Counterback of the Despised Luna by Diana West

Chapter 352 Narrow Escape

+8 Pearls

Sitting beside Caden, I forced myself to stay calm and spent a few minutes thinking through my options.

Although we were deep in the forest, this was still the outskirts of Rivemon–there shouldn’t be any dangerous predators. On top of that, I had plenty of wilderness survival knowledge, so finding my way our wouldn’t be too difficult.

But with Caden unconscious, leaving him behind was out of the question.

If I wanted to get out of here, I needed to build a raft.

I could use it to pull Caden along, and fortunately, the ground here was damp enough to slide smoothly. Plus, there were plenty of vines available to secure it together.

Without wasting any time, I got to work, gathering as any fallen branches as I could find. They were roughly the thickness of an adult’s arm and long enough to be bound together with vines–sturdy enough to hold Caden’s weight.

As I secured the pieces, I noticed just how strong the vines were. No wonder they had managed to slow our fall and keep us from crashing to our deaths.

That realization put me at ease.

But what unsettled me was the thought that if the vines had cushioned both Caden and me, then Candice -that lunatic–had likely survived as well.

As long as she was still alive, I wouldn’t let her walk away unpunished once I made it out of here!

Shaking off my thoughts, I refocused on assembling the raft.

While the branches were all thick enough, their lengths varied, so I had to trim them down to size. The only tool at my disposal was a stone, but it was frustratingly dull. Most of my time was spent sharpening it just enough to be useful, and in the process, my fingers ended up scraped and bruised from rubbing against the rough edges of the stone and jagged wood.

As an Alpha, I wasn’t concerned about minor injuries–but that didn’t make the pain any less real. Gritting my teeth, I forced myself to push through.

If Caden could risk his life for me, then why shouldn’t do the same for him?

After nearly an hour of relentless effort, my fingers were raw, scraped, and bleeding, but at last, the raft was. complete.

Summoning the strength of my Alpha, I carefully lifted Caden onto it, then secured him tightly with sturdy vines to ensure he wouldn’t slip off.

This way, I could pull the raft without worrying about Caden falling off.

With everything set, I searched for a spot where the sky was visible through the dense canopy. Estimating the time, I figured there were about three to four hours left before nightfall. The sky was clear enough for me to catch a glimpse of the setting sun, giving me a rough sense of direction.

was on my side, I might just manage to get Caden out of this

1/3

352 Narrow Escape

it

+8 Pearls

forced the thought aside and secured one end of a vie around my waist, then started moving in the direction

Even

me help,”

this, I

refusing her

wasn’t about proving anything–I simply wanted to use my strength to do

out a quiet sigh but didn’t press the

step by

me noticing, the last traces of daylight had faded,

came to a halt, my arms and shoulders throbbing with pain, so numb and heavy they hardly felt like my

OWIL

a chilling thought crept into

to die here?

to accept

would not let Caden

bruises covering my arms–none of it mattered. I clenched my jaw and

water–it left my throat dry and my body aching with

for nearly three hours, every

couldn’t afford to collapse. I had to

Clang!

I could steady

I turned my head toward the raft. Caden remained unconscious, his face ghostly pale, his body still. A wave of despair unlike anything I’d ever known seeped into every fiber

my tongue over my parched, cracked lips

to

upright, I gritted my teeth and pulled the raft forward

sten felt like wading through thick mud–slow agonizing

2/3

Tue. Mu

352 Narrow