The Fourth Ceremony: The Sacrifice Trilogy (34 page)

“
That means you have two left. Listen to me, I have to get to my bag or take one of the weapons off of these guys. You have to take out two of them. That means no misses. You will have the surprise. It needs to be a clear kill shot. Then, the next person to move is your next target.
I’
ll take the head guy. You start with Earl and then take out whoever you see next, Ted or the quiet one. Whoever moves, you shoot. If you ca
n’
t shoot, you run up to them and stab them straight in the neck. No wavering, Alessa, you have to do this. For both of us
.
”

Alessa steadied herself. She took a deep breath and tried to quell the storm bubbling up in her. She thought of how she would prepare for a long swim before she became afraid. She cleared her head so that she could think of nothing but the water surrounding her. She would do that now, she would clear her head so that she could just do what had to be done. She could think about it later. She set her pack behind the tree and pulled the gun out. She resettled the knife in its holster on her hip.

“
Ready
?”
Camden asked.

“
Yes
,”
Alessa answered, although she was sure she was
n’
t.

Camden rose quickly and silently and moved to the leader of the group. Alessa started towards Earl. She leveled her gun at his head. She heard Camden and the leader start to scuffle. She moved her finger the fraction of an inch that it took to set off the gun. The noise shattered the silence. Her ears rang and she was
n’
t sure what was going on around her. She looked to the quiet man, the one who had
n’
t said a word all day. He groggily turned towards her and started to rise. She raised the gun to meet him and moved her finger ever so slightly again. The pop sounded quieter this time, she guessed because her ears were becoming attuned to the noise. The man dropped instantly to the ground, his silence continuing.

Arms wrapped around Aless
a’
s middle. She twisted herself to see her captor, she had
n’
t heard anyone coming. Her ears still rang from the shots. Te
d’
s face was right beside hers. She pulled the gun around and pushed it to his shoulder. She pulled the trigger, but nothing happened. She was out of bullets. She slammed the gun against his head as hard as she could. He stumbled backwards, but did
n’
t fall. He held his head and looked at her, that same menace she had seen before filling his eyes. Next thing she knew, Camden rushed up to him.

“
Look away, Alessa
,”
Camden said loudly, managing to speak over the ringing in her ears. Alessa complied. She could hear some evidence of a scuffle and then a thud and silence. She turned back slowly. Camden stood behind Te
d’
s lifeless body. A thin red line ran across Te
d’
s neck. Alessa turned away again.

She felt Camde
n’
s hands on her arms. He turned her around to face him. His eye was almost swollen shut and his lip was cracked and bleeding again. The ringing in her ears began to fade to a dull buzz.

“
Are you okay
?”
Camden asked seriously. Alessa just stared at him. How could she answer that question
?“
Alessa, are you hurt
?”
She shook her head, she could answer that one.

Camden pulled her close to him and wrapped his arms around her. He smoothed her hair down her back and rocked her from side to side. Alessa surveyed the damage around them. Four men lay in eternal silence at their feet. She was
n’
t even sure that Camden did to the leader, his form was still in the stiff position he had slept in.

“
Can we go somewhere else
?”
Alessa asked quietly.

“
Of course we can
,”
Camden answered, pulling back from her
,“
just go back to where your bag is, I need to collect some things
.
”

“
No, I do
n’
t want to separate,
I’
m fine,
I’
ll help
,”
Alessa said numbly. The truth was, she was
n’
t sure what was waiting around each tree and she felt certain she did
n’
t want to be more than an ar
m’
s reach away from Camden now. Camden paused and looked into her eyes for a long moment.

“I’
m sorry Alessa, but we need food and they have excellent supplies
,”
Camden said plainly.

“
I get it.
I’
ve done it. Tha
t’
s how I got the knife
,”
Alessa replied with sarcasm.

Camden stroked her arm and set about gathering things from the different bodies. Then, he put out the fire the men had started and cast them into darkness. Once he finished, he took Aless
a’
s hand and guided her away from the camp. He used a flashlight he took off of one of the men to lead their way.

Alessa followed woodenly. She felt numb and empty. She had taken lives that day. She never dreamed that she would be capable of such a thing. She tried to remind herself that she had done it to save her own life and Camde
n’
s, but she could
n’
t shake the guilt that penetrated deep in her soul.

Camden

              While they walked to find a new camping site, Camden kicked himself mentally. He should have told Alessa to free him and leave. He should have told her to wait by the tree. He should
n’
t have made her do that. She would never forgive him. But he knew it had to be done. He could
n’
t have stopped them by himself, they would have both been caught and killed. The truth was, he needed her help. And she had preformed admirably.

              He was worried for her. She was in shock. That much he was sure of. He was
n’
t sure what he could do for her. First of all, he knew he had to get her settled down and fed. He was sure that they would
n’
t encounter any other search parties. They were quickly getting out of Capitol friendly territory. Frankly, he was surprised they encountered this crew so far out.

              After walking far enough that they could
n’
t see the smoke or smell the fire of the other camp, Camden stopped.

            
 “
W
e’
ll camp here. W
e’
ll spend the night, I do
n’
t think w
e’
ll get interrupted this time
.”
Camden set about starting their own fire. After it was going and Alessa was settled in front of it, he sat down beside her and pulled out some of the dried meat from the me
n’
s stash.

            
 “
Take this, you have to eat
,”
Camden said. He watched as Alessa ate the meat. She stared into the fire
.“
Please talk to me
,”
Camden said, her silence worrying him.

            
 “
Should
n’
t you be eating, too
?”
Alessa asked.

            
 “
Tha
t’
s what you thought I meant by talk to me
?”
Camden replied while pulling out a piece of meat for himself.
            
 “
I do
n’
t know what to say, Cam. I do
n’
t really know what to think.
I’
m so torn. On one hand,
I’
m so glad yo
u’
re okay. I thought that things were going to go really bad and I was
n’
t even sure that they did
n’
t just kill you on the spot. The thought of that, it just tore through me. On the other hand, I ca
n’
t get his face out of my head
.
”

            
 “
Which one
?”
Camden asked quietly.

            
 “
The one I killed before I found you. The one I killed completely on my own. He was so angry and hateful. I knew if I did
n’
t kill him, he was going to kill me. That was the clearest moment in my life. But, as he died, he did
n’
t look angry and murderous, he just looked scared
.
”

Camden moved closer to Alessa and hugged her close. Tears streamed down her face. He did
n’
t know what to do. He wished he could fix it all, but he knew he could
n’
t.

“
I guess in the end, i
t’
s all just fear
,”
he said
,“
but i
t’
s what we do in the other times that matter. You did what you had to do to survive. You did
n’
t go out looking for a fight, they did. You just answered. I know
I’
ve said this before, but you are so brave and so amazing. You have to know that. You have been through more in the last day than most people go through in a lifetime. Yo
u’
re still standing, still moving, and still pushing. Tha
t’
s incredible. I am in awe of you, Alessa
.
”

Alessa sat quietly for a long moment, looking into the fire. Camden was afraid that he had said something wrong or made it worse. Then, she turned her head and laid it on his shoulder. He sighed with relief. She was
n’
t mad at him. Miraculously, she did
n’
t blame him for all of this. He turned towards her, gathering her into his chest and bringing her as close to him as she could get.

“I’
m going to fix this Alessa. I am going to make this worth it. I am going to make you happy and carefree again, I swear I will. I would do anything for you. I love you, Alessa
.”
The words were out of his mouth before he thought them through. He was
n’
t sure if he should regret them or not. He did love her. He guessed he had loved her for a long time, but he was
n’
t sure that this was the right moment to spring it on her.

Alessa pulled away from him slightly. Resisting the urge to tighten his grip and refuse to let her go, he let his arms slack. Then, she wrapped her arms around his neck and buried her face in his neck.

“
Cam, I love you too
,”
she said, as soft as a breath. A warmth spread through his chest. He could
n’
t believe that, through all of this, she loved him. It was more than he could hope. He held her close, not wanting to let go of the moment. But, the truth of their situation struck him and he had to be practical.

“
Alessa, we need to rest, especially you. Le
t’
s lay down and try to get some sleep
,”
he said, reluctantly pulling himself away from her.

“
Alright, as long as you promise not to go anywhere
,”
Alessa replied. Camden looked deeply into her eyes. They were a beautiful blue and shone in the firelight like something out of a story. He pulled her towards him and kissed her deeply. He ran his hands along her arms and cupped her face. She settled her hands on his shoulders. As much as it pained him, he broke away.

“I’
d have to be crazy
,”
he said gruffly. He kissed her once more and pulled blankets out of the packs h
e’
d taken.

Camden settled down in front of the fire. He pulled Alessa to lay in front of him, closer to the warmth, and wrapped his arms around her. He smiled when he heard her sigh contentedly and felt her lean into him. He was sure that he could stay just like this, in the dark cold woods, forever if only he had her in his arms.

Camden was shocked to find that they had both slept soundly through the night. He awoke to the subtle light of morning. His body was stiff from not moving all night, but Alessa still slept and he did
n’
t want to disturb her so he stayed still. Ever so slowly, he lifted his head and propped it on his hand so that he could see her face. He had meant it when he told her that he was in awe of her. She was mesmerizing in the soft light and he still could not believe how brave and resilient she had been. He leaned down and placed a kiss on her cheek.