There were no guns…unfortunately.
Those must be under lock and key.
I stuffed my pockets with a couple bottles of water and bags of nuts. When I couldn’t carry any more, I looked up the wall to where the bows and quiver of arrows were mounted. There were only four, so if I took two, it might be really obvious.
If I took one, it would be less obvious.
I didn’t know how to use a bow and arrow, but I could practice in the forest with a flashlight. That way, we could hunt in the forest—even though I didn’t know how to do that either. Or at least have a weapon if they hunted us down.
I took the bow and quiver of arrows, and since there was no way to stuff those into my pockets, I just slung them over my back.
If I got caught, I was dead anyway.
I turned off the light and left.
Before I walked out the front door, I locked it from inside and then took the stairs back to the ground. The walk back was uneventful because everyone seemed to be asleep. I made it the rest of the way, anxious and excited, eager to get back to my cabin so I could finally rejoice.
There was no map, but that was okay.
We’d figure it out.
I got back into my cabin, locked myself inside so even Magnus wouldn’t know what I did, and then I finally released the breath I’d been holding. “Holy shit…I fucking did it.” I emptied my pockets and put everything on the bed, including the bow and arrows.
But then I realized I had a problem.
Where was I going to hide everything?
I had no furniture. My mattress just sat on the floor. I had a nightstand, but that wouldn’t hold everything.
I could hide it somewhere outside, but what if I couldn’t find it again?
That only gave me one choice.
The bathtub.
There was no shower rod, but no one ever came to clean my cabin, so no one ever looked. Magnus never peeked. It was my only option because there was literally nowhere else.
So that was where I put it.
I turned off the light and got into bed, unable to believe my luck.
I had nearly everything I needed to escape. I just needed to pick the lock to the stables and grab a horse.
And then we’d be on our way.
The days passed even slower than before.
Because now I was actually anxious for the future.
I ignored the next Red Snow as best I could, but it traumatized me even more than usual, because I remembered exactly how it felt to have that rope around my neck. Listening to her screams made me stop breathing because it felt as if the noose were around my own throat, choking me.
Hopefully that was the last Red Snow I’d have to listen to.
I just needed that storm to come.
Another drop came, and we grabbed everything that fell from the sky and put it on the wagon.
There was no bell.
We returned to camp, unloaded everything, and then had a full day of work.
The sky was clear, so a storm didn’t seem to be in the forecast.
At the end of the workday, we weren’t dismissed as usual.
Instead, the executioner came out.
The torches weren’t lit, and it’d only been days since the last Red Snow.
So, something different was happening.
He looked at all of us, as if searching for something.
I turned to Bethany, who was standing beside me. “Do you know what’s happening?”
She shook her head.
The executioner started to speak. “One of you has stolen from us.”
Instantly, I was sick, so fucking sick that I wanted to vomit right onto my boots. Blood pounded in my ears, and all the excitement I felt at my success was quickly taken away. My eyes darted to Melanie.
Her eyes were already on me.
The executioner scanned all of us, searching for a reaction.
I forced myself to keep a blank face, to hide just how fucking terrified I was.
“If anyone knows anything about this, come forward. You’ll be rewarded.”
Melanie was the only one who knew, so I was safe.
“Every cabin will be searched.”
Shit.
“When we find what belongs to us, you’ll hang.” The executioner turned away, ending the announcement.
Fuck, what was I going to do? When I got back to the cabin, I would have to leave again, carry everything into the woods. But it was still light out, the sun setting, so someone would see me. Guards would be everywhere.
They must have noticed the bow and arrows were missing that morning before we collected the drop. They probably tried to find the missing set all afternoon, and when they couldn’t, they realized someone had taken it, along with other items.
Why hadn’t that storm come?
I hadn’t anticipated this because the drops were unpredictable. Sometimes they came often, and sometimes they didn’t come at all.
Fuck, I was so screwed.
The women rose from the tables and headed back to their cabins, immediately whispering to one another about the revelation. Before I turned away, I looked at Melanie again.
She looked at me—like she knew.
Magnus grabbed me by the arm and yanked me away. He was harsh, when he normally didn’t touch me at all. “Come on.” He marched me back along the route we took in the morning, keeping me ahead of him so he could walk behind me.
The blood was pounding so loudly in my ears that I couldn’t hear my own boots against the snow. I felt neither cold nor warm, just alarmed, just full of anxiety for the mess I’d caused myself.
I was so lost in my head that the journey to my cabin took only a few seconds. I didn’t even realize we were there until Magnus moved in front of me and entered the cabin.
I followed behind him.
He shut the door
