Beyond Eternity by Deaver Paul

Author:Deaver, Paul [Deaver, Paul]
Language: eng
Format: azw3
Published: 2016-06-26T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter 9

As time wore on, my mind filled with dreadful thoughts. Of all the countless instances I've ignored instructions, why did I have to choose to follow them now? What if the Harmony Guards caught Hazel snooping around? Worse yet, what would Erlik do if he got his hands on her? I shuddered at the idea and tried to convince myself that she could take care of herself, but I still worried. I should have gone with her.

Looking below the ledge, I tried to pick out the spot where Hazel had landed, but it was masked in shadow. It wasn't a huge drop, but I was unsure of the landing. There was no way I could replicate her agility, so I tried to pick out hand and footholds to climb down. It was difficult to see anything in the darkness, so I decided to go by feeling. I lowered my legs and found a small pocket with the edge of my right foot.

Attempting to find a similar spot for my left foot, I thought I found one, then slipped when I put weight on it. My legs were dangling in the air, and I almost completely lost my grip. I barely hung on by my fingertips, and my forearms immediately began burning. I tried to pull myself up, but my fingers gave way. Terror gripped me as I tumbled through the air, then my body made contact with the wall. It gradually sloped outward, and I spun around, sliding head-first along the smooth surface. It continued to level out, and I slowed to a stop.

My heart was racing, and I forced myself to take several deep breaths to calm down. Finally, I rolled over preparing to get up and saw Hazel standing right next to me.

"What's with you and ugly landings? They say any landing you can walk away from is a good one, but you're really pushing it."

I wanted to be mad, but her smile disarmed me. Hazel extended a hand to help me up. I grabbed her wrist and she tugged me to my feet. She said, "Follow me."

Hazel walked along the wall and picked a spot to start climbing. She went straight up, then began traversing sideways as she went. I followed behind her and found numerous pitted pockets to cling to. It didn't take long to make it back up to the ledge. We crawled through the tunnel and into our little cave. Hazel said, "I followed them as far as I could without being seen, but there's nothing we can do for that kid right now."

"So, what's the plan?"

"Well, these caves are swarming with Harmony Guards, so it'll be tough to get to the surface my usual way. Think you can manage to teleport us back to your room?"

"I'll try."

I wrapped my arms around Hazel and closed my eyes. Clearing my mind, I allowed my thoughts to flow back to my room and let my subconscious fill in the details. She clung to me, and I felt the sinking sensation in my stomach.

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