Run Wild (Escape with a Scoundrel) - By Shelly Thacker Page 0,65
temples. “Get ahold of yourself, Samantha,” she whispered.
There had to be a logical explanation for what was happening to her. She was exhausted. She’d been under a great deal of strain. She’d been living in a cave, for heaven’s sake! What she needed was to get out of here. Then she’d be fine. Then she would feel like herself again.
Yes, she would feel like herself again. Soon.
The sooner, the better.
~ ~ ~
The chain scraped the stone floor with a metallic jangle as they walked—but for once the sound made Sam feel happy. Almost exhilarated. It was good to be moving again. Moving toward freedom.
A cool breeze on her face made her pause. “Do you feel that? Fresh air.” She turned to look over her shoulder. “The exit must be just ahead.”
“Well then, keep walking,” her companion urged, panting for breath. “Don’t wait for me. Something tells me I won’t be far behind.”
She smiled ruefully. He was regaining his sense of humor—sarcasm and all. A few extra hours of sleep had helped him immeasurably, but he was still very weak.
Once they had started out, he had refused to stop and rest, perhaps fearing that he might not get up again. Though, of course, he would never admit that.
She hadn’t argued with him this time. She was just as eager as he was to get out of here. Perhaps more so. She never wanted to see another cave as long as she lived.
Hefting the fishing creel on her shoulder, she kept walking.
The creel was much lighter minus the foodstuffs and whiskey bottle. They had precious few supplies left—just the utensils, the pouch of coins, the fishing line and rope. He held the biscuit-tin torch, its glimmering fire illuminating their footsteps. Whenever she spotted a patch of moss, she scraped it off with the knife and added it to the tin.
They turned a corner and she saw a gleam of light ahead.
She stopped in her tracks. “Oh, thank God!” she breathed.
“That doesn’t look like sunlight,” he said dubiously.
As her eyes adjusted, Sam realized he was right. The light that spilled across the rocky floor a few paces ahead wasn’t bright and golden like sunlight. It was a muted glow. Almost unnatural.
“Almost like a lantern,” she whispered. “Or—”
“Listen,” he said sharply. “What’s that sound?”
She strained her ears. There could be no mistake. They both said it at the same time.
“Waterfall.”
She felt her stomach drop to her toes. No, it couldn’t be! The thought of having to go through another bout with the river...
They looked at each other. His expression held the same reluctance and dread she felt.
But a moment later, his jaw hardened. “Let’s go,” he said grimly.
“Right.” She echoed his determination. They had survived days of the worst kind of suffering in this place. After all that, she refused to be daunted by any obstacle thrown in their path.
Quickly, without another moment’s hesitation, they walked toward the light, side by side. The cavern floor sloped downward, and the walls closed in around them, narrowing until they were forced to stoop over. The sound of the water grew louder, the wind stronger.
An opening appeared ahead, blocked by branches. Her pulse raced. They might find themselves at the top of a cliff or some awful precipice.
They pushed the branches aside. Cautiously slipped through the exit, bracing themselves.
It was like stepping out of the deepest pits of hell straight into heaven.
Into a lush, green Eden.
Sam gasped in awe as they straightened and looked around. The light they had seen was not sunlight but moonlight. And starlight. Gleaming on a carpet of grass that stretched before them. They had exited into a small glade, tucked into a corner of the mountain of rock that formed the cavern. Craggy walls of stone protected it on three sides, while the fourth opened into the forest.
The waterfall they had heard was little more than a gentle shower, spilling over the hillside on the opposite side of the clearing, into a stream that wound through the pines and oak and ash trees of the forest.
Silently, they walked forward, out into the fresh air. She inhaled deeply. The scent of summer flowers, grass, leaves met them like a warm welcome and she knew she would never forget this particular fragrance as long as she lived. She had never smelled anything so sweet in her entire life!
The silver light, the clear night air, the sound of the wind in the trees, even the waterfall—they all seemed ordinary yet exquisite.