Cain moved as quickly as he could through the dark tunnels without running. He didn’t want anybody to realize how freaked out he was. All of those people had seemed strange, and looked at him as if he might be some kind of a monster. What was their deal? And why in the hell were they living underground so near to the city?
He emerged into the fresh air and looked back at the entrance in disbelief. He never would have known this place was there if that woman hadn’t shown up and taken him in. What had her plan been? What was the point in trying to feed him such a ridiculous crock of shit?
He shook his head, glancing up at the sky one last time before he left. The lights were still there, shimmering and as beautiful as ever. What did all of this mean?
Cain sighed. Whatever it meant, it was crazy. It was time for him to head back to civilization, where people didn’t live in caves and lure strangers in to eat odd meals and tell them ludicrous lies. He wasn’t living in Hansel and Gretel for fuck’s sake.
But something about the woman’s eyes had troubled him. She didn’t seem capable of lying. Maybe she had deluded herself. People could believe their own lies. It happened all the time. It was a shame that someone so beautiful had turned out to be such a character. Still, it was unsettling.
Cain set off through the woods. His legs felt leaden and unsteady. Should he tell someone about the group of loons living in the forest? That would account for the lack of game in this region, that was for sure.
He walked for about an hour when he suddenly heard voices in the distance. Male voices. Masculine and capable. They sounded comforting; like-minded. He wondered if he should warn them about the crazy people living underground. He was still debating it when three tall men emerged from the brush. One stared at him, his chiseled but kind face examining him closely.
“Kalden? We thought you were – “
“That isn’t Kalden, Clayton,” the man beside him said, touching Clayton’s arm gently.
“No, an imposter. A look-alike.”
“That’s impossible,” Clayton said, approaching Cain.
“Uh, you don’t happen to live in a freaky underground tunnel, do you?” Cain asked, backing away from Clayton’s outstretched fingers. Clayton withdrew his hand as if he had been burnt.
“You’re right,” he said. He looked profoundly disappointed. “That’s not Kalden.”
“Even if it was, he’d have aged by now,” the man to Clayton’s left said gently.
“How do you know about the tunnels?” the man on the right said gruffly. He was instantly on the alert.
“I was just there. Some woman brought me in and fed me. She was crazy man; I swear to – “
Suddenly, a blade was pressed hard into Cain’s neck and the man on the right was in his face. He had frizzy red hair and intense dark eyes.
“You tell anybody about us and we will make you live to regret it; do you understand me?”
Cain raised his hands in the air.
“Whoa man, I just think you guys need to get that girl some kind of mental help. Why the hell are you living underground anyway?”
“Just keep our secret,” Clayton said, coming forward and pushing the blade away from Cain’s neck. He put his hand firmly on Cain’s shoulder. They locked eyes, and for some reason, he wasn’t sure whether it was the grief or the kindness in the other man’s eyes, maybe it was both, but Cain felt nothing but warmth for the man.
“All right,” Cain said. Clayton held his gaze a few moments longer before turning to the men behind him.
“Let’s move.”
The men lingered, glancing nervously at each other.
“But don’t you think he’ll…”
“He is no enemy of ours,” Clayton said.
His word was steel, and the men followed him into the trees.
Cain watched them go, his head spinning. Could anything happen to make his night any weirder?
He quickly decided not to stick around to find out, and hurried through the forest, more anxious than he had ever been to return to the hustle and bustle of the city where he had been raised.
***
Kyna lay on her bed, disgruntled and angry at herself for the way she had handled the situation with Cain. How could she have been so reckless? She had always known, through both experience and wisdom, that people rejected hard truths, especially those that were unfamiliar. Why had she practically bashed him over the head with it?
“Are you all right, Kyna?” Krista asked, poking her head into the room. “You weren’t there to greet the men when they came back from the hunt.”
“I’m all right,” Kyna said glumly.
Krista was quiet for a moment.
“The men met Cain,” she said finally.
“How?” Kyna asked, sitting up quickly.
“They ran into each other in the forest as he was leaving.”
“I see…”
“Kyna…” Krista seemed to have something on her mind but was reluctant to say it.
“Yes, Krista?”
“Are you absolutely sure he won’t give us away?”
“I promise,” Kyna said, her amber colored eyes flashing with conviction. Krista seemed reassured.
“That’s what Clayton said too. You two I trust more than anyone in the world, but the rest of the clan is nervous. I hope that everything you say will come to pass, but until it does, I think it’s best we keep your revelation quiet for the time being.”
“I understand.”
Krista smiled. “I’m just worried that with the way things have been, getting their hopes up only to… It could just end up being cruel.”
“I know,” Kyna said. “I don’t plan on saying anything. Apparently, what I said to Cain was the wrong thing anyway. I just hope I can get through to him somehow.”
“If it’s fate, you will,” Krista assured her with a kind smile.
She left Kyna alone. The conversation picked her spirits up some, so she decided to dress and go out to look at the comforting lights of Kaldernon. She didn’t want to doubt her vision. Her heart had locked on Cain, and she had the familiar feeling of prophecy as he approached.
She returned to the spot where she had first seen him and lay in the grass, staring at the sky.
“Kaldernon,” she said softly. “What do I do now?”
She didn’t really expect an answer, and was soon tugged into a peaceful slumber.