Broken Forest: Book One of the Daath Chronicles Read Online Free

always wore—a symbol of The Creator, three wavy lines, representing water, enclosed with a circle.
    “I don’t know.”
    I traced each step, imagining how the attack unfolded. I pictured the three men Calli described—how did she escape when Jeslyn couldn’t? I studied the dance at my feet—two had fallen, and then they’d stood. I spun to the left, following the vicious display. In one direction were Calli’s footsteps and two of the kidnappers while Jeslyn’s tracks led to where the woods began.
    There, on a tree, swayed a red ribbon. I walked over and grabbed it from the branch.
    “I gave that to her yesterday,” Derrick said and I handed him the ribbon.
    He tied the cloth around his wrist. His jaw clenched.
    The dead forest stood in front of us. I squinted past the long line of black and grey trees. “This way,” I said, and slowly we led the horses into the blackened woods.
    Cherrywood, a once vivacious forest, had been torched last summer by a lighting storm. Some of the vegetation had started growing back, but not the trees. Beautiful oaks now resembled twisted iron. I stared at the tall black pillars, and my heart sank.
    Wind passed through the forest, causing the broken trees to creak and groan. Crows screeched from overhead. A trio of ravens pecked a dead rabbit. Every sound made my pulse beat faster. Derrick pointed out a piece of cream fabric stuck on a briar bush. I inspected it, remembering the dress Jeslyn wore at breakfast. Pain and anger swallowed my fear, pushing me deeper into the woods, towards her.

I don’t remember fainting, but I must have, because I awoke in a sea of black. Was I still unconscious? No. The ground moved beneath me. My eyes were still adjusting to the dark, and I couldn’t see if I was alone.
    It smelled awful, urine mixed with body odor. I covered my mouth with one hand and searched the area with the other.
Is this hay
? My fingers touched the thin, tough object. Yes, most certainly hay. I heard a rustle in the dark.
    “Hello? Is anyone there?” On my knees, I inched my way towards the noise, my eyesight getting sharper. Fear pricked my skin, making me hot and cold at the same time. Where was my family? Where was Calli? What if Calli hadn’t made it home? What if she was dead?
    Don’t think such things,
I thought.
Everything will be all right. I just need to find my way out of here.
I could hear men talking outside and thought I might be in a wagon.
    Searching the rough floor, I grazed cold skin and jerked my hand away.
    A hand snatched my arm.
    “Get off me!” I yelped.
    “Don’t scream,” said a young girl with haunting eyes, her face barely visible in the dark. Her hand tightened around my arm. I pushed against her.
    “Let go of me,” I said.
    “Shh,” she hissed. “Please, you must be quiet.”
    “Why?”
    The sound of metal grinding echoed around me.
    The girl’s eyes swelled with fear. “They’re coming,” she whispered, and slid away, deeper into the darkness.
    Light poured in from the open door and I shielded my eyes. A man stood in the sunlight, his face and body silhouetted.
    “Quiet in here,” he said, voice thunderous.
    “Who are you?” I said. “Where are you taking me?”
    “I said,
quiet
!”
    My voice lost itself, and I cowered against the wall.
    “Any noise and I’ll see that you’re silenced.”
    He didn’t wait for my response. The door closed, taking with it all the light. The girl with me said nothing, making the dark even more unbearable.
    Pulling my knees against my chest, I closed my eyes and said the prayer for protection. Mother always said The Creator would protect us. I held onto her words, letting them comfort me. I was brave and only a few things terrified me, but my biggest fear of all was the dark.
    Panic pricked my chest. I forced myself into distraction thinking of Derrick, pulling happy memories of him from my mind and letting them shield me from the blackness.
    If I could pretend I was somewhere else, I