Page 22 of Spirit Trials (The Spirit Kingdoms #1)

My stomach nearly empties itself at the sight of the blood and shredded flesh.

I drop down next to Harper where Kinsley is already methodically ripping through the tattered remains of Harper’s shirt to see the wounds.

I glance up at Harper’s pale face and see her eyes are glazed over with pain and shock.

I grab her hand. “It’s going to be okay, Harper.

” I squeeze her hand and then take the scraps Kinsley tore off.

“I’m going to soak these,” I tell Kinsley.

I jump up and run back to the water and then bring them over.

“This is going to hurt,” I warn. I hate that I don’t have anything with me to help.

I grit my teeth, hating the loss of my bag.

Kinsley’s exposed each wound now, and I do my best not to throw up at the sight of the torn flesh.

I hand the cloths to Kinsley. “I’ll hold her down; you clean the wounds.

” Kinsley meets my eyes, and we share a commiserating stare.

We both hate what we’re about to do. I reach across Harper’s body and pin her arms down.

Her wild eyes meet mine. “Hang on, Harper,” I whisper.

And then Kinsley starts cleaning the wounds.

Harper’s screams reverberate through the forest. I grit my teeth and use my strength to hold her down.

Even at that, she still pulls free, and I have to grab her arms again.

She arches her back and screams again and then falls blissfully silent.

When I realize she’s out cold, I release my hold on her.

I stand to my feet abruptly. “I’m going to go see what I can find for healing.

” I glance down at Kinsley. “Will you be okay?”

Kinsley nods. “I’ll protect her.”

“I’ll be back as soon as I can.” I take off towards the heaviest area of underbrush.

I have in mind a few different plants. If I can find them, they will help reduce her pain and help her to heal faster.

I don’t let myself think about what will happen if I can’t find what I need in time.

I search every plant I come across, being careful to stay away from the ones I know are poisonous as well as the ones I don’t recognize.

I get frustrated as time passes and I don’t find anything, but I refuse to give up and go back empty-handed.

Harper needs help. My mind starts thinking about what we’re going to do next.

Harper’s not going to be able to move for a while, and I worry about her blood attracting wild animals.

My heart speeds up, and I return to my task at hand with a vengeance.

I search every overgrowth and around every tree.

I finally see something that catches my attention.

I peel back a bush and silently cheer when I see the gold coin.

I slip it into my pouch that I’m thankful to still have, along with a few throwing stars.

I’m almost ready to give up when I see one of the plants I was looking for.

“Yes!” I reach down to grab as much of it as I can.

Suddenly, a sharp pain pierces my hand. With a yelp, I pull back and stare in horror as a large snake uncoils its body.

I grab my knife with my uninjured hand and slice at it as it comes at me with fangs bared.

I stab it again and again and then jump backwards when it falls to the ground.

I clutch my wounded hand and assess the damage.

There are two red marks on my hand that I try not to panic over.

“It’s just a snake bite.” The problem is I don’t recognize this snake; I have no way of knowing if it’s poisonous or not.

I take a calming breath. You won’t help anybody if you panic.

I reach around the dead snake and shake the bush this time, berating myself for my stupidity in reaching for the bush without checking under it first. When I’m sure there’s nothing else lurking, I grab as many of the leaves as I can and several of the thickest stems. With my hands full, I start running back to where I left Harper and Kinsley.

My heart is in my throat as thoughts of everything that could have happened to them in the time I was gone flood my mind.

I breathe a sigh of relief when they come into view.

A quick glance shows that Harper’s still out cold, but I see the clear relief in Kinsley’s eyes.

“I was scared you wouldn’t come back,” she says softly, and I hear the fear in her voice.

“I’m sorry. It took me a lot of time to find what I was looking for.

” I set down the leaves and thick stems. “I need to wet these leaves; I’ll be right back.

” Moments later, I drop down next to Harper and cut the middle of the thickest stem.

I squeeze out the clear paste and begin to rub it carefully over her wounds.

After that, I begin to separate the wet, cold leaves as I begin to make a covering of wet leaves over her wounds. I meet Kinsley’s eyes when I’m done.

“What is that?” she asks.

“Heartshade vine. I was hoping I’d find some here.

It grows in the deepest, darkest parts of a forest. The paste inside acts as a mild sedative and pain reliever.

It will actually keep her asleep longer, but it will give her body more time to heal.

The leaves, when wet, act as a poultice to help heal and regenerate the damaged skin and close her wounds. It’s really powerful.”

“I’m so glad you found it,” she says, taking a deep breath and relaxing for the first time since that creature showed up.

“Do you know what that awful creature was?” I ask Kinsley quietly.

“A cragfang vulture. I’ve only heard of them, never seen one before. They’re known for that high-pitched sound and claws.” She looks down at Harper. “She’s really lucky. I’ve heard they can pull a man’s arm right off his body.”

I shudder and look back down at our friend before scanning the area. “We can’t stay here in the open like this. We’re just sitting ducks for whatever wild animal or competitors come this way.”

“I know. I’ve been thinking about that. I think we should move her while she’s still unconscious. We can both take an end.”

I nod. “We just need a good safe place. I can scout—”

“I’ll go this time,” she says cutting me off.

“Okay.” I watch her go before turning back to Harper.

I kneel next to her, making sure I still have access to all my weapons.

The sounds of the forest close in around me, and I find myself jumping at every little noise.

I get why Kinsley didn’t want to stay here again.

Finally, she comes back. I look down at my hand and notice with dismay that it’s swelling.

I grab one of the leaves from Harper, one of the ones on the third layer and put it on my hand just in case that snake’s bite was indeed venomous.

“I found a place.” Kinsley’s says.

“Okay. Let’s move her.” I stand and position myself at her shoulders while Kinsley takes her legs.

It’s an awkward shuffle for us, but we finally find a rhythm.

It takes us a lot longer than I would have liked to get her moved and settled.

When we finally lay her down, we’re both sweating and breathing hard.

“You did good,” I gasp out. “This is a good spot to lay low for now.” I stumble a moment as the world tilts a little.

Kinsley reaches out and steadies me. “You good?” I can see the concern in her eyes, and I straighten.

“Yeah, I just got hot moving her.” But my casual words bely me when I stumble again.

“Farrah.” Kinsley takes my arm and helps me sit. “What’s wrong?”

I grimace as the world continues to spin around me. I blink and try shaking my head to clear it, but that just makes it worse. “I may have gotten bit by a snake.”

“What?” Kinsley shrieks. “When?”

“When I was getting the leaves for Harper. It’s my own stupid fault. I reached right into the plant. I know better.”

“Well, beating yourself up now isn’t going to change anything. What kind of snake was it?”

I sigh. “I don’t know. I didn’t recognize it, but it wasn’t small. It had yellow and pink rings. Do you recognize it?”

Kinsley shakes her head. “No, but I hate snakes, so I wouldn’t really know.” Her eyes meet mine. “Do you think it’s poisonous?”

“Well, my heart hasn’t stopped yet, so that’s good.”

“Not funny. Where did it get you?” I show her my hand. It’s not lost on me that my hand is swollen and red.

She takes off the leaf and studies the bite marks. It’s super tender, so when she touches it, I hiss. “Sorry.” She covers it back up. “Put that stuff on it that you got for Harper.”

“I used it all for Harper.”

“Well go find more,” she demands.

“It’s fine. I will if it gets worse.” She frowns at me but doesn’t argue.

What I don’t tell her is that I don’t think I can make it there and back without passing out.

I really feel like I’m going to pass out, but I’m not all that sure that it’s the bite to blame.

I think it could also be my adrenaline crashing after not only the battle with the vulture but the snake attack as well.

I think my body just wants to crash. Only, we’re out in the middle of the forest, fighting for our lives.

..so yeah, not a super convenient time to just take a nap.

“Oh,” I say, just remembering. “I found this while I was out searching for the plant.” I unzip my pouch and pull out the coin.

“A gold coin,” she says, eyes wide. “Great job, Farrah.”

I sigh. “Yeah, not that it helps us any right now.”

“Yeah. Do you think they’re even worth collecting?”

I lean back against a tree. “Terron said the one with the most coins is the Champion, so it definitely doesn’t hurt to find them.

” I don’t tell her of my own aspirations to win this entire thing.

I look around at the small area we’re holed up in.

“Kinsley, you did really good with this area. We can rest here but stay out of sight.” There are several large trees around us, and overgrown bushes close us in on all sides.

Unless you’re in a tree looking down, you can’t see us in here.

And that’s really good because Harper needs to rest, and I’m not feeling so good at the moment either.

I close my eyes and lean against the trunk.

“Thanks, Kinsley.” She doesn’t say anything, and I open my eyes to find her staring at me.

“That’s not like goodbye, right?”

I laugh. “No. I’m not dying.”

She huffs. “Like you would tell me if you were.”

I smile as I close my eyes because she’s got a point. “Wake me if you hear or sense any danger.” I open my eyes and meet hers. “Are you okay to stay here for the rest of today?” She nods. “I’m sorry we can’t go any further.”

“Farrah, it’s fine. This is way better than I thought I’d be doing. I figured that by the end of the first day, I’d be in a fetal position on the ground somewhere crying.”

I smile and know that’s exactly what she was aiming for. “No, you wouldn’t,” I say softly as I close my eyes again. “You may come off as a softie, Kinsley; but you have a warrior’s heart.”