Free The Scent of Lilac: An Arrow's Flight Novella by Casey Hays Page B

feels like.  
                I also
know that we don’t have weeks. I’ve been fortunate so far, and the broken locks
have made it easy for me to come and go as I please without a jailer’s
assistance, but soon this won’t be the case. And soon another breeder will be
assigned to Chad .
                The time
is now.
                I breathe
deep. “Wait here.”
                Outside
the cave, I scan the area near the ladder. Only one guard is on duty tonight,
walking the perimeter, checking for anything unusual. I can tell from her lazy pace
that she’s not very attentive. I can also tell that it will take her quite some
time to walk the full length of the Pit, work her way past each cave, and round
back. She inspects nothing as she saunters along, assured that there is nothing
to suspect. The stock know their place. This is an advantage.
                When
she’s halfway down the opposite wall of the Pit, I slip back inside the cave.
                “Are you
ready?” I don’t hide the anxious sound of my voice... or the sudden gleam of
excitement, either. I don’t know who this girl is that has suddenly cropped up
inside my skin, but she thrills me and terrifies me all at once.
                Chad grabs for my hand. His grin has returned, and in it, I find myself. A sudden calm
settles over me. We step out.
                The
jailers are tucked inside the barracks, and the guard, at the far end of the
Pit now, isn’t even visible. Moving ahead of him, I watch for others. The ground
crunches beneath our feet, the ladder comes into view, and my heart feels as if
it may climb up my throat to burst out of my head.
                I climb
the ladder with Chad close on my heels, and my excitement grows with each rung. And one badgering
question batters my brain:
                What are
you doing, Mia? WHAT ARE WE DOING?
                I don’t
want to analyze the answer, so I don’t. Like before, I simply act.
                At the
top of the ladder, I check for more guards, see none. I hoist myself up over
the top and spin, scanning the Pit while Chad clambers over the edge. The guard is lost in the darkness below.   Quickly, I take Chad ’s
hand and hurry toward the tree line that hides the river. As we near it, the
comforting sound of the rushing water eases my fears, and the excitement floods
in full force.
                I don’t
pay much attention to Chad ’s
reactions as I hurry him away from the Pit, but once we’re under cover of the
trees, I turn to him. His eyes are glazed with wonder as he takes in the wide
open space surrounding him. He reaches out, dragging the tips of his fingers
over a rough, tree trunk. He picks up a rock and runs a thumb across its smooth
surface. A light breeze lifts a tuft of his hair, and he raises his face to the
sky, eyes closed, just feeling. Tears threaten me; I strain to push them away.
No tears. Not tonight.
                “Where is
the Village from here?” he asks, and I point in the general direction.
                “They’re
all sleeping by this hour,” I whisper. “Which means we’re the only two people
awake in the world.”
                The
statement floods me with a strange happiness, and my grip tightens in his hand.
                “I would
like to see it again,” he says. “I saw it outside of the nursery only once,
when I was taken to the Pit. But—I don’t remember very much about it.”
                I don’t
say anything. I can never take him to the Village. But I can take him to the
very place where Kate, Diana, and I spent so many lazy afternoons. When we
reach it, we sink beneath a tree close to the edge of the river and simply sit
in comfortable silence. All the while, his mouth hangs open in awe.
                “So much
water,” he