“Turn back!” I screeched at Nina from where I sat and lurched from the cushion under me.
I had to get that map. I couldn’t get to Jonathan without that.
And there was no way I was just not going to see him.
“What, are you crazy? You’re lucky we got out of there with you in the car!”
Nathan growled lightly from next to me, probably not liking the idea of leaving me behind. I understood, I felt the same way about him.
I plopped onto the furthest mattress and took off my shoes, making it obvious I wasn’t going anywhere for a while. Nathan growled at the way I easily let my guard down around someone who was still technically a stranger, and I found it comforting he was as hesitant to trust her as much as I was. But he had enough paranoia for the both of us at the moment. Maybe it was something about the caged animal, but Nathan did not like being put in a small room with someone untrustworthy. Nina took the other bed and did the same to her shoes. She hauled her own backpack on the bed and reached inside. Nathan growled again at her actions,
The barbed fence stood tall as a barrier between the cars and the outside world. A small booth sat huddled in the corner, a single exterior light the only thing making it conspicuous against the thick darkness of night. Street lights lined the chain fence along the exterior, extending down past my view. I wondered if there were cameras on the posts. Rows and rows of cars were lined in neat rows, seeming to be going on forever in hundreds of cars. It wouldn't surprise me if there were a thousand cars in this lot alone. “Alright, now,” Nina whispered at me as we approached the gate. W
“What?” Nina tried to get me to talk again, but I was suddenly aware I didn’t know where Nathan was. I looked around frantically until my eyes settled on the massive wolf. He circled the Spiritwalker stealthily until jumping forward and nipping at the end of the cloth. You could tell he was taunting him, but the foolish Spirit thought Nathan was trying to attack and jumped away from him to try and assault from the side. Now Nathan was just enjoying himself as he stepped back and started to circle around again. I had to tell him. I sprung up and scrambled to the face-off. &ldqu
We ran for a while until it finally felt safe enough to stop. My leg was throbbing as we slowed and I sat down to try to get a look at it. They must have shot me. I reached my hand back to find the hole the bullet went in, but there was nothing there. No blood, no gaping hole, nothing. Frantically, I looked for the only other thing it could be. Nathan was standing in front of me, favoring his right hind leg. I stood up and moved to Nathan, trying to get him to lay down so I can help. “Did you get shot?” Nina asked me as I winced from moving my leg. “I’m fine, but Nathan did. Do you kno
Nathan was slower than normal, but still kept a steady pace. I assumed he was used to this kind of pain, which made me even more curious about him. I had the pain without the blood loss and I was still struggling to put one foot in front of the next. “There’s no wound,” Nina almost whispered from behind me. “What?” She looked up at me, confusion evident on her face. “There’s no wound on your leg. I thought you got shot, but there’s nothing there.” I shrugged. “Must have pulled a muscle.”
I heard yelling and ran towards it, recognizing Nathan's anguished cry in a second. I realized it must have been Blake and pumped my legs harder, trying to ignore the stinging from Nathan's last shot. I reached back into my pocket and pulled out the handgun that was tucked back into my pant pocket. I slowed as I came closer, listening intently for Nathan's cry. The pain in my leg started to tingle; like when a limb falls asleep from the lack of blood-flow. The numbness came over the pain, silencing as if it was suffocated with the numbing tingles. I scrunched my eyebrows in confusion and stepped towards the trees again, looking for Nathan. Either something really good or really bad happened. That could be the only explanation for his pain leaving my body.
Feeling defeated, I pulled out the bills and started counting it up. A small piece of white paper floated from amongst the green. I easily picked it out and opened the folds, studying it carefully. I stepped into the car headlights to read the paper.Nothing is as it seems. 6415554895. A shiver read down my spine as I stared at the number. It was ten digits… a phone number? What kind of person would leave that behind in the place a map was supposed to be? But more importantly, how did they know it was there? “What’s that?” Nina’s voice yanked me back to th
The screeching sound of train breaks split my eardrums in half and I winced from the loud noise. Train cars the size of houses were scattered on random rails while another pile was off to the side, rusted wheels resting in the dirt. I jumped up and followed Nathan, who ducked behind another car. Keeping my body lowered to the ground, I hid from the bright sun pocketing sunshine through some dark clouds. The cool wind was cutting through the holes previously embedded in my sleeves, but it kept me hidden so the battered shirt stayed on. Nathan's midnight fur was enough to keep him from being spotted. But now that it was light, all of these dark clothes only made us more suspicious and conspicuous. I looked at the rail cars driving by, looking for the number