Gold to Dust

Chapter Thirteen

Thirteen

The sun slowly came to rest below the mountains as the moon filled a burning sky with a faint white glow. Another day had passed, and the feeling of being trapped in this canyon wrapped even tighter around the sorry group.

It had been another uneventful and disappointing day. They'd risen with the sun and trekked miles through sand and rock, trying in whatever way they could to find some kind of sign that they were getting close to the way out. Tamshie had been tasked with the job of scouting for hints of life or civilization, but nothing appeared. At noon, she'd come down from the high cliffs and dragged her feet alongside the rest of them. They'd traveled without so much as a word between the four of them. Romi mumbled side conversations to Faine in their shared native tongue, and the relief that flooded through her at finally being understood gave her a new spring in her step that boosted her nonexistent confidence. She talked of their homeland, her village in the western part of Khalysria. She rambled on and on about the icecaps and her love for sledding down the hills of snow. Each memory brought another smile onto her face, something which Faine didn't reciprocate. He simply nodded along and grunted his way through their one-sided conversation. Keeping his eyes fixed ahead, he drowned her out, and eventually her talking ceased and died along with her confidence once again.

Ellegra and Tamshie lingered behind the two of them, heads down and following in the footsteps of their fellow stragglers. They didn't speak, but the few glances they did exchange said their thoughts better than they could have communicated with words.

Collages of pink and tinged purple gleamed in the sky. Stars began to sparkle and glow. Faine stopped, halting Romi next to him. Ellegra managed to stop herself an inch before she slammed into his back. "We'll stop here," he grunted in a low voice. He walked over to the canyon wall and began to settle in. Romi followed and sat next to him, watching as he dumped his bag on the ground and shuffled through it. Ellegra and Tamshie followed and spread out in the sand, putting enough distance between them and the other two.

"What is that?" Romi asked. Her fingers reached toward Faine's neck, where a ring dangled from black cord around his throat.

Faine jerked away, taking the ring in his hand and stuffing it down his shirt. His eyes narrowed and glared daggers at Romi. She curled in on herself and turned away to lie down.

Ellegra watched him curiously as he punched his bag and laid down, glaring at her a second more before turning away. His gaze found Ellegra's and held it for several moments before she blinked and stood up.

Tamshie glanced up at her. "Where are you going?" she asked. There was a slight hint of desperation in her voice that made Ellegra's heart crack. She'd almost forgotten how young Tamshie really was, just fifteen and three years younger than herself, but she looked so much older now, as if the weight of their journey had physically changed her features. Her skin was dry with slight crinkles near the corners of her wide green eyes. There was so much pain and fear on her face, and it killed Ellegra to know it was all her fault.

"I need to use the bathroom."

Tamshie nodded and picked herself up. "Mind if I come?"

Ellegra shook her head and looked back to the others. Romi's eyes were already closed and her mouth slightly parted to breathe, and Faine shook his head at them, following Romi's lead and shutting his eyes. "We'll be back."

The girls rounded the bend and walked on. They walked until they were far enough downwind and were sure they wouldn't be seen, by Faine or otherwise. Tamshie dipped behind a large rock as Ellegra stood watch near the bend, arms crossed and foot tapping quickly in the rhythm to her growing need to relieve herself. She clenched her fists and threw her head back, biting her lip. Just a minute more, she told herself, calming her raging bladder. Tamshie is almost done. She breathed and looked back down at the ground.