The Luna Gypsy

Chapter 10

Amelia POV

I can hear the sound of soft footsteps moving closer to the pit. The sound of someone struggling to move something and labored breaths just before I hear the telltale sound of the ladder being slid along the floor. The ladder lowers down into the pit and I don’t waste a second and quickly climb up. My feet slip on the wood that’s full of wet mud and my leg scrapes along it. I can feel the splinters digging into my skin, but I push through the pain. It will be worth it when me and Kezia are free.

“Lash?” I croaked, shocked as I climbed up over the edge.

I quickly look around to make sure this is not some cruel trick. Even though I like Lash, I wouldn’t put it past mother.

“Where’s Kez?” I ask.

My eyes dashed back and forth, waiting for mother to emerge from somewhere.

“She can’t come, Amelia. Mother is watching her. She asked me to come and get you. You need to go. You're the only one who can help us now.”

He pushed something into my hands and shoved me towards the forest.

“Mother found your stash, so hurry.”

I turn around to ask him how mother found out and where Kezia was, but Lash was already running back toward his hut. He has a slight limp as he moves, making me feel sorry for him and what mother did to him. I don’t waste any time. I look up towards the full moon in the sky. It’s large and beautiful and feeling its light shining down on me makes me feel calm, like the moon is giving me peace and a sense of well-being.

I take a quick look at the package Lash gave me and see it’s got a flask of water and some Fae bread inside, as well as some dresses and underwear.

Fae bread stays fresher for longer, making it the perfect food for us to stash away. The fact Kezia managed to get enough for us without mother suspecting is amazing. She really has thought of everything.

I bend down and grab the chain around my ankle. I pull as hard as I can, but it doesn’t snap. What the hell is the chain made of? I’m relentless though I refuse to spend another second here, not when Nineve is waiting for me. I pull again. I use all the strength I can muster and really pull. I can feel the chain digging into the skin on my hand, but I don’t care. I keep pulling. I feel it finally snap and let it drop to the floor. Hearing the bells chiming as they hit the ground is like a horn blaring for me to run.

I sprint off toward the forest and toward the river where Nineve will be waiting for me. It’s dark but I seem to be able to see clearly, so I manage to avoid running into any branches that hang low. The sound of water trickling across rocks starts to get louder. I can feel my freedom getting closer with each step I take. The air seems to still. The hairs on the back of my neck stand on end and it feels like I’m being watched. The breeze is no longer cooling my skin, the crickets are no longer singing their song.

It’s like time has stopped and I’m the only thing able to move.

I pause and look around, but I can’t see anyone or anything. I move slowly now, taking lighter steps.

SMACK

I fall backward.

Something hard hit me in my stomach, sending me crashing to the ground. I stand up, but I’m surrounded by 6 men from the village. I recognize them immediately as mothers hounds that do all her dirty work.

“Going somewhere?” Luca asked me, stepping toward me as he did.

His eyes run up my body, making me feel dirty. He circles around me and it’s like I’m frozen on the spot, my legs seem to be frozen in place, unwilling to move. He lifts a strand of my hair, placing it near his nose and inhaling deeply before he lets it slip through his fingers.

“Look, my beautiful wife has decided to come keep us company.” He says in a mocking tone.

All the men start to laugh as my stomach drops. I see his fist pull back as he punches me in my stomach. The wind is knocked from me and I struggle to catch my breath. I drop down onto the Earth below me, but this man doesn’t care. He kicks me in my stomach, making me gasp for more air. My nails dig into the dirt and the dead leaves crunch beneath my hand as I try to absorb the pain, push it aside so I can get out of this.

I have to get out of this.

All the men surrounding me start to laugh. My pain is amusing to them. Another one steps forward and pulls me up by the thin material of my dress. I can hear the material tearing. His tongue darts out and sweeps across his filthy lips whilst smiling his crooked smile at me. Some of his teeth are missing, his skin looks like he’s been scrubbing in mud instead of water and his eyes aren’t white, they're yellow with big red veins running through them.

“I think she wants some fun, boys.”

He shouts whilst throwing me over to one of the other men. He catches me and pulls the shoulder of my dress down, tearing it more. I scrėam, but that just seems to make them laugh more. I’m pushed over to another man, who catches me and wraps his arms tightly around my waist. He leans into me and licks up my face, making me squirm to get away from him. His breath smells like his eaten horse manure and he smells even worse. I have to hold my breath so I don’t vomit everywhere. He smells rotten and decaying, he smells like death.

Something inside me snaps.

I pull my head back and hit him with my forehead right on the bridge of his nose. A loud crunch is followed by a grunt. He lets me go and I drop to the floor.

“Fücking bítch!” He snarls, stepping towards me and slapping me hard across my face.

I have to do a double-take. As he stepped forward, his face looked different. It looked like he had black veins running across his face, but it must just be my mind playing tricks on me. My eye feels like it is about to explode, and my cheek throbs from his impact. I hold my face, hoping it will stop the pain and the tears in my eyes. I look up and he steps back.

“I thought Cheryl said her wolf was suppressed?” One of them shouts.

“Stop being a bunch of fücking püssies and get her,” Luca shouts.

The man who smells like horse shít lunges first. I roll backward, landing in a crouched position low to the ground. I leap up and punch him in the face, making his head fall back. I used him to lever myself up and kick one of the men who was about to try to grab me in his face. I see the skin split open from my blow as he falls back into another man, who falls onto the floor.

I feel the air shift. Someone is coming up from behind. I turn and kick him in the stomach. He falls back onto his back and his legs fly in the air.

All 6 of the men are either on the floor or standing behind me. I see my opening and don’t waste a moment. I bolted into the forest, not looking back to see if I’m being followed. The branches hit me hard on my face, but I keep pushing forward. It feels like the vines mother uses to whip me. They scratch my arms, stinging my skin, and the brambles on the forest floor brush against my legs, cutting me. I can hear the men behind me, shouting about how they're going to beat the s.hit out of me when they get me, so I push forward.

I'm thankful it’s dark and I can see clearly.

This should slow the men down at least. The ground gives way under my feet. I feel weightless for a second before I tumble forward. My heart is in my throat as my stomach drops. I roll down a slope, hitting my head on a rock as I do, landing at the bottom of a small ravine. I scramble to the wall of the ravine and push myself up against it.

“Where the fück did she go?” One of the men shouts.

It sounds like they're directly above me. I push myself tighter against the side of the ravine. If one of them looks over, they will definitely see me. I find myself holding my breath and squeezing my eyes together, praying nothing gives me away. I hear something land at the bottom of the ravine close to me.

Fear claws at me. One of them must have jumped down.

I open my eyes slowly, too afraid to see if I’ve been caught again. I let out a silent sigh of relief. The ravine is still empty. He must have thrown a stone. I hear another one bounce a few times before rolling to a stop. I hold my breath again as I hear them getting even closer to where I’m hiding.

“Get Luca or Issac over here and see if they can smell her.”

“I don’t trust the vampires not to kill us.”

The men say to each other. Vampire? Is mother working with vampires? I don’t have any time to ponder the thought as someone shouts in the distance and they both run away toward the shouting. I stay hidden for a few minutes until I’m sure it’s clear and crawl over to the other side of the ravine. I make sure I stay low to the ground and I go as slow as possible so I don’t make any noise. I dig my nails into the mud and pull myself up and over. I make sure I stay down low to the ground again as I move through the grass toward the trees.

I’m not sure where I am now. I can’t hear the river anymore, but I can still hear the men. I stand behind a tree whilst I try to think. I’m not sure what to do. My eyes are threatening to spill with the tears I’m barely holding in. I do the only thing I can think of and that’s run as fast as my legs will carry me and hope I can outrun them, sure I’m weak from having no food or water in the pit but I have something they don’t, the adrenaline that comes from wanting to survive. I can feel it pumping through my veins, pushing me to keep going and not give in. Surely I’ve got to come across somebody soon who can help me. Mother is always saying there are other creatures in this forest. I take one deep breath before pushing off against the tree and running for my life.

“There!” I hear behind me.

The sound of footsteps thundered toward me. I push my legs to go faster. My calves burn from how hard I am pushing myself, but I refuse to go back to Sohesis. That place isn’t blessed by the moon goddess, it's been left to damnation.

One of the men somehow manages to get ahead of me. It’s the one who smells of death and horse shít. He’s standing, blocking my path with a sinister smile on his face. I slide to a stop, skidding in the dirt, and scramble up so I can run in the other direction.

I refuse to give in, not now when I’m so close to my freedom.

I stop in my tracks. The man who smells is blocking me again. I look back to make sure I’m not going crazy, but there’s no one standing where there was someone before. How is that even possible?

“How?” I ask.

He smiles at me as fangs come out of his gums. Vampire! I take in a sharp breath as he lunges at me. He grabs me and pushes me down onto the ground. His breath tickles my neck, and an image flashes in my mind. It’s a different man standing over me, but it’s exactly like this only he pushes his fangs into my neck. I can feel the pain, like it’s really happening.

“Fück you!” I spit and pull my knee up, connecting it with his groin.

He rolls off me and grabs at his crotch. He hisses out a pain-filled moan as he rolls around on the ground. I kick him in his face, making his head roll back and the sound of something snapping echoes in the hollow forest. I’m grabbed from behind. I kick my legs and throw my head back, trying to break free. My head connects with something hard and I feel the grip around me loosen, but the others are surrounding me once again. Another man steps toward me. He moves fast. His fist comes forward, hitting me hard across my face.

I feel dazed.

The earth is getting closer and closer to me. I feel my body hit the floor and a warm liquid drip down my chin. I take a moment to compose myself. I can feel the other me waking up, ready to kill to survive. I stand back up and punch him hard. I won’t let these bàstárds take me without a fight. The man actually flies back, hitting a tree. The bark crunches and splinters off around him. I watch as he slides down the large trunk to the earth below. A different man smirks as he steps closer to me. I kick him, but he grabs my leg, keeping hold of it, and punches my knee. The sound of my bone cracking is loud. I scrėam out from the pain radiating from my leg. He pushes me backward, making me stumble and fall.

I try to stand up, but my leg is unable to hold me, so I collapse again. I pant as I struggle to stand up. I can't fight from the floor. I can feel my leg shaking and the pain is unbearable, but I will not let them take me back.

My leg is no longer able to hold my weight, so I hold it off the ground as I wait for the next attack to come. Luca steps forward with a strange box in his hand. He holds it up in the air so I can see it. An electric spark arcs from the device between two silver prongs, like lightning dancing between them. My eyes go wide as he steps forward and pushes the box into my arm, sending pain through my body and making me drop down to the ground. One of the men walks toward me and punches me across my face, making everything go fuzzy. My ears ring with a loud buzz that makes it hard to concentrate on anything. Everything is a blur moving in front of me.

The pain I felt in my arm shoots through my body again, this time from my back. Then again, from my chest. I feel the electricity shooting through my body over and over as the rain of blows pummels my body. I feel the fight leaving my body. Everything starts to fade as the world starts to disappear.