The Hunt

Chapter 31- Two

Cecily jumped out of the little bed exactly an hour after she'd fallen asleep. She was still exhausted, but her head was pounding with adrenaline. They needed to go. Now. The more time they had to run the better. She could finish sleeping when she was dead.

She burst out of the little room with renewed vigor and eagerness. 

"Cecily," Orion said, his voice firm. "You need to sleep."

He was digging through newly packed bags right next to the criminal's dad. He'd peeked up from the bag to look at her.

"I did."

"For an hour."

"Still slept. We need to get going. Did Zeph confirm the location?"

Orion and Cecily's dad shared a look with each other. 

"Sweetheart," her dad said in the voice that sounded like he was trying to cajole her into something, "you really need to sleep some more. You look like death on two feet."

"I'll be dead sooner if we don't leave. Right now, we have the choice of fighting our way to that place or running on fumes. I'd rather run on fumes without being tracked."

"She's right," the prince said, walking into the room with Reiko on his trail. The king to be was wearing slightly oversized clothes with a sword tied around his waist. "It'll be a long trip without many breaks. We need to leave as soon as possible." Even though he said the words, he was giving Cecily a worried look. "Remind me, again, how you came into possession of this property."

"A deal," she answered, "with your father. He told me that if anything happened to him, this would be insurance to keep you safe. He had one witness and that was enough."

Zephyr didn't say anything, but Cecily could see the frustration written across his features before he calmed himself. His expression, at least. 

"We'll worry about that later," Alma said, coming up behind them. "Right now, we need to go."

Cecily nodded in agreement.

---

Orion fit himself between Cecily and Alma, making sure the two of them kept up with the rest. They were keeping nearby the trails so they had an idea of where they were going, but not so close that any passerby could see them. They were all criminals after all.

He especially kept an eye on Cecily. She was moving like normal, but the assassin got the idea that she could get stabbed and still pretend she was okay.

He caught the worried glances of Zephyr and Reiko as well. The three of them all had the same thought.

"So, where is it we're going, again?" Alma said just loud enough that the small group could hear.

The question was aimed at Cecily, but the hunter didn't seem apt on answering, so the prince answered for her. "A small house-"

"It's a mansion," Reiko cut in, unamused.

"A mansion, I suppose," Zephyr continued. "I'd forgotten about it. When I was younger, I used to take vacations there with... Yeah. Apparently, Cecily made a deal with my father when they met. In return for keeping me safe, she gets a mansion."

"Don't talk about me like that," Cecily bit back. It was foolish of Orion to think she wasn't paying attention - she always knew what was going on. "Like I'm just helping cause I get the mansion out of it. It was only if your father died - specifically if he was killed by someone on the list. He has someone verify too, just to be sure."

"But you're staying because you want the money."

Cecily stopped dead in her tracks and the others weren't far behind.