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‘Well, there’s no turning back now.’ Thorn pressed against me, so I reached down and scratched his ear.
‘Nope. So are you ready, Toto?’
‘Sure, Wicked Witch.’ He snickered and pulled away.
‘Why am I the witch?’
‘Because Kaye gives me belly rubs when I want them.’
‘She spoils you.’ I pursed my lips, and he stuck out his tongue. ‘She wouldn’t if she heard half the shit you said,’ I reminded him as we started down the path.
‘And that’s why I’m taking advantage of it while I can.’ He laughed and moved up next to Kaye as she took point.
CHAPTER 9
Bones of the Lost
Ravena
The natural noises of the area were hard at work to sway us into a false sense of peace. The frogs and crickets filled the night air with their song, as well as the twinkling lights from the fireflies. Their illumination helped guide us as we crawled over downed trees and under the low-hanging brush, but it only made my anxiety rise. Overcast was blocking out most of the moon, and the heat was finally easing, but that was because the breeze was bringing the cooler air from the impending storm our way. It wasn’t going to be long before we found ourselves in a downpour.
“Are we any closer to finding this bitch?” I couldn’t help the whine in my tone.
I hated the idea that our visibility was cut down to practically nothing. And that we were in an unfamiliar area. And maybe the fact we kept on finding swampy areas where water seeped into my boots and soaked my socks. This outfit is ruined. I’m billing the academy for this shit.
“Here. Can you hold this light for me?”
I held up both lanterns as she fully unwrapped the map and brought it closer to her face.
“It looks like Jules marked the old town, and this small X is her old shack. So according to this, her shack should be up ahead if we continue to follow this path.” She smiled up at me as she awkwardly folded the map with her good arm and tucked it into her jacket, retaking her lamp.
‘Hey, guys. We got a problem,’ Thorn called out and coughed for Kaye’s benefit, his head swiveling around, not focusing on one area in particular.
‘What’s that?’
‘Well, what do you hear?’ He cocked his head, staring at me.
“Shit,” Kaye whispered. “When did the crickets stop singing?”
Rustling in the leaves pulled my attention to the left of us. Kaye touched my shoulder and motioned for us to lower the lanterns and set them on the ground. She pulled her gun free, and I signed, “Don’t shoot me.”
She rolled her eyes and signed back, “You’d heal,” ending that conversation.
When we were younger, we often had to be with our parents when they traveled, and we had to be on our best behavior when meeting dignitaries and their families. Since we were kids and still wanted to play and ‘talk’ to one another, we decided to learn a new language. The problem we ran into was our parents were hyperpolyglot or multi-lingual. So, we found the one language they didn’t know that allowed us to play and stay out of trouble: American Sign Language. So, it worked for us as kids and in situations where we needed to be stealthy, like now.
‘Thorn, do you smell anything?’ I asked as I signaled for Kaye to move up the path slowly.
‘All I smell is mold, piss, and death. A beautiful cocktail for this atmosphere, wouldn’t you say?’
‘Didn’t need the sarcasm. Stay with Kaye. I’m going to see what’s in the bushes.’
I signed the plan to Kaye, and she gave me a thumbs up. I didn’t say we always stuck with the appropriate signs, but it worked for us.
I watched as Kaye and Thorn disappeared from the light and further up the path before I slowly moved back down and into the thick brush. I kept low and slowed my steps as I pulled my knives from my thighs and let my eyes adjust to the dimness. Something was stalking us, and I was going to find it.
As I slowly moved to the area we once stood, something darted out in front of me. I jumped back, stumbling over a tree root, and reached out to steady myself on the trunk when something pulled at my ankles, and my world spun.
The ground swayed before me as I tried to push my hair out of my eyes, as some of it was stuck to my sweaty face. I was upside down in some kind of trap, swinging like a piece of dead meat. This wasn’t something I was expecting, but at least I still had my knives. Thank you, Cassie, for the training to hold onto our weapons when we become airborne. It was a hard lesson to learn, but apparently, it had paid off.
