Chapter 19: No Ten Years Lost

She clutched her heart. "You scared ten years off my life." She was tired of cowering. The emotional upheaval, together with the cold weather, wasn't doing her asthma any good either. She could already feel her chest tightening.

Zacar growled as two warriors returned, stacking more crates, then he stormed out of the cave. The two warriors stopped and stared at her, unblinking, not moving a single muscle.

Trembling, she brought her hands up to her face, hiding it as she fought the threatening tears. What had she gotten herself into? And why had she sat quietly, like some ninny, instead of fighting him?

She glanced around. If only those two weren't watching her so closely. If she was going to do something stupid, like walk over a mountain, knee deep in snow, unprepared, now was the moment.