Page 68
Salvation
Adelina grasped Yarmilla. “Can you stand?”
Wincing, the girl nodded.
“I’m going to get you to the edge of town,” Adelina said, tucking an arm around her. “You’ll see my husband, Damir. He will keep you safe.”
“What about Pa?” she whimpered as she hobbled along the cobbles.
“He’s gone.” Adelina swallowed the bile in her throat. “I’m sorry. You’re injured, we need to get you out of here.”
Yarmilla swatted the tears from her eyes, but she didn’t look back.
Dozens of locals sprinted in all directions, fleeing the area as more buildings threatened to buckle. A deafening roar pierced the air, rumbling across the town.
Adelina’s gaze darted to the sky. She’d never heard anything like it.
“What was that?” Yarmilla asked.
“I’m not sure.” Adelina hurried towards the stone wall, keeping a firm grasp of the girl as they made their way out of Aramoor.
The rolling hills beyond were chaos. Civilians ran through the open. Mothers carried children. Men brought any belongings they’d salvaged.
“Adelina!” Damir called, catching her attention.
“Damir.” She rushed to him, pressing a kiss on his cheek before urging the girl towards him. “This is Yarmilla. She’s hurt.”
“The stablemaster and a few volunteers have grabbed the horses and wagons. Not many survived the earthquake, but the injured are being prioritised. They’re to travel to Saintlandsther Highlands as there’s no safe route south.” Damir hooked his arms under Yarmilla, holding her steady.
“Nowhere is safe.” Adelina thrust a hand through her hair. “We don’t know the extent of the damage this earthquake has caused. Saintlandsther could be upended too, for all we know.”
“We don’t have much choice, but the Highlands are the safest option,” Damir said. “There are several small towns across the border.”
A low-pitch rumble rippled. The ground trembled ferociously.
Adelina shot a glance over her shoulders. Screams rang from Aramoor. “Keep helping the locals. I’m going to find our parents.”
Before Damir could respond, she sprinted through the entrance, shoving her way through the packed streets. She halted when she reached the front door of the Orlov house, then flung it open.
“Ma!” she shouted as she searched the ground floor. “Pa!”
She turned to the staircase, taking two at a time. In quick strides, she crossed the landing, barging into her parents’ room. She found them frantically shoving belongings into bags.
“Adelina!” Velinka squealed. “Are you all right?”
“I’m fine. Come on. We have to get out of here. It’s not safe.” Adelina grabbed her mother’s arm, pulling her towards the door. “And you, Pa.”
Her parents were at her side. “Where’s Damir?”
“He’s fine—he’s outside the village, aiding other civilians. It’s your turn now.” Adelina urged them out of the bedroom and down the stairs. In quick movements, she removed their coats from the peg and shoved them into their arms. “Put these on.”
As her parents did so, Natasha flung a small bag over her shoulder.
“Where are we going?” she asked.
“Saintlandsther.” Adelina threw the door open. “We need to leave.”
Outside, Adelina halted, turning to face her parents and Natasha. “Head out of town. I’ll come back to find you when I’ve gotten Damir’s parents.”
“We’re not leaving you!” Velinka grasped her wrist. “We’ve already lost one daughter. We won’t lose another.”
Scream pierced the air as more civilians darted past the house.
“You need to go. Now! ” Adelina pushed them onto the path. “Go. ”
Her parents took several steps back, keeping their gaze locked on her, before they turned. Daro held his wife’s hand, and they ran to the field beyond.
Swallowing the lump in her throat, she fought to clear her mind. Her parents would be fine. Climbing over the low wall separating the terraced houses, she thumped onto the slab directly outside the Litvin house.
She heaved in the door. “Mirelle, Jasen!”
Darting through the living room, she checked the kitchen, the pantry, and the spare room on the ground floor. When she couldn’t find them, she dashed upstairs and searched each bedroom.
Whizzing downstairs, she panted. Her lungs burned, and her heart ached.
Think .
Tapping her foot in a fast rhythm, she considered every possibility of where Damir’s parents might be. Then she remembered they had a small basement used to store root vegetables.
In quick strides, she heaved open the door and hurried down the stone steps.
Adrenaline flooded her entire being, and heart palpitations made her chest tingle and tighten. As much as she sucked in air, she couldn’t shake the sensation of being smothered.
“Mirelle!” she called. “Jasen!”
She blinked rapidly to rid herself of the spots in her vision.
Calm the hell down. Keep it together.
Her eyes adjusted to the dim lighting in the basement. Onions and potatoes and fallen to the floor, littering it like scattered glass.
“Adelina?” a quiet voice asked .
“Mirelle!” Adelina dashed to Damir’s mother, who sat on the floor with her back pressed to the wall. Jasen held her tight to his chest. “Are you hurt?”
“I’m fine,” Mirelle said, her eyes wild. “But Jasen—he’s got a nasty cut on his arm. When the windows imploded, he threw his arm up to protect me from the glass.”
“Are you okay?” Adelina dropped to her knees, quickly assessing the tightly wrapped bandage around Jasen’s arm. “We need to leave. Damir and my parents are waiting for us outside Aramoor, but we can’t wait any longer. There could be another wave at any moment.”
“Yes.” He nodded, helping his wife to her feet. “Is our son unharmed?”
“You’ll see for yourself.” Adelina urged them towards the stairs.
When Adelina hauled open the front door, she gasped. Raging fire licked the walls of buildings. She choked on an inhale of smoke.
“Cover your mouth with your sleeve,” she yelled.
The earthquake must’ve disturbed lit candles, stoves…
there’d be no saving Aramoor. Narrowing her gaze on the exit out of the village, she hurried along the cobbled path, keeping her sleeve pressed to her mouth.
Every few seconds, she checked over her shoulder to ensure Damir’s parents were following.
As they reached the stone wall surrounding the town, a strangled sob escaped Mirelle’s mouth as she threw her arms around Damir.
“Oh, thank the gods you’re safe,” she cried.
“Here. There’s enough space on this wagon for you both.” Damir offered Mirelle his arm, then helped her up. He faced his father. “Your turn. ”
With a swift nod, Jasen scrambled into position beside his wife, tucking her against his chest.
“Adelina.” Velinka’s voice trembled as she reached out her hand.
“There’s not enough room.” Adelina shook her head. “Damir and I will take a horse.”
Instinctively, Damir whirled around. All the wagons had already fled, except this one, and there were only a couple of horses left.
They bucked and neighed, despite the stableman’s efforts to calm them.
A loud groan rumbled from the depths of Aramoor, and another burst of smoke shot into the clouds.
“Adelina.” Damir grabbed her hand. “We should take one while they’re still here. It’s either that or risk getting trapped.”
“We’ll find you in the Highlands,” Adelina said to her parents. “Stay together. We will find you. I love you.”
“We love you too,” her pa said. “Hurry.”
Blinking back tears, Adelina rushed to the stableman, who wrestled for the horse’s reins. “We’ll take this one.”
“He’s too wild.” The stableman shook his head. “The fire—he’s out of control.”
“Don’t worry about the horse!” Damir snapped. “Get yourself out of here .”
The man shook violently but nodded. Climbing onto the saddle of the remaining mount, he galloped away, joining the sea of fleeing wagons and poor folk on foot.
Heart pounding, Adelina watched as Damir carefully approached the trembling, distressed horse. Tail swishing, hooves pawing the ground, he looked as if he might rear up at Damir at any moment .
“Be careful,” Adelina whispered pointlessly.
“It’s all right,” Damir said in the gentlest of tones, displaying the palms of his hands. “I’m going to help you, okay? We’ll ride away from here, where it’ll be safe.”
The horse snorted, lashing his neck back. Damir halted.
“You’re going to be fine,” he said in a soothing manner, then edged closer.
As the horse watched him tentatively, Damir raised his hand as slowly as he could until his fingers touched the reins. He kept his hand there for a few moments, perhaps until he was sure the mount wouldn’t buck. “You can come now, Adelina.”
Holding her breath, fingers shaking, Adelina approached the saddle. Using the stirrup, she hoisted herself up and took the reins from Damir. When he was seated behind her, she jerked the leathers hard, and they set off in a fast gallop to join the others.
∞∞∞
Adelina brought the horse to a sharp halt. From their position in the treeline, she maintained a clear view of the devastation that had befallen her childhood home. Her heart lodged itself in her throat. The fire raged, showing no signs of letting up.
Pressure built in her chest as she struggled to breathe.
Her body went numb. She brought a hand to her mouth, and a sudden weakness spread through her limbs.
Her pulse quickened as the devastation of the events sunk in.
Aramoor was destroyed. She’d no idea how many people survived the earthquake and the fires, and even less of an idea how many of those travelling by foot would reach Saintlandsther.
“Gods,” Damir gasped from behind her. His grip around her waist tightened. “We can’t stay here.”
“I’ve lost sight of the other wagons.” She shook her head as she surveyed the field ahead. “How are we to know where our families are?”
“We’ll head north to the mountains. Stick to higher ground until we reach the border, then we’ll make our way into the Saintlandsther Highlands,” he suggested. “We’ll search the villages for our parents when we get there.”
“We can’t travel too far,” she said. “It’s the middle of the night.”
Table of Contents
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