"Laura, hurry the hell up!" Ashlynn whispered harshly as she glanced back at her companion, realizing that the brunette was farther behind than she'd originally thought. She needed her friend to pick up the pace if they were going to keep up.
Ashlynn returned her attention to the group of people working their way through the forest ahead of them, being careful to step as lightly as she could among the fallen foliage. One wrong move and their rescue would be over before it had even begun.
"Ash, this isn't—"
"SOMEONE HELP ME!"
The pair froze in their spots, watching in horror as one of the men hoisted the poor terrified girl up from where she'd fallen on the ground. They were far from home, the forced trek no doubt having taken a lot out of the young coven member. Maria was already trying to recover from malnutrition and far from prepared for a voluntary hike, let alone one against her will.
"Shut up!" The scruffy man bit out at her, pulling Maria harshly along, no doubt nearly dislocating her arm. "No one's coming for you."
"We have to get her back Laura." She wasn't going to last much longer at the mercy of these men and Ashlynn didn't want to imagine what would happen to Maria if she passed out due to their relentless torment. The punishment would likely be cruel and unusual.
"But your mother—"
"I don't care what my mother said," Ashlynn hissed. If the coven leader wasn't willing to send out a rescue party for the girl then she was damn well going to do it herself. There was no way in hell that she was leaving Maria to fend for herself among the wolves. "If they find out that she's a witch, you and I both know that death will be the best outcome for her."
If they did something to force Maria's hand, even with as little magic as she was known to possess, it would be a death sentence for the young witch and Ashlynn wasn't sure how much longer the girl could last without letting her magic slip out in self-defense.
"And what about us?" Laura argued as she joined Ash behind a large tree. "What happens if we get caught, huh? They may kill me but you're the goddamn coven leader's daughter... they wouldn't kill you even if you begged."
"I'd never beg," Ashlynn snorted, forcing the feeling of fear down, choosing to remain focused on the task at hand. "And it doesn't matter. If we get caught we go down fighting; there's no other option."
"Why the hell did I follow you?" Laura grumbled to herself. It wasn't the first time that she'd been dragged into Ashlynn's shenanigans but it was definitely one of the more reckless instances.
"Because you know just as well as I do that this isn't right."
"No," Laura hissed as they crept forward, doing their best to go unnoticed. "It's because if your mom finds out that I saw you leaving and let you go alone, I'd be begging for the mercy of death too."
"Whatever," Ash crouched down as the small group came to a halt in front of them. "We attack before they reach the others."
There were only three of them, easy enough for them to take down on their own. They just needed to act before they reached the rest of their hunting party.
"Ash—"
"Hide your face," Ashlynn whispered as she pulled her dark green scarf up over her mouth and nose, using the rest to cover her golden blond waves. They didn't intend to kill them unless necessary so it would be best if they kept their identities well hidden. "Use your weapon but don't use your magic unless you absolutely have to."
"Do you have an actual plan?" Laura sighed, already caving to her insistence. She was seriously beginning to question her choice of best friend.
"Save the girl and don't die."
Laura rubbed her temples, exasperation setting in. "Remind me to join another coven when this is all over."
"Sure thing," Ashlynn smirked to herself as her hand tightened on her bow. "On three."
Laura huffed in frustration as she pulled her own grey scarf over the lower half of her face and the top of her head before drawing her knife. Ash so owed her for this one.
"One. Two–"
"Wait," Laura hissed as she grabbed onto Ashlynn's arm, her dull green eyes now wide with panic.
Ash turned to glare at Laura but her friend wasn't looking at her. The blond followed her gaze back to the three men and their coven member.
The man who was leading had his crooked nose to the sky, sniffing as the other two looked around, watching for anyone who may be following.
"Laura," Ashlynn spoke quietly, trying to temper the anger rising in her chest. "When was the last time you used magic?"
"Anything?" One of the men called to the one sniffing, his posture rigid, body deadly still.
"Yeah," the leader growled. "Two or three of them."
"Laura?" Ash ground out, not daring to take her eyes off of the people in front of them.
Laura swallowed hard, goosebumps erupting over her skin. "Before we left."