Escape by Sheritta Bitikofer Page A

was useless in this world.
                “Does anything else hurt?” he repeated.
                Amelia’s first thought was her thighs, but she had no intention of letting him touch her there. She twisted herself around to turn her back towards him and pulled her hair over one of her shoulders. “My back,” she replied.
                Connor paused, torn in his mind if he should. He knew that if she weren’t in pain, she could move faster and this journey would be over with sooner. He had to take the chance.
                He placed his hands on her shoulder and pressed his thumbs just below the nap of her neck. He worked his way down her spine, massaging in rhythmic circles while his fingers curled around her sides. He could feel her muscles tense and her swift heartbeat just beneath his fingertips.
                Connor’s hands traveled back up to her shoulders and squeezed the muscles there. The tenseness melted away in his grasp and he heard her let out a sigh of relief. He felt a sensation rise within him, so much that his hands quivered.
                He shook his head sharply, grabbing a hold of his composure before continuing. He wrapped his hands around her upper arms and kneaded them briefly before returning to her back. He formed his hands into fists and torqued his knuckles down her sides.
                He could feel the pain transfer from her body to his, flowing from his hands and into his own back. He could carry the pain better than she could. As soon as the aches came, they dissolved just as quickly. He didn’t realize she hurt so much though. He felt the pain in her legs, in her back, but as he ran his palms over her shoulder blades again, he could feel the pain in her heart. It wasn’t a physical pain, but an emotional one. It was so great, so burdensome that not even his healing powers could take it away.
                He tried in vain to absorb it like the rest of the pain, but he simply couldn’t. A little did leak through and hit his stony heart, breaking into pieces on impact. But, some shrapnel became lodged in and he couldn’t stop the one tear from escaping down his cheek. A tendon jumped in his jaw and nose singed against the torrent of emotion.
                Connor cleared his throat and continued the massage until he was sure all the physical pain was gone. He withdrew his hands quickly and wiped away the evidence of the tear before standing up.
                Amelia turned back around to face Connor, feeling as good as new. She watched as he casually blew out the amber glow from his hands and readjusted the pack on his shoulders. There was something different in his eyes. They looked softer, clearer and not as cold as before. In fact, they were quite warm and for once, she saw some feeling glistening there. She grew hopeful.
                “Thank you.”
                He didn’t look at her, he didn’t reply. Connor just stood waiting for her so they could continue. Was something wrong? Did he feel the way that she felt when his hands were on her? Her back muscles were rejuvenated, but her lower abdomen was tight with a queer sense of expectation. Amelia wanted him to take away the aching, but there was no way she would let him touch her there.
                Amelia was about to rise from the log when she heard something peculiar. It sounded like the tinkling of a small bell. “What was that?”
                Connor had heard it too and he knew exactly what that was.
                The bell chimed again and more joined it. Soon, a chorus of melodious bells surrounded them. And with them, came the dancing lights. Amelia likened them to fireflies or lightning bugs. They looked so small from a distance, but they grew closer, drifting in from the darkness. They came in all arrays of colors from yellow to blue and even some were pink and