The Reaper's Curse #1 - Complete

Hiding from the Dark

Alicia is drenched in sweat and struggling for breath by the time she reaches the entrance to the tunnels that she used. She managed to cut down an hour of walking to merely minutes of sprinting, her push onwards aided by the sounds of explosions that had echoed behind her for a time.

She stumbles out into the cool night air with a cry of relief and tumbles to her hands and knees, sucking air into her aching lungs.

The sound of boots on grass catches her ears and she lurches away from the noise. She has a gun in her grip and pointed at the figure that moves towards her before she can even register what she's doing. On her back with a gun wavering in her hands and sweat-drenched hair sticking to her cheeks, she must look wild.

"Alicia," a woman says, raising her hands in a sign of surrender.

Alicia hesitates before she lowers the gun. "Elena?"

"Gods, what happened to you?" Elena kneels at Alicia's side and pushes her wet hair from her face to peer at her, concern brightening her black eyes.

"I..." Alicia looks back at the hole in the wall she managed to squeeze through, the events that transpired within those tunnels seeming more and more like a dream with every passing moment. "I don't know if I can put it into words."

Elena stands and pulls Alicia to her feet, holding onto her elbow to keep her steady. Alicia's knees tremble and she sways, clinging to the coat around Elena's shoulders to stay standing.

The cool air begins to dry the sweat on Alicia's skin, making a shiver rake down her spine. Her teeth chatter and she doesn't know whether that's from the cold or if she's going into some sort of shock.

"Let's get you to camp."

"No," Alicia argues, tightening her fingers around Elena. "I'm going home. You won't see me for a while."

"What?" Elena asks, frowning at her.

"I can't be seen for a while. People might come looking."

"Alicia, tell me what's going on."

Alicia glances back again, a part of her waiting for guards to come streaming from that tunnel. "If they discover it wasn't just him who was in there, they'll come looking."

"You're making no sense—"

"We found something," Alicia interrupts, swinging her gaze back to Elena. "We saw something that the grand duke didn't want us to see."

Elena steps back, severing contact between them like Alicia's burnt her. "The grand duke?"

"Yes. He's trying to hide something."

Elena shakes her head, her short curls swinging around her face. "Sergey has only ever been curious about what's down there. He doesn't want to hide anything."

Alicia stills, her breath catching in her throat. "You've been talking to the grand duke?"

"He's why I asked you to go down there."

"Does he know?" Alicia questions, her voice rising. "Does he know you sent me down there?"

Elena shakes her head again. "No. He's been asking about the tunnels, about what my grandfather found. I wanted to find out for myself before I..." She stops talking and presses her lips together.

"Before you what?"

Elena sighs and turns away, planting her hands on her hips. "Sergey is a historian. He came to the travellers with a lot of questions. Apparently, I was the only one who could answer the questions he was asking." She tilts her face up, the moon reflecting on her brown skin. "I have a book, Alicia. A book that my grandfather found in those tunnels fifteen years ago. The grand duke wants it."

"You're not going to give it to him, right?"

Elena lowers her face, her teeth sinking into her lower lip. "I sent you down there to see what he could possibly be looking for, to see if it was worth it."

"To see if what was worth it?"

Elena meets Alicia's eye, her features hardening. "Marrying him."

Alicia blinks and that's all she seems to be able to do.

"He gets the book and I get all the opportunities available to the wife of the grand duke."

"You'd sell your grandfather's legacy for riches."

Elena shakes her head and steps forward. "For a chance, Alicia. To go to school, to study, to live a life that isn't constantly moving or spat on. Wouldn't you do the same thing for that? Wouldn't you do what I'm doing to get out of the slums and have a life?"

The question makes Alicia draw in a breath. Can she say with certainty that she wouldn't?

Alicia crosses her arms over her chest, shielding herself from such thoughts. She doesn't have such an opportunity and wishful thinking will only make getting through her days worse.

"So, the duke is going to marry you just so he can get all the information he needs on what your grandfather discovered."

Elena shrugs. "I've read the tome my grandfather found down there. It makes no sense. Most of it is in a language that doesn't even exist anymore. I don't see what harm it could do giving it to Sergey."

Something boils under Alicia's skin. After seeing how that man treated Oliver, she can't consider giving him anything. But then again, seeing the glimmer of hope in Elena's eyes dulls Alicia's anger. Who is Alicia to deny Elena a chance at living the life she's so desperately sought for years? Especially after Elena has helped Alicia so much when she didn't need to.

Alicia drops her arms to her sides and sighs. "I can't tell you this isn't a mistake but..." She pinches the bridge of her nose. "But you need to understand that whatever is in those tunnels is dangerous. I don't know what I saw but it wasn't anything normal."

"I'll try to make sure Sergey doesn't exploit what's down there. But I honestly believe he's trying to make Muovea a safer place."

Alicia's shoulders slump but she nods. "I suppose this is where we part ways then. You're about to become the grand duchess."

Elena grins and she reaches out to Alicia and wraps her in a tight hug. "This is definitely not where we part ways. I'll reach out to you when it's safe and you'll tell me about everything you saw."

Alicia nods and heaves in a breath as she pats Elena's back.

"Just promise me something," Elena continues, leaning back, her hands clasping Alicia's shoulders. "Promise me you'll never breathe a word about any of this to anyone else. I don't want it getting back to Sergey that I sent someone down there."

Alicia's gaze flicks between Elena's and she's reminded of Oliver. Both of them have fallen into this mess now, whatever it is. They're apart of this conspiracy that Alicia can't seem to wrap her head around.

A part of her is thankful that she can leave it behind and never have to think about it again. Another part of her wants to tear through Muovea until she finds Oliver to wrench him out of the grand duke's clasp. But she can't do that without jeopardising herself and her family.

So, like the good girl her ma has taught her how to be, Alicia pastes a smile on her face and makes a promise she hopes she can keep.