Becoming Ambellina

Chapter 4

A ranting voice brought me out of my fitful sleep.

            “Don’t you expect me to help you or have anything to do with this! I’ve had it with you and your brilliant ideas! This is bad, Lark! You’re going to get the both of us killed!”

            After a few moments’ pause a low voice answered “One of the watchmen had her, Teague. You know where he would have taken her. What else was I supposed to do? Let him take her to Cyrus?”

            “Do you really think she’s not ‘Borne, Lark?”

The silence that followed dared me to crack me eyes open. The flames from the fire lit up the cave walls and the crackling filled the shelter. I could make out the silhouettes of two men. Night had fallen; how long had I been asleep? After a substantial amount of time had passed and I couldn’t possibly lie any longer on the rock jabbing into my hip, I rolled over to face the two men.

            They both studied me with similar features and different expressions. The face of the guy I met yesterday, (or was it this morning?) held concern and anxiety. His hands were clasped in his lap, clenched knuckles visible by firelight. He had pulled on a hat that sat low over his eyes and I had a hard time looking away from him as he turned to gaze at the fire.

            The boy who had to be his younger brother glowered at me with a look of contempt clouding his features. I furrowed my brow and sat up, pulling the blanket around my shoulders. Pretty ready for the big explanation right about now…

            I cleared my throat and ran my fingers through my long knotted hair.

Nothing

“Okay so what’s the deal? Who the hell are you weird forest people and when do I get to leave?” I spoke loudly, surprising myself.

“She talks weird.” The younger boy, Teague, said.

Lark shot him a quick steel glare and then turned to look at me, his eyes soft.

“Lark.” He said, holding his hand towards me like I was supposed to take something from him.

            I frowned and took his hand to shake it. He looked at our hands confused as I moved them up and down and then dropped his hand and turned back to the fire.

            Weird.

            “My name’s Lena.” I said, my name feeling weird on my lips.

            “Well Lena, care to tell us where you’re from and how you got here?” he asked simply.

            My mind blanked for a second.

“You want me to tell you who I am and where I’m from?” I asked, nearly shouting. “You do realize you’re dressed like Robin Hood and keeping me in a cave right?” My voice rose as anger swelled within me.

            “Yes, if you will.” Lark said, a crooked grin on his face. “It will be much easier if you tell me what you know.”

            I bit the inside of my cheek and held his eye contact, thinking. Tell him what I know? What was that supposed to mean? 

            “I can assure you I don’t know anything about whatever you weirdoes have going on in the woods out here. I don’t know how I stumbled onto your property, but I’m pretty sure if you point me in the right direction I’ll be able to find my way home in…” I was interrupted by Teague’s laughter.

            “Getting home’s gonna be a lot harder than that, human.” He sneered.

            My eyes shot to Lark’s.

 “Why’d he call me that?”

            He ignored me, and shot a look at Teague that I wish I understood.

“Go outside T, keep watch for a while.” He growled at him.

            Teague got up and walked towards the exit, not before shooting the both of us nasty glares.

            Lark turned towards me. “I’m sorry about my brother, he can be really difficult. He just doesn’t see reality at times.”

            I drew my blanket closer around my shoulders, thoughtful.

            “We’re in way over our heads. Do you remember at all how you got into these woods?

            “I just ran out of the back of my school and hopped the fence…” I trailed off. I jumped over that chain link fence right? Just like I’d done a million times… Now that I think about it though I don’t remember the fence at all this particular time, but I had been running for my life.

“What?” he asked, wiping the troubled look off of my face.

            “I don’t remember hopping the fence.” I said, with a blank expression.

            Lark drew in a deep breath before continuing.

“At some point Lena, you came through a door; A door that you’d never been through before.” His eyes locked onto mine.

“A door that took you not outside nor in, but into an entirely different place altogether.”

            I raised one eyebrow at him and eyed him suspiciously.

            “What town are you from?” he asked.

            “Richland.” I answered him sarcastically.

 “You know, it’s like 5 miles from here; probably where you bought your bow and arrow at the wal-mart in town.” 

            He smiled at me and then drew his quiver from beside him, showing me the arrows.          Each one looked meticulously hand carved, with brown and white feathers attached to the end.

            My eyebrows raised slightly. “Are you guys in some sort of cult or something?”

            Lark studied me carefully, making me feel self conscious.

“I know not what you speak of,” His eyes cast down towards the fire in front of us “But it is time for me to explain to you a few things.”

            I remained silent. Finally.

            “If I’m right about you Lena, this is not the world that you’re used to. When you stepped through that doorway you entered the land of Camborne.” He looked me square in the eye and the possibility that he was lying to me slid further from my grasp.