Becoming Ambellina

Chapter 5

My gut turned over in my belly and I swallowed hard, clutching the cup of water he poured and handed to me.

Lark continued, though now mostly to himself.

“To pass between worlds these days is trickier than ever; I haven’t the slightest idea how you managed to get in. Tell me, were there guards?”

I shook my head slowly and my left hand started to sweat around the key it held against my chest. Worlds? The truth sunk in around me, suffocating.  All of the little things I had ignored; the strange flowers and leaves, the unfamiliar landscape, the weird clothes. Oh god, what had I done?

Lark interrupted my thoughts,

 “Was there anyone with you, Lena?”

I shook my head and shakily brought the water to my lips before attempting to speak again. I tried to think back to before all of this happened.

“I came through a door in the back of an old linen closet. It was about waist high and it was inside of… my home. It shouldn’t have led to the outdoors but it did somehow.” The strange glow that I had seen in the stuffy closet suddenly came back to me and the words spilled over my lips before I could stop them.

“I wouldn’t have even noticed it if I wouldn’t have seen light spilling in from around the edges.”

 I decided to leave the part out about living in the children’s home.            

Lark’s eyes grew a little wider and his mouth opened slightly, appearing at a loss for words. The crackling of the fire filled the silence until he finally spoke in a hushed voice.

“You shouldn’t be here Lena.”

I swallowed.

“Can you get me back to my closet door?”

Lark drew in a deep breath and looked me squarely in the eye. The firelight danced in his eyes, making them look almost golden.

“It is doubtful. The entrance you passed through is surely guarded heavily.” He sighed and rubbed his hand over his eyes and forehead. “We can try to get to another entrance but it too will be guarded. We will need reinforcement and even then it’s nearly impossible…” He trailed off as the younger boy returned to the warmth of the fire.

“We should go.” Teague said, speaking to Lark but staring at me.

Something about his gaze made me uncomfortable. I could tell he didn’t want me there. Looking back at him I noticed the slight resemblances to Lark. They had the same facial structure and identical noses. They were obviously brothers.

“Where are we going?” I asked quietly, interrupting what appeared to be a heated stare down between the two of them.

“We?” Teague insinuated rudely.

My eyes immediately dropped to the cup of water in my hands. His comment stung. Did he want to just leave me here in this dark cave to fend for myself? I didn’t know crap about where I was or how to survive here. Yet, I couldn’t ask them to risk their lives to get me home either and I shouldn’t be surprised that they might not want to.

Lark stood swiftly and started for the cave entrance.

“T and I need to speak outside for a moment.” He growled.

Teague glanced down at me quickly, his eyes drawn into a scowl, before following Lark outside.

Ugh. I set my cup down and stretched before standing up and wrapping the warm blankets around me. My ears were buzzing and my head was killing me, not to mention the shooting pains up my back. I’d just received way too much information. It all bashed around inside my head making me feel completely crazy. I knew that I couldn’t deny the truth of my surroundings, and the knowing was suffocating me.

 I could hear muffled talking outside of the cave. They were probably arguing about whether or not to ditch me somewhere. Lark wouldn’t ditch me. I trusted him, probably too much knowing me. Teague on the other hand, I think if it were up to him he’d leave me in this freakin’ cave. The two boys appeared back inside the cave and began to hastily pick up everything on the floor and start cramming it into two bags.

“Lena, put these on.” Lark handed me an ankle length handmade skirt, and a fluffy knitted hat with two strings that hung down the sides.

“It’s time to start moving, now.  The watchmen are already on our trail.”

 I met his eyes briefly before handing over the warm blankets stepping into the skirt I left my yoga pants on underneath for extra warmth and stuffed the hat onto my head. It was actually really soft and kind of comforting. My left hand found its way to the key against my chest and I subconsciously turned it slowly between my fingers, my mind racing. Here we go I guess.

            The boys were packed up in minutes and ushering me through the opening at the front of the cave that we had come in. Lark nodded to his brother and made a quick gesture with his hand, signaling him back into the cave as he led me away from it. I glanced at him curiously.

            “He’ll stay behind and cover our tracks.” He explained simply, and pushed me forward, toward where the sun would rise within the next few hours.

            The two of us walked along, mostly in silence. We followed a well beaten moon-lit path. My mind was on overload, trying to grasp the reality of my situation. I felt completely helpless and totally lost. Fear and anxiety clutched at my consciousness and begged me to forget. I began to withdraw into myself, into my forever present personal hideaway. My eyes remained focused on the dark soil as my feet pulled me forward, one step after another. I didn’t feel the thorns and branches snag my sweater, or the moisture inside my shoes. I remained at a safe distance, and pushed everything else far away, until I couldn’t feel at all.