A Thing of Beauty

Chapter 2

A noise shattered her dream. Even half asleep she grabbed for a branch to try and keep her balance. Taking deep breaths to try and slow down her heart, Besha listened. Nothing.

Not sure if she dreamt it, or if it had been an actual sound that woke her, she decided to leave anyway. It was still dark and she need to get as much distance between her and the village as possible. It wouldn't be too long before they found out that she had gone.

Still shaken she untied herself and retied the straps of the pack in their original positions. Shifting slightly, she put it over her shoulders with a suppressed groan. Despite the heavy coat, her shoulders had chafed from the weight of the backpack.

Grateful that the moon was still in the open, she climbed down as fast and as quietly as she could. The snoring now sounded like growling. It made her smile, but it didn't make her hesitate before setting off into the night once more.

Her surroundings changed from bushes with tall grasses, to more open grassland with the odd tree here and there. She was approaching the edge of the desert.Finding places to hide away would be more difficult the farther she walked.

She looked up at the stars and nodded to herself. At least she was still going in the right direction.

Two hours later, she guessed, the horizon started to lighten. Time to find a spot to hideout for the day. She paused and looked around. No trees. No buildings. Just grass and more grass, and...wait. Was that a little hill or mound or something?

With rubber legs and an exhausted body, she managed to reach the mound before the sun had fully risen. It was just a mound of rocks, nothing more. Large rocks, but no cave or overhang. It would have to do.

She removed the pack and squeezed between two rocks to what look like an overhanging rock leaning halfway over another. She leaned in. Nothing spat or snarled or growled at her. No sounds at all.

Too tired to worry about insects or other creepy crawlies, she pushed the pack inside and squeezed her body in after it. It would provide some shade, and a lot of hiding space. It was perfect.

There was even enough room to lie on her side with her legs tucked against the overhang out of sight. Pulling the pack closer she laid down and waited for dark to come once more.

Despite the cramped position, Besha woke with aches and pains all over her body, but not so tired any more. Keeping the groan inside, she shifted to a sitting position rubbing her shoulders and neck. Damn she missed her bed.

Daylight still flooded her makeshift hideaway, so she couldn't leave yet. Leaning to her other side she scouted around the rock she was using as back support. There was a gap large enough to crawl through to find some shade once more. Careful not to make a sound, which was difficult given the aches and pains in her body, she got onto her knees and slowly crawled forward. Her new space had more room, which she shared with a sand lizard. It glared at her in irritation, before scampering off.

"Sorry," she mouthed at it before its long tail disappeared beneath a rock.

Voices made her freeze.

Too scared to move Besha flicked her eyes from side to side and out through the gaps in between the rocks. Shadows moved over her hiding place and she realised that she was holding her breath.

Not smart, she told herself as she slowly, and soundlessly let it out.

A sound like a zipper made her frown.

When something splattered onto the rock to her right, she shifted away in disgust. Fortunately,the laughter outside hid the sounds she made. Only when she looked at her right arm did she notice the drops didn't miss her. Now her coat would smell like a toilet forever, and she only had the one. It missed her skin, but still.