Free In The Shadows of the Cavern of Death (Shadows of Death Book 1) by Angelique Jones

Tristian doing the same with Tina as they wildly fought us. Terrified of being heard, I brought my lips as close to her ear as I could and whispered, “Is that how you want to die up on that hook? If they hear so much as a small whimper that will be your fate.” Harsh, I know, but now wasn’t the time to comfort her. Only strength would see us through this. After a few moments, my words seemed to sink in as she stopped struggling. Looking into her eyes, I waited to see what I needed before releasing her. I removed my hand slowly to make sure that she was under control. Satisfied, I went to help Tristian who was trying to hold Tina down, saying the same to her that I told Josie. I watched as her need for self-preservation kicked in and she went completely still.
    The sound of approaching footsteps froze us in place, breaking the trance. We dove back into the darkness that we just came from. Holding my hands over the girl’s mouths, not daring to breath, we waited to be discovered. Tristian, a knife tight in his grip, crouched at the side of the door ready to attack if they entered the room. After a tense moment, the footsteps passed us and faded into the distance, causing a shudder to pass through my body in relief. Quietly, we waited, letting as much time as we dared pass before venturing back onto the walkway. Keeping our eyes averted from the bodies, we moved with as much speed as we dared, searching for the entrance into the Loyalist cavern.
    We had almost lost Tina twice because she kept stopping and looking behind her. Annoyed, I pushed her in front of me and kept her there. Behind vats and walls, we hid whenever we heard so much as a creek, terrified of being discovered, until finally we saw what we were searching for. High up in the air, accessed by a walkway, was the door we needed. Two workers in white coats lounged by the stairs that we needed to take. Looking around for a distraction, I grabbed a small metal object near me and threw it. It worked––when they heard the sound they went running and so did we. Dashing up the stairs to the door, we skidded to a halt before opening it. Opening the door a crack, we listened for sound, and not hearing anything we took a chance and opened it enough for Tristian to peek his head out. Shooting out his hand, he waved it for us to follow and I got my first view of the Loyalist Cavern.
     
     
     
     
     
    Chapter 7
    It wasn’t what I expected––while it was infinitely better than our homes, it appeared run-down, abandoned. Ignoring the thought, I kept a sharp gaze out for anyone as we quickly removed our cloaks, keeping them over our arms to hide our bags. Moving at a quick pace, we headed for a group of buildings about five hundred feet away. Getting there, we dodged deep into an alley and huddled together as we tried to catch our breath and listen for sounds of pursuit. As we listened and heard no cry of alarm, my mind began to turn to something else I wasn’t hearing, people. The harder I listened, the less I heard––no footsteps, no buzz of electricity from the homes, nothing. Easing back from the group, I softly made my way down the alley until I reached the back of the house. A slightly open glass door caught my attention. Quietly, I made my way to it, my eyes darting to the other houses looking for signs for life. Carefully I eased the door open and looked within, freezing at what I saw.
    The hand that came around and covered my mouth caused me to jump in surprise. Relaxing into Tristian so he would know I knew it was him, he released me. Indicating for him to grab the girls, I started forward only getting to raise my foot before his arm shot out to stop me. Turning to see his face I mouthed “Trust me” and a second later he released me, going around the corner to grab the girls. Moving forward, I walked into the bare room, not a piece of furniture present. A stale smell filled the air as if it had been vacant for a very long time.
    Hearing them enter