Page 85 of Rebel Rising: A Dystopian Romance

“I'm sorry," Coal said.

I dropped his arm quickly. Our breath rose in little clouds of vapour between us.

A keening howl started up

somewhere to our right.

"What was that?" I gasped and Coal pressed his hand across my mouth, silencing me.

“Coyote," he whispered. "Hopefully just one." He beckoned and we followed the slightly bent path that the others had taken onwards into the surrounding stalks.

A yapping noise started to our left and was joined by another somewhere behind us.

"Why is there never just one?" I hissed.

“Stay slow and quiet," he whispered and we pushed on carefully.

The corn that towered above us let only slithers of moonlight through and there was no way to tell how far we still had to go.

The inflexible stalks were practically impossible to move through with any semblance of stealth. Every movement we made caused a chorus of rustling, signalling our position to the pack of wild dogs that were slowly forming a circle around us.

The yapping carried on, picking up from several directions and making my pulse race.

Coal took a knife from his belt and motioned for me to follow suit. Rather than empowering me, the feeling of the weapon in my hand just made me more worried. Great aim wouldn't do me much good against an attacker that I wouldn't see until they were on top of me. But I pushed against my inclination to panic and found the cold, calm place within me that would help me focus on the fight.

A strong gust of freezing wind sent a wave of movement through the field and I shivered again.

On and on we slipped through the maze of corn while howls pierced the night air all around us more and more frequently.

The wind finally let up and I tried to get the chattering of my teeth under control, wondering why the hell I’d left my jacket behind in the truck. The metal hilt of my knife was so cold that it sent pain up my arm and made my hand feel numb. I adjusted my grip and held the blade steady.

A shape burst between the stalks and I raised my knife only to have Coal knock it back down with his free hand. It was Kaloo, her hackles were raised and she let out a high pitched bark that sounded like a warning. She circled us once then started forward purposefully, keeping close.

The yapping and shrieking of the coyotes gained a frantic edge as they hunted us. Kaloo snarled, showing a full set of gleaming white canines which reminded me that she was as much of a beast as anything that was hiding within the field. I was grateful to have her on our side.

A flash of movement to my right made me jump and I nearly dropped the knife. The coyote slipped out of view as quickly as I spotted it but Kaloo gave chase.

Rustling broke out around us in earnest. Coal stopped short and I walked straight into the back of him.

“Ow!" I complained, rubbing at my nose.

“Shhh," he spun me around and pressed his back to mine. "They're getting ready to attack, get your gun out."

I did as commanded and shoved my knife back onto my belt before snatching my shotgun from my back. I held the gun up in front of me like a talisman, my numb fingers slipping into place as I repressed a shiver. Slowly, Coal started to move, I took his lead and we turned in a circle with our guns raised and ready.

My breath huffed out in little clouds which momentarily obscured my vision. The growling and yapping sang out all around us, making it impossible to guess where the attack would come from. I clenched my teeth and steadied my breathing, my eyes darting back and forth.

The husks beneath our feet split and crunched as we wore down the ground in a small circle.

Sounds of canine fighting replaced the excited yapping in the direction that Kaloo had taken and I felt a small bubble of hope swell in my chest.

The curtain of corn stalks in front of me rattled and began to part. I slipped my finger onto the trigger, ready to fire. Snarling and the snapping of jaws came from the rippling crops followed by a yelp of pain.

I let out another breath as Kaloo stuck her head back through the corn to look at us. Her blue eyes held a question which I answered with a shaky laugh.

The sounds of approach had halted and we took the opportunity to make our escape.

Kaloo led us out of the corn field with her nose in the air like she was proud of herself. We emerged a short distance from a set of wooden steps that led up to a grand old farm house. We sprinted up the steps onto a porch that ran the length of the building. Kaloo circled behind us and growled at the field, a clear warning to anything that might try to follow.