Page 25 of Spirit Rites

“Enough.”

“How did you get away?”

He shrugs. “I ran and kept running until they were no longer behind me.”

I swallow hard. “And you carried me?”

“You weren’t exactly in running shape.”

I take in everything he’s saying. “You should have just left me.”

He scowls. “Would you stop with that already?”

“I can’t believe you ran with me, though. It’s hard enough to outrun something in this cursed forest, let alone to be carrying a full human!”

His lips quirk. “As opposed to a half human?”

I scowl at him. “You know what I mean.” I shake my head. “Well, thank you. What else did I miss?”

“There was a sort of windstorm, but we survived that. That was a few hours ago, so hopefully we’re going to get a break for a little while.”

I take in his words and look around us. I can see what he means. Many trees are bent at odd angles, and lots of tree branches litter the ground. “It’s going to make walking more difficult,” I point out needlessly. He nods but doesn’t say anything else. Soon, the fish is ready, and I down my portion quickly.

“I should have caught more; I forgot how hungry you’d be after not eating the last two days. Here.” He tries to hand me his fish, but I push it away.

“I’m fine.” I stand to my feet, wincing in pain as I do.

“I have that bark if you need it again.”

I wave him off. “I can’t afford to sleep for two days again.”

“Just don’t chew on as much.”

It’s tempting, but I decline for now. “If the pain gets too bad, I will later.” I look around our little campsite. “Do you think we need to move, or do you think we’re good here for the night?”

“I think we’re fine to stay. That windstorm should count for something, and we should be able to sleep in peace tonight.”

“I hope so, for your sake. I’ll take watch tonight, so you can sleep.”

“Just for a few hours,” he says as he stands and stretches.

“No, I’ll take the full night. I was out for two nights; that means you didn’t get sleep,” I say pointedly. When he doesn’t argue, I know I’m right.

“Wake me if there are any threats.”

“I will.” He starts towards the shelter he made. “Kaldar.” He stops and turns back. “Thank you for everything you did for me.”

I can’t really see the expression on his face, because he’s too far away from the light of the fire. “You’re welcome, Kinsley.”

He settles in to sleep, and I stay at the fire. I try to move my arm and wince as pain shoots down my arm. I give up and leave it close to my stomach. I stare into the darkness.I can’t believe I slept for two days.I need to ask Kaldar how many days it’s been then. We have to be closing in on five or six soon, not that it means anything. Kaldar's rites may have only lasted six days, but he also said some guy’s lasted for eighty-some days. That thought makes me sick, but I refuse to think about it. I have to believe we’ll get out soon, or I’ll lose hope.

The hours pass slowly, and I spend the time imagining what the Jaguar Kingdom is like and what my future is going to look like. A few times, I doze off, but I always jerk back awake again. There’s no reason I should be tired, not after two days of sleeping. But my body doesn’t seem to get the memo. I get up and pace our small camp several times, keeping my steps soft so I don’t wake Kaldar. Finally, the sky begins to lighten in color. Relief filters through me. It’s almost morning.

Kaldar wakes up soon after that and joins me at the fire. “You should have woken me.” His voice is lower than usual.

“You needed the sleep after the past two nights.” I stand and stretch, wincing when my arm moves slightly.

“I’m going to go catch something for us to eat, and then we can get going.”