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Chapter One
Walker
“Loosen up, Walker,” Laney begged.
I glanced up from the crackling fire I’d been staring at. It was already on its last leg, though it’d only burned for a couple hours. As per usual, Sawyer’s efforts to build it were lackluster. We were lucky the moon was bright and cast the entire mountain in a soft glow. We sat in a grassy field that sprawled an acre in front of my house, next to a woodsy valley. Grass swayed easily in the breeze, and stars blanketed the sky above us. It was no wonder my mother used to call the place her pocket of peace.
Peaceful or not, I couldn’t fight the shivers that seized my body.
“I’d be looser if it wasn’t so damn cold,” I replied.
I glared at Sawyer pointedly. He grinned at me, revealing his single crooked tooth that all the women in town found charming and pulled his girlfriend of the month, Laney, closer. She flashed him a pretty smile, and he ran his callused hand through her bleach-blonde hair.
Being a third wheel sucked.
“I’ll go get more firewood,” I huffed and walked toward the tree line.
I doubted they heard me over Laney’s obnoxious giggles. As my boots crunched across the crisp grass, I cursed Brody for bailing on tonight’s plans and leaving me alone with the two of them.
Oh, well.
It was a beautiful night, other than the chill, and it was always a good thing for me to leave the house for something other than work. I approached the forest that banked off into the valley and the river that ran through it. I listened closer and heard its familiar rush. The wind lessened under the protection of the trees, and I was finally warm under my Carhartt jacket. As I walked, the trees grew more abundant, other than where a small creek cut a path through the forest.
I’d walked alongside it, all the way to the river, many times. Partially for some peace and quiet and partially because there was little to do in a town the size of a walnut.
I found an oak tree with a couple fallen limbs nearby and grabbed some of the smaller pieces. I was tempted to forget about the wood and leave the happy couple to themselves, but I’d already told them I would bring it. I tried to make a habit of following through on promises. I sighed, reached down for one more piece, and fell flat on my face.
Might be time to slow down on the beers, I thought. I wasn’t a huge drinker, but I didn’t know anybody—including Sawyer—who could hang out with Laney sober.
I hauled myself off the ground and nearly fell again. I wasn’t that drunk. The rattling of rocks drew my attention to the creekbank.
An earthquake with a stronger aftershock? I thought.
A low hum resounded through the forest and filled my ears. I couldn’t even hear the river. I scrambled to my feet and searched for the source of the strange noise.
“Hello?” I called, like any dumbass in a horror movie.
I could still see the dim glow of the fire behind me, but instinct drew me deeper into the forest. I knew every creature that lurked in these woods, and none of them hummed.
I watched my steps more closely and avoided nearly every stray twig or crunchy leaf. The humming grew louder, until I could make out strange chanting. It was spoken in a harsh language I’d never heard before.
The chattering weaved through the trees and almost eclipsed my thoughts. If I couldn’t see that no one was there, I would’ve thought someone whispered the chant in my ears. Fear gripped my chest, but I couldn’t stop following the sound. Curiosity, strengthened by the pull of the chant, and my own survival instincts warred against each other. I ducked behind the nearest juniper and prayed my broad form would be hidden by shadows.
I needed to get out of here. Now. I peeked around the tree and stifled a gasp.
Tree stumps smoldered, as did blackened grass. My gaze didn’t linger there, but on the molten rock that encased a woman, all the way up to her knees. Her hands were bound in thick, copper shackles. Inscriptions blazed on the shackles, though they made about as much sense as the chant, which still hummed throughout the forest.
The woman wore a torn, black jumpsuit and a huge gash bled from her thigh. She’d bleed out in minutes with a cut like that, yet she didn’t even appear afraid. Her chin was tilted with a touch of defiance, and her fiery hair cascaded freely down her back. She was unnaturally pale, which only made her coppery eyes more frightening.
She stared at someone I couldn’t see. Though she barely gripped life, she sneered.
“You’re finally able to best me, friend. Too bad you had to get high on the deaths of our kind to do so.”
“Oh God,” I whispered.
Her eyes met mine.
Run, she mouthed.
