Coal moved to an outer branch of the tree and started cutting some of the long, trailing vines which snaked down to the ground beside the leaf. He moved around the tree with such ease that it almost looked like fun and I itched with the desire to join him up there.
Taylor groaned and I crouched down next to him, pushing his hair away from his eyes. He mumbled something as my fingers moved over his skin but didn't wake up.
Coal caught hold of an uncut vine and swung back down to the ground in a move that made me feel self conscious about my general clumsiness. He landed in a crouch like he hadn’t just action manned his way down to the ground and set to work putting holes along the outer edge of the leaf and threading the vines through them to create a litter.
Laurie drifted closer to us, chewing on her bottom lip like she didn’t know what to do.
When Coal finished his work, he picked Taylor up and dumped him unceremoniously inside it. I scrambled forward to rearrange him more comfortably and felt Coal watching me as I worked. Once I was sure that Taylor was okay, I t
urned to look up at him and he folded his arms.
“Are you injured?" Coal asked me as I stood to face him.
I could feel the sting of several bruises and cuts along my skin but nothing serious.
“No," I replied.
"You're covered in blood," he said, looking unconvinced.
Coal stepped towards me and reached out to run his thumb over my cheek which was still smeared with Evan's blood. His touch left a burning line across my skin and I bit my bottom lip, unsure what to make of him.
“It's not mine." I looked into his eyes for a moment before brushing his hand away.
“Oh." Coal stepped back and dropped his gaze to Taylor where he lay in the leaf like he wasn’t sure what to do with him. "We need to get back to my camp." He put two fingers in his mouth and whistled loudly twice.
"Where is your camp?" Laurie asked suspiciously as she fingered the radio in her back pocket. "I need to report in."
“Can't let you do that." Coal drew a gun and levelled it at Laurie's forehead in the space of a blink. "Hand it over with your weapons."
"I thought you were helping us?" Laurie growled, but she handed over her weapons and radio all the same.
"I am, but helping and trusting can't always keep the same company and you were a Warden after all."
“I still am." She frowned at him like he was insane and Coal smirked tauntingly.
“If you think you'll still be welcome with them after running off into the contamination zone with an escaped convict, then by all means head back. But I get the feeling you may end up seeing the Lawless Trials from the inside if you do,” he said
"I didn't have a choice, those convicts were going to kill me," Laurie protested.
“We were sent here because my helmet malfunctioned on a scouting mission outside The Wall and rather than let me suffocate, Taylor took it off of me," I added. "I don't think the Guardians care much for explanations no matter how good they are."
There was a pause, during which Coal stowed his gun and all of Laurie's. He then dropped the radio to the ground and crushed it under his boot.
"There, much better." He smiled provocatively and Laurie scowled.
“Fine, I'm coming with you. But do you really think I'd shoot you in the back after you saved our lives?" Laurie snapped.
“I haven't decided. When I do, you may get your guns back." He smiled again and turned towards the far side of the clearing just as a soft padding sound reached my ears.
A pair of blue eyes loomed between two tree trunks, the greenish light of the forest reflected within them. They were soon joined by a long snout covered with white fur and two huge, pointed, grey ears.
The creature's face was covered in fur and lined with razor sharp teeth in a gaping jaw that hung open, ready to bite. A moment later, a colossal, hulking body shrouded in long grey and white fur stepped out into the clearing. The beast regarded us with curiosity, or possibly it was evaluating which one of us would taste the best.
My first instinct was to scream but then I remembered my shotgun and snatched it from my back instead. I swung the gun up to point at the snarling face and placed my finger on the trigger. I pulled just as Coal threw out an arm knocking the barrel of my gun skyward and sent my shot into the treetops instead.
“What the hell are you doing?" he yelled, his eyes alight with rage.
His fingers locked around my wrists and dug in hard until I released the grip on my gun. It fell to the ground and hit my boot as I gaped at him in disbelief. We stared at each other for several moments before I remembered the fanged monster which had now closed the distance between us. I lunged backwards and stumbled on a tree root but Coal held me on my feet.