The sun was setting and my resolve had hardened. I hoped it wasn't as noticeable as it felt. It was another long day's ride and the air was changing. I could already smell the sea salt in the air. It didn't smell like home anymore. I slipped off the horse, clumsily, knocking over the leader and landing on top of him. I almost gagged at the feel of his hands on my waist. I averted my gaze, looking down at his trousers, more specifically his pocket where the key he used last night had slipped out just a little bit. As we stood back up, I slid my hand into his pocket and grabbed the key with my fingertips. The look on his face suggested that he felt it but that he didn't suspect anything. I slowly let out the breath I was holding.

I was able to sneak back into the girls' tent after dinner. The men had broken into bottles of ale and were being too unruly to notice my absence. I slipped into the tent, glancing around but nobody was looking.

They were huddled together, the rope connecting them together didn't allow for much room. A few of them had their eyes closed and the ones that were awake, stared at nothing. I knelt next to Taylen and tapped her knee. The skin around her shackles were red and scabbed.

Her eyes opened, wide and frightful but when she saw it was just me, her lip curled in a way she reserved for sour bread or burnt fish. "What are you doing here?"

I shushed her and brought a finger to my lips. I crouched in front of her and reached into the bosom of my dress, pulling the key out that I had stashed there. "Nightfall," I whispered to her. "Be ready."

I placed the key into the palm of Taylen's hand but she only looked at it suspiciously. I had the sudden urge to strangle her but that wouldn't help anything. I stood back up and without looking back, ducked back under the tent flap.

Taking my spot at the edge of the fire, I fiddled with the chain between my fingers and waited for the bottles of ale to dwindle until there was none left and the men retreated back to their tents. The leader grunted in my direction, stumbling on his feet as he entered his tent. When I came in, the brazier was already lit and he had fallen onto his bedroll face first. I stood by the opening of the tent. He hadn't even bothered to chain me back to the pole. Maybe my luck was starting to turn.

"Here." He slurred, waving a hand toward him without lifting his head.

My stomach dropped to my toes. Taking a deep breath in, I steeled myself and walked slowly towards the bedroll. The leader's face was still buried in his blanket and he didn't see me grab the hot metal of the brazier. I bit into my bottom lip to stifle the pain as it seared my palms. With a great heave, I pushed it over.

It took a full three seconds before he realized what happened, but it was long enough for the corner of the blanket to have caught fire from the embers. It spread quickly and the man sprung to his feet, but there was already a line of fire that separated either side of the tent. I lifted my chin at him in a silent challenge and the thunderous look on his face almost quelled my rebellious spirit. Almost.

I darted out of the opening of the tent but it didn't take long before I heard cursing and then footsteps chasing behind me. He shouted something, not bothering to smother the fire that was engulfing his tent, and then it sounded like a whole army was thundering after me.

I raced into the trees as quickly as my bare feet would allow, sticks and rocks breaking the skin on the sole. I had no idea where I was or how close the nearest town was, but I ran for my life and hoped that the girls were too. I ran for the thickest part of the woods where the trees were so close together, barely able to squeeze through between them.

I dared a glance over my shoulder, but all I could see was the dark forest. I didn't know how long it would take for them to catch up and I didn't intend to find out. They might know these woods better than me, but I was smaller and faster.

Every time I would slow or stumble, it was Ayla's face or my father's face that would flash in front of my eyes. I will make it back to them, I vowed. My legs burned and my lungs ached, begging me to stop, but I ignored them.

The trees ahead of me thinned out, and I hoped that I had stumbled upon civilization. It wasn't until I made it past the last line of trees that I noticed there wasn't a faint glow of a town. The only light came from the full moon in the sky. I skidded to a stop at the cliffside, finally catching my breath. I leaned over the edge and grimaced at the far drop below.

A shadow emerged from the trees behind me and I whirled to face it. The leader's face was twisted in fury. More and more men stepped from the trees until I was sure that the entire raiding group was here on the cliff. At least it would make it easier on Taylen and the others to escape. Gods I hoped they escaped.

Every step he took towards me, I took one back until I was teetering on the edge of the cliff. I had no doubt that he would kill me for escaping. I only had one other option. I took one last step back.

He was quicker though. He grabbed the chain connecting my wrists cuffs and flung me forward onto the hard ground. I wondered if he would end it here or drag me back to camp.

I tried struggling but it was no use. He threw me over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes, his hand cupping my thigh. I squirmed, beating my fists against his back, but his grip only tightened. The walk back seemed half as long as my flee had been. No wonder he managed to catch me, I hadn't gone far at all.

I trembled at the sight of the campsite. The leader's tent was in flames, and it reached with spindly fingers towards the tents next to it. The leader swore and barked out an order, pointing towards the tent.

I was dragged over to a tree. My arms were raised over my head so that my shackles could hook onto a tall branch. My feet barely touched the ground and I had to stand on the tips of my toes to relieve the weight from my shoulders. My chest was pressed against the tree and the rough bark scratched my face. I caught a glimpse out of my peripheral of the leader grabbing a riding whip meant for horses. Somebody ripped the back of my dress.

I struggled, kicking my legs out and trying to dislodge my cuffs from the branch above me. The whip whistled through the air a split second before it cracked against my back. Fire seared down my spine from the whip, and I could already feel the welt start to form. Tears flooded my eyes as the next one landed and they started rolling down my cheeks by the third. After the fourth lash, a scream tore from my lips. When the next one landed, I could feel the skin of my back rip open. The other men whistled their approval. I clamped my mouth shut to keep from screaming out. I didn't want to give them the satisfaction of knowing they hurt me.

"The others are gone." A rough voice cut through the haze of pain.

The lashings stopped. I risked a glance over my shoulder, even though my back protested the small movement. I saw a man leaving the tent where the girls had been, pointing a finger towards me. The leader snapped and ordered a group of men into the woods. I prayed that they wouldn't find them.

My eyes watched as the trees swallowed the men and I didn't notice the whip until it caught right beneath my cheekbone. I whipped my head back around, tucking it between my shoulders. I was so dazed that the next few strikes went unnoticed, my back flinching involuntarily.

He started hitting harder. The cheers from the crowd around me was drowned out by screams. In the back of my mind, I vaguely wondered who was screaming until I realized that the raspy voice came from me. I tried to keep my mouth closed but each time he put extra force behind the next hit.

Eternity slipped past as I hung from that tree but the hits kept coming. I couldn't even tell one from the other. They all ran together. Every coherent thought was driven away by the pain, pain, pain. It repeated in my mind, threatening to take over. Pain, pain. My legs gave way and my arms were forced to bear my weight. Pain. Darkness shrouded my vision and I tried to embrace it but I was kept just on the brink of consciousness. Pain.

Through the fog, my ear picked up the sound of shouting in the distance, but I couldn't find it in myself to care. Until I realized the beating had stopped. My delirious mind wanted to question it, but even a twitch sent crippling ripples of pain down my back. So I just hung limply from the tree.

I was able to pull my thoughts together enough to realize that the shouting came from behind me now, and I recognized my own language amongst the native tongue of the slavers. The new voices didn't sound familiar.

"Miss?"

The word took a moment to register in my mind. The voice was deep but didn't sound like any of the slavers with their strange accent. My eyes snapped open -I hadn't even realized they were closed- and a large face loomed in my vision. It apparently startled the person because they took a step backward.

The world spun as my eyes traveled from a pair of riding boots, similar to the pair I used to have except larger and wider, dark brown trousers, and a sheath attached to his hip. One hand firmly gripped a sword covered in blood and my mind flashed back to the cellar, blood dripping onto the stone floor. I forced the thought away, tearing my eyes from the weapon.

I sniffed, a metallic tang hung heavy in the air. I tried to turn my head to look behind me but stopped with a gasp of sharp pain. I couldn't imagine how my back must look if it hurt this bad. The man must've taken it for hesitation because he said, "I wouldn't look." Determined, I managed a glimpse behind me. Bodies littered the ground. My insides twisted, but they deserved it.

"We're going to get you down from here. Alright?"

All that slipped past my lips was a groan. My body was gently lifted up and off of the tree branch. The sudden motion lit a flame that raced down my spine. My shoulders were sore as my arms stiffly dropped to my sides. My bare feet touched the ground, but instead of supporting my weight, they crumbled beneath me and darkness creeped into my vision. An arm snaked around my back before I could hit the ground and another arm slid under my legs. I was pulled against a warm, hard chest.

"It's over. You're safe now. You're okay." A voice kept whispering in my ear. Liar, I thought. I would never be okay.