“I can’t even imagine how she was feeling in the arena. You have to be in a lot of pain in order to project it from you, and I could feel her pain, burning me,” said an older-looking gentleman she’d never met before.
The plump lady standing next to him puffed up. “We all feel sorry for her, but honestly she’s the one to blame for her current state. If she were properly educated, she would still be pure and strong,” she said.
The man looked taken aback. “Surely you can’t blame a ten-year-old for being scared at the Dredging. You must remember how overwhelming it was. Strangers plucking you from the life you lead, although most don’t run. It is understandable when one does,” he said. His kind face looked up at Amanda as she passed, and a little smile played at the corners of his thin lips.
The old lady didn’t notice and shrugged her shoulders. “No, it isn’t. She’s just a bad seed. Even now, when she’s old enough to know better, she questions the Ancients. If I were in her position I’d be glad of their decision,” she stated in a matter- of-fact tone.
The man looked unconvinced. “Are you so sure of how you would feel in her position when you have never been in it?” he asked.
The woman looked down her nose at the short old gentleman with harsh eyes. “Yes,” she said defiantly.
Amanda heard no more of the conversation. Either because she and Madgie had gotten out of ear shot or it had abruptly ended. Both seemed likely options, so she’d never know which it was. She and Madgie had cleared the group of Healers without notice, which was surprising.
“How do they not feel me as I feel you?” she asked.
Madgie kept the same pace and spoke quietly without turning. “They are so caught up in the day’s events that they aren’t able to use their senses, even if they cared to try. You have to be interested in the world around you, beyond yourself, in order to sense anything in it. Aside from that, I’m having a hard time feeling your spirit myself. I have to focus intently to get your flicker, and I know you better than most,” she explained.
They slowly made their way up in a flash of unfamiliar corridors and stairways. They finally reached familiar territory, and Amanda thought they might actually make it out of the Hovel unseen and unscathed. They mounted the last set of stairs and were met by a familiar face. She didn’t know if it was the puffiness of his cheeks or the redness of his eyes that caused it, but she called out to him before she could stop herself.
“Cole?” Amanda said.
His tear-wrecked face looked up at the sound of her voice, the pain in his eyes was apparent. “Amanda?”
A flood of emotion overwhelmed her as she realized just how much he’d been holding back all of these years. His longing was so strong her mind was clouded, and she couldn’t separate his feelings from her own.
She stared at him, her best friend. He looked terrible. She’d never seen a person outside of a Scar look so dreadful. His naturally tanned skin had drained of all color. Cole’s bright eyes had lost all spark, the small fragment left of her heart broke at the sight of him in such pain. She didn’t tell herself to move, but her feet began walking toward him nevertheless. Amanda reached out, and his strong hand rose to meet hers. As their fingertips touched, she felt his energy pass into her. She smiled as her fragile heart fluttered in her chest like a bird in its cage.
Madgie pulled the two of them apart angrily and chastised them. “Every Healer in the Hovel no matter how thick felt that flood of emotion. I’m sorry, Amanda, I have no backup plan. We’ll be found out,” she said, her voice caked in sorrow.
Amanda tried to sense a change, hoping not to find one, but had no such luck. She felt the stillness of the Hovel, as all of the people in its walls interpreted the meaning of what had just hit them. Her eyes grew wide as the tranquility of the place transformed into utter chaos. They knew she was trying to leave.
Cole’s face mirrored hers. He grabbed her hand tightly and began scaling the stairs two at a time, dragging her behind him.
Madgie was on their heels shouting at them. “You morons wait until now to figure out that you’re in love with one another? Everyone else around here has known for years and been waiting to bust you for it. You couldn’t have asked for a more poorly timed moment. Where are you taking us, you idiot?” she grumbled.
Cole didn’t turn to speak so Amanda couldn’t see them, but when he spoke, she knew his dimples had returned. “Sorry, Madgie, I never found an opportune moment. Amanda always seems to be in trouble.”
She thought about drawing her hand back in protest, but she liked where it was too much to be stubborn. “I’m not always in trouble!”
Madgie rolled her eyes at the pair of them as she spoke. “Not to interrupt the cute banter you two have going here, but we’re all going to die if we don’t find a way out of the Hovel!”
“I know, and I won’t let that happen.” Cole spoke softly and seriously.
He stopped ascending two floors beneath the Hovel’s entrance and took a sharp left, leading them down the corridor to the male dormitories. Amanda hoped he had some sort of plan worked out. They were still two stories underground, surrounded by Healers.
He took an awkward pattern of lefts and rights, attempting to avoid the array of pursuers, but it was getting more difficult to sense individuals in the upheaval.
She had no idea where he was headed, but it felt to her like they were just making unceremonious circles. As they rounded the same corner for a second time, Cole stopped short, immediately on guard. Amanda looked past him and saw the kindly face of the man who had been speaking of her in the hall as she passed. She felt Cole gather energy as he put a shield between them and the older gentleman.
He smiled and began to speak in a soft voice. “No need for that, young man, I just came to tell Amanda good luck,” he said as he raised his hands in a non-confrontational way. “Oh, and Cole, if you’re looking for the door, it has popped up just down there.” He gestured down the hallway with a smile.
“I was lucky to find you, and my good luck will go to waste if you dawdle, so get on your way. I hope to see you in happier times, my dear. You are one person I would love to talk to. I’ve never felt such strength. You have so much love to give, too much perhaps,” he said as he moved to the side of the hallway, waiting for them to pass.
Madgie smiled brightly. “Thank you, Finn, you are truly a friend.”
Cole hesitated a moment before walking past the old man, but once they had cleared him, he picked up the pace. He flat out ran until he came to a small round door that seemed completely out of place, halfway covering another door on the wall. Amanda heard rushing footsteps drifting down the hallway. Cole grabbed the knob and flung it open. Madgie quickly slipped through. Cole climbed in after pulling Amanda in behind him. She reached back to shut it, and just as her palm met the warm wood, she saw the angry face of a familiar Healer.
Frey.
He was someone she knew by name but had never grown close to. Frey had always looked down at her for fleeing the Hovel and trying to be normal. He loved being a Healer and having the power they possessed. Most Healers had a bad taste in their mouths about her, but he was the worst of them all. Looking at her as if she was garbage, and maybe that was deserved. But she wasn’t the only one unsettled by him. When he walked into the room, it seemed to still as collective prey before a predator. His hand lashed out like a striking snake, bringing her out of her shock, but he wasn’t fast enough.
She slammed the door shut and searched for a lock that wasn’t there. She braced herself tightly against the door, but to her surprise, he didn’t put up any more effort to open it. Why wasn’t he trying to get in? He could blast this thing right off its hinges if he wanted to. She looked at Cole.