The Calling (Darkness Rising 2)

"We should," I finished.

Sam and Hayley struggled to their feet. I could tell they were exhausted, but they didn't complain. Maybe they were beyond that.

Daniel put Corey's arm over his shoulders and we set off again.

EIGHT

WE HEADED FARTHER INLAND, not really going anywhere, just going. No one talked. No one even asked what was going on, why were these people after us, why had they shot Nicole. Reasons weren't important.

We trudged through the woods, Kenjii and I in the lead. After a while, I let her go ahead and pick the clearest path. The shock of Nicole's death had dulled my senses. I didn't see the beautifully gnarled old trees and the delicate new ones. I just saw trees. Endless trees. When I heard the mournful hoot of owls or the staccato patter of paws, I didn't stop to listen. Even the smell of cedar seemed too sharp, acidic, as I strained to pick up every smell I usually hated on my forest walks--the stink of gas or diesel fumes, the acrid scent of smoke. Signs of life. Human life. There were none.

Even when I managed to pull my thoughts away from Nicole's and Rafe's deaths, I still found plenty to dwell on. I thought about Annie and wondered where she was, if she was alive, if she was safe. Could she take care of herself? She was nineteen, but since she began shape-shifting, she'd started regressing intellectually. Reverting to a more animal-like state. That's why Rafe had been so determined to find the scientists who'd reactivated our skin-walker gene. Because he hoped they could help Annie. Would the same thing happen to me?

I thought about the man on the shore, too. My biological father. I tried not to dwell on that--didn't matter, wouldn't let it matter--but those thoughts only led to ones of my biological mother, who'd abandoned me as an infant. I used to say she was giving me a better chance at life, but Rafe told me she'd had two babies. Twins. She gave me up and kept my brother. My twin brother. Were they still out there? Was he still out there? Again, it wasn't the time to dwell on that. But I did anyway. At least until I started thinking about my parents--my real parents--and worrying about them took over everything else.

I finally snapped out of it when I realized we'd started walking uphill. I blinked and looked around. Fewer trees. More rocks. Ahead? Pitch black. I had to crane my neck way back to see stars dotting the night sky.

"A mountain."

"Hmm?" Daniel said.

I jumped, and realized he was right beside me. Probably had been for a while. He put his hand on my back to steady me and said, "What'd you say?"

"I know why I couldn't see lights from the treetop. There's a mountain in the way."

"Damn." Daniel lowered his voice. "Corey's not going to be able to make it up that. Not tonight."

"I don't think any of us could make it up that tonight. Except maybe the two-time island wrestling champ." I struggled for a smile.

"Don't count on it. I'm running on fumes here."

"Let's find a spot for the night then. We should be far enough from the crash site by now."

We headed off the deer trail we'd been following and found a clearing next to a dead tree that acted as a windbreak. Once Daniel and I pronounced it suitable, everyone pretty much ju

st collapsed where they stood.

Daniel and I were the last ones standing. When I started to lower myself to the ground, he tapped my elbow and pointed to a spot a few feet away.

"Looks more comfortable," he said.

There was a slight hollow there, where dried vegetation had collected. As I lay down, I could smell it, sharp and earthy, and the smell comforted me as much as the soft bedding. Kenjii curled up in front of me. Daniel stretched out behind me, close enough that I could feel the warmth radiating from him, and that relaxed me, too. If anyone had asked me five minutes ago if I could sleep, I'd have thought the question was insane, but my head had barely touched the ground before I was gone.

"Maya..."

I rolled over. Dead needles crackled under me. My foot bumped Daniel's, and he mumbled in his sleep.

"Maya..."

Another restless toss. A branch jabbed me this time, hard enough to make me open my eyes. I could make out the faint gray of dawn to the east.

I blinked and looked around. Corey, Sam, and Hayley were about five feet away, sound asleep.

I yawned and curled up again.

"Maya... Help..."

I bolted upright. A breeze wafted past, and I caught a smell I recognized.