{ELEMENTISTS OF WILLOW FOREST BOOK II} The Pain of Earth

Always Break Your Nails

13:  Always Break Your Nails

Before leaving, Sasha had to make it look like she'd been on the road for a while.

Easy.  She'd had first-hand experience of being on the run, so faking it was simples.

She found a bit of nail where there was a crack, and picked at it for some time until it was ragged and sore.  She slashed her jeans and trainers in various places, and sliced her hands with a sharp stone.  Similar cuts were then added all over her body.

Errr... Yes.  She was doing this in the bathroom.

She banged her knees against the walls, hoping to gain a few bruises.  After putting some clothes on, Sasha went outside to access some soil.  She rubbed mud under her fingernails, and coated her skin with a thin layer of dirt.  Her silky black hair was tangled, knotted and dirtied.

Sasha didn't bother with farewells.  She'd said goodbye to Alex yesterday.  Only the Councillors (and Alex) knew about Felix and Echo Valley, so she couldn’t tell anybody else where she was going.  Olivia had probably already made up some fantastical cover story to explain her absence.

She walked to the perimeter, jumped the fence and left Willow Forest behind.

She left any protection behind.

Sasha broke into a run, retracing her steps from her journey to Echo Valley a month ago.  She had decided that she wanted to find her brother as quick as possible.

Oh no.  A thought had just occurred to her.  If she found Felix with Rock and Pebble, would the Miners blurt out that Sasha hadn't been an escapee for weeks?

*

Felix sighed as Pebble asked yet another ridiculed question.

She presumably did it to annoy him, bit with that blonde ten-year-old it was hard to tell.

He'd had to put up with the Miners for twenty four hours.  Twenty four freaking hours.  Of stupid questions, complaints and pure, pure ignorance.  Rock and Pebble clearly weren't pleased to see him.  He wasn't particularly pleased to see them, either.  And they moved so s-l-o-w-l-y.  Twice as slow as the journey to Willow Forest.  Rock and Pebble refused to move any faster than about one mile an hour.  They must have been going slowly on purpose, still in hope of some kind of rescue.  Felix made a mental note to not personally supervise the next expedition to kidnap Josephine.  Or any of the others, for that matter.

George, who was leading the way, suddenly stopped to sniff the ground.  Again.  Damn, didn't that wolf know the way by now?

"Brunner girl is close."  He announced.

Felix froze.