Cursed by Malignant Magic (Once Upon A Curse)

Chapter 11

Chapter

Eleven

I t took far longer than I would have liked to free Varna from her chains, and she leaned heavily on me as I helped her down.

Her ribs poked me as I slipped one arm around her waist, the two of us shuffling toward the door as best as we could. The guards hadn’t come back yet, but I didn't want to be here when that happened.

"Do you know a way out of here?" I whispered to Varna, halting in the door of her cell as I looked in both directions.

As far as I could tell, each looked almost exactly the same, just long hallways full of cells. Now that my magic was receding beneath my skin where it belonged, I could no longer sense the exact location of the guards.

Varna nodded and then jerked her head to the right. I breathed a sigh of relief, and then we limped forward toward our freedom.

My entire body ached, something that wasn't improved by the fact that I held her up. She stood shorter than me, and every step forced me to bend forward with her weight on my shoulders like the yoke for oxen.

I gritted my teeth and kept going, moving even faster at the sight of the door at the end of the hall. None of the other prisoners said a word. The dark cells gave no signs of life.

"Can you stand?" I asked Varna.

I hated to let her go, but like I had done with the door of her cell, I would have to try each key individually, and there was no telling how long that would take. I would likely need both hands for that, and I couldn't hold her up in the process.

She nodded. "Yes. Do it."

She leaned against the wall as I once again started fumbling with the keys, trying any of them that looked like they might fit into the lock. No doubt there was a more methodical manner that would have helped me find it faster, but my hands shook so hard, and my head felt hazy with exhaustion and pain, that I was surprised I hadn't dropped the whole keyring already.

Somehow, I managed to find the right one to unlock the door.

Varna made a tiny noise, quickly strangled, and I nodded in agreement as I shoved the door open. Cool, fresh air flooded over our faces as I pushed it open just wide enough for the two of us to slip through. I squinted in the light, closing the door behind me as quickly as I could so the brightness wouldn't draw any attention, and dropped the ring of keys into my pocket.

"Are you sure it's a good idea to keep those?" Varna asked.

Her hair slithered against my shoulder as we walked, me supporting her once again.

I shrugged, immediately regretting it when the shift in weight made her stumble.

"I can't remember the last time I was sure I had a good idea," I said honestly. "At this point, I'm just making it up as I go. But I figure they're more use to us than to the guards, and I'm happy to inconvenience them if I can."

"Fair enough," she agreed.

In our cells, I hadn't been able to tell what time it was, and yet by some stroke of luck, it was nearing darkness. Dark enough that we managed to slip out of the camp without being seen, although my skin crawled and I felt like I was going to vomit at any moment.

I hadn't been in any state to notice the layout of this place, but Varna seemed to know enough to get us out of here safely. I followed her instructions, and twilight faded into night as we finally trudged out of the camp and into the forest, the darkness of the trees enfolding us like a blanket of safety.

I kept my head down as we walked, breathing through the pain of moving after so long being chained up. Once we had time to stop, I would fumble through the rest of the keys to get the chains off my wrists and ankles. Thankfully Varna's chains still hung in her cell since I had used an actual key to get her out of them rather than my far less precise magic.

I jerked my head up and squinted, straining my ears at the sound of familiar movement. I pulled even harder on Varna, slightly changing the direction we walked in so we could hopefully get there faster.

"Water," I rasped.

Varna limped faster next to me, the sound of the water rushing louder in my ears. Her weight bowed my shoulders forward, and I shivered with exhaustion and weakness from not eating. Varna was worse off, though, leaning her scant weight on me as if she couldn’t stand on her own.

When she sank to her knees in front of the stream, I went down with her. A shudder of relief swept through my body. The cold water bit at my hands as I plunged them into the stream. Goose bumps rippled up my arms, the fine hairs standing on end, as I gulped down as much water as I could. Every slurp numbed the back of my throat, my teeth aching from the cold, but I didn't stop.

After a few minutes, I’d drunk until I felt uncomfortably full. I should have waited until I had something in my stomach so I didn't make myself ill, but it was too late now. All I could do was try not to throw up all of the hydration that my body desperately needed, and judging by Varna's groans next to me, she was in the same position.

“That was a mistake,” she mumbled, and I nodded in agreement as I stretched out beside her, both of us flat on our backs.

It would be wisest to keep moving so we could put as much distance between us and our captors as we could before the sun came up, but I doubted either of us was in any kind of shape for that. I’d been held captive for far less time than Varna, but even so, I would still have been more than happy to curl up here and sleep on the ground.

Perhaps it was because my stomach felt full, even if it was just water. Maybe it was exhaustion finally hitting after I had been wound so tight during our escape. Or maybe it was merely that I could lie down for the first time in so long, without chains preventing me, and I couldn’t have been more grateful for that fact.

Although I knew we should keep moving, I didn’t have the heart to make Varna get up, nor the energy to move myself.

“We can sleep for a few hours. I’ll take first watch and wake you if I hear anything.” I sat up and scooted around, leaving my back to the stream and facing the way we had come.

Varna shook her head and sat up, turning to face the same direction. My eyebrows rose, and I frowned down at her in confusion.

"No, I'll take first watch,” she insisted. “You sleep first. I'll wake you when I'm ready to sleep."

I started to protest, to point out that she was in far worse shape than I was, but she cut me off before I could fully get started.

"I'm not ready to sleep yet," she mumbled.

Our eyes met, and my shoulders hunched, trying to get away from the look in her eyes—a strange mix of relief and fear. Part of me wondered what she had gone through back there. I had been so lucky in my captivity, something I never thought I would say, but I didn't know what had happened to her. Nor was I going to ask. When, or if, she was ready, I would listen.

I nodded slowly. "As you like. Wake me when you need to."

I stretched out on my back and closed my eyes, feeling the slight shift as she moved closer to me. I didn't open my eyes, just stayed where I was, and opened my hand in a silent gesture of support. If she didn't want to be touched, I understood that, but I had always craved more physical connection than I was given while growing up. Sometimes even holding hands was enough, and I could offer her that, at least.

She didn't grasp my hand, but I didn’t take offense. I was exhausted enough that I was already fading into sleep, but just before I slipped fully into unconsciousness, I heard her talking once more. Her voice was so quiet I almost couldn't hear her, but I didn't move, didn't open my eyes. Just waited to hear what she had to say.

"I'm afraid to close my eyes. Afraid of what I'll see if I do."

I swallowed hard, realizing too late that she might not have meant for me to hear her, but if she noticed the motion or my slight flinch at her words, she didn't comment. I wanted to comfort her, but now that I had stopped moving and closed my eyes, exhaustion had fully set in and adrenaline no longer propped me up. I sank into sleep, promising myself that I would try to comfort Varna as best as I could when I woke.

The fleeting moments of sleep abruptly shattered when a rough jolt yanked me back to consciousness. A hand clasped over my mouth, muffling any sound that might have escaped.

I flinched in surprise, gasping for air as my eyes snapped open. But the darkness was so thick, it was impossible to make out who had disturbed me.

A low, urgent voice whispered in my ear, its source hidden in the shadows. "Don't say a word."

Finally, my eyes adjusted to the low light and widened. My shoulders relaxed as I realized that it was Varna.

She removed her hand from my mouth, and I sat up slowly, still blinking. It was still dark enough to suggest that it was the middle of the night.

"What is it?" I whispered, belatedly remembering what she'd said and cringing inwardly.

"They’re coming. We need to go."