connect the dots in her mind and tried to contain a smile. Ines ignored his obnoxious face. She wandered her gaze around the small room that had been her home for the last couple of years.  On one side, it had a small closet with a water container right next to it, and the walls were bare. Her bed barely fit in the cramped room. It wasn't anything luxurious. During winter, it got too cold and during summer too hot, but it was the only place she could be herself without risking being caught. If living here meant she could stay away from prying eyes, she would gladly choose this over the camp that was filled with not so progressive men.

That thought apparently was a wake-up call for her, and Ines realised that Matthew was still standing at her door. He was leaning against the doorframe, towering over the room. Although his expression was unreadable, his eyes were calculating and didn't miss anything. What if I have already been exposed?, she panicked. She widened her eyes and tried to shake that thought off her mind. She was still wearing her armour like last night, so they mustn't have noticed anything. 

Matthew saw her discomfort and was about to move closer, but Ines stopped him before it was too late.

'I'm fine. Don't you have anything better to do than pestering me with your presence? Get out!' she snapped at him.

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