When Zeni strolled past me, she halted and sniffed the air. “Come, let’s go. There’s a plant I can find to help cleanse your injuries.”
Stumped, I wasn’t sure whether to trust her or not, but I joined her on our fast walk through the woods, and I cringed on the inside each time I stepped on something sharp. She never made a sound. No one did, they just all kept moving.
Zeni fell behind me, but I kept moving. It wasn’t long before she caught up with me. “Let me put this on your wounds.”
I nodded, needing anything to stop the sting from the bite, and I sure didn’t want to catch any alien virus from his saliva. There was also the matter of whether he had infected me with his poison. The last thing I needed was to start hallucinating out here in the middle of nowhere.
Zeni had several small leaves she’d crunched in her fist and small droplets of green juice rolled over their surface. She reached over and placed it over the bite mark.
The sting felt like she’d dabbed vinegar on my open wound. I bit down on my lower lip until that hurt and shut my eyes as she rubbed the leaves across my lesions.
When she finished, I opened my eyes to see she had hers shut, almost swaying on the spot and licking her lower lip.
“Are you alright?” I asked, and her eyes snapped open, something dark swirling behind them.
Her mouth pulled into a grin so wide, it scared me a bit. “Absolutely.” Her voice dripped with honey, and my breath hitched all the way down to my lungs because I shouldn’t have trusted her or believed she wanted to help me.
“What did you put on my injuries?”
“Healing potion and you’re welcome. More than you deserve for stealing my Vepar.” She strolled through the woods to catch up with the other women.
Goosebumps slid over my flesh, and a chaotic onslaught of panic crawled through me. I made a mistake and let down my guard. The wounds burned but was that the leaves doing their job or was she just being a bitch?
I had to believe I’d be okay or I wouldn't take another step, and I hurried after the women, ready to reach the destination and get out of this forsaken forest.
The rest of the day dragged by. My feet ached, but the pain across my bite marks had subsided. The bleeding had stopped and I couldn’t feel the skin around the wounds, but I kept going, holding my bag and the little pig close to me. I checked the bag again and he’d fallen asleep with his head inside the pot. At least someone was content.
With the sun starting to lower, our pace picked up as we now traveled along the valley, where pebbles covered the forest floor and few trees grew. The wind grew cold, and I crossed my arms for warmth.
“Do you think the other women have made it to the final target?” I asked, breaking the silence we’d shared for the last few hours.
“Maybe,” the brunette spoke with her back to me, everyone just breathing hard and marching onward.
Hours later with night starting to creep over the sky, my body burning with exhaustion, and fear pricking my chest that we’d miss our target, we emerged into an open field, past the mountains. And up ahead, a circular set of lights beamed, bringing our attention to the ship parked a couple of yards away.
I small whimper of relief fell from my lips, and I suddenly breathed easier and moved faster. All five of us ran toward it, laughing, and I never thought I’d be so happy to see a spaceship. Holding my bag with the little piggy, I smiled and laughed for the first time since arriving on Veon.
The elf Vepar was waiting for us, and he handed clothes and water to each of us as we passed him, congratulating each woman. When I reached him, he winked and pressed clean clothes into my hands and water. “Knew you could do it.” He leaned closer. “But you weren’t supposed to bring any of the girls with you.”
I realized then that he must have been working with Derrial and the men to ensure only I won, but Zeni and the others were too suspicious. It never occured to me, and I felt foolish for being so blindsighted.
“What about the other women?”
He shook his head. “They’re trackers show them still heading to the other valley. They won’t make it. Get in the ship, we’re about to take off.”
Only five women passed the first test, so better than ten. I set my bag down and got dressed rapidly, before collecting my little stowaway and crading him inside the bag in my arms. He squirmed and let out a small musical note. When I looked inside, he yawned. “Almost there.”
I hurried on the ship and took a seat as far from the others as possible. If I intended to survive, I’d have to be savvier in my approach.
When we landed back in the city, each girl was escorted out to a holding place until the next mission. No outside influencers.
When I entered my room, they shut the door behind me and the familiar sound of a lock clicked in place. Yep, it wasn’t a prison but it might as well be.
The lights flicked on, and I flinched to find three figures in my room. My back hit the door, only to find friendly, sexy smiles and my three Vepar waiting for me.
“Are you allowed to be here?” I stepped deeper into a large room only, and I figured most other things were tucked into the walls.
“We can’t stay long.” Derrial reached out for my hand and pressed my knuckles to his mouth. “But we had to check on you after we heard you arrived in time.”