Chapter 17

Anna's palms blushed red, though the wounds from the tree trunk the day before had healed instantly. There's a lot more to do. A strange feeling of anxiety seemed to haunt her with each passing day.

She reminisced on Lucian's words as she stared at her face in the waters of a slow-flowing stream on the outskirts of the camp. "Control...power.."

It had been a couple of weeks since she'd arrived at the camp. She'd lost track of the days as she'd grown weary of counting after the second week.

Never in her wildest dreams had she imagined that she'd be that far from home and unable to return, with no one to go home to, even if she'd gotten the chance to. Of course, she'd dreamed of adventures, but not this kind.

"Control....power...." Lucian's words had a way of sticking to her memory. She recalled how closely he'd held her, the calmness of his pulse, the softness of his words, and his warm breath on her neck. She didn't have words to explain the experience.

'For goodness sake, don't be ri