User blog:Corbierr/My story, Chapter 5

Chapter 4

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I followed Warren and his followers in silence with guns pointed at me for a long time, until he finally told us we’ve reached the exit. I sighed with relief, sick of the sewer and needing a little fresh air. By now I was accustomed to the smell of sewage, which scared me almost as much as being surrounded by a crowd of strangers with guns. Point is, I was happy to finally get to leave this disgusting place.

Warren climbed up a metal ladder and left through another grate after pushing it open. Through the opening I saw a soft, golden light, and the minute he motioned I followed him up the cold, rusty ladder into the light followed by the others literally right beneath me. My heavy snow boots, now wet with dirty water and sewage, slipped a little on the bars and I almost fell. I clung on to the bar above my head desperately until I could continue going. I heard somebody snickering at me, which I chose to ignore. I had too much to deal with tonight already.

I assumed we would still be in the city, albeit a more rundown area than before. Instead, I found myself in a large clearing, surrounded by trees on all side. It was about as big as a football field. There were many tents making a circle and more spread out in the middle, some dark red and some green. Nearby was an empty fire pit, and thanks to the lamps hung up on the trees or near the tents lighting up the area, I could see the ash inside of it and assumed it was left from the storm earlier. The air smelled distinctly of pine and carried an air of danger, mixed with strange excitement.

I definitely was not in normal Terces anymore.

“How did we get to a forest?”

“Shut it.”

There was a sandy-haired boy that I figured was in his twenties, who seemed like he was standing guard nearby, with a gun attached to his belt. When he noticed me he raised his eyebrows questioningly, and tensed up, gripping his gun as if he would try and shoot at me. I held my gaze bravely until he turned away.

“Warren, what’s going on?” He asked.

“Go wake up Dakota. I’ll explain then.” Warren snapped, and the boy ran off towards one of the red tents without another word.

He came back out moments later followed by a tall girl with long black hair and a black glove on her left hand. Her skin was olive, and she, like Donny, looked like she probably came from one of the regions in the mountains. She had a wild, ready-to-attack look about her despite how casually she was walking, and she too was carrying a gun on her belt, though this one looked bigger than the one the boy had. It was about the same size was Warren’s gun, so I was willing to assume she was rather high in the hierarchy of this little group.

Dakota wore a wide grin. “Whatch’a need? I was sleeping, but since it’s you I’ll make an exception.” Warren gave a rough smile back, before getting serious.

“Kota, this is Mandy.” Her eyes flickered to my face as he introduced me, and the smile she had when greeting Warren was gone, replaced by an expression of suspicion. “She claims that her mother is Paulina, who was not only captured, but sent her here to find us. Can you please find out the truth for us?”

“Sure thing.” Dakota nodded as she tied her hair into a loose ponytail, then turned to me with a smug look on her face. “Come ‘ere.”

Great. My first minute in the campsite and I was already about to get interrogated again. I considered trying to make a break for it right here. Maybe I could save my mother myself and not have to deal with these jerks ever again. But they had guns, and because I valued my life, I gave in and walked forward.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">In the background I heard Warren barking out orders. “James, go guard the entrance in the sewers, make sure we have no other surprises tonight. You three, go on night watch around the west side of the forest. You three take the east side. The rest of you get back to sleep. Kota and I can handle this girl ourselves.” Before I could even consider snapping at him for calling me ‘this girl,’ he grinned, “Koda, you may begin.”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">“No kidding, I thought I would wait all night.” She grinned back, then pulled out her gun and aimed it at me. I caught my breath and tensed up, thinking she would shoot. “Relax, we’ll only shoot if ya don’t answer us correctly, or ya try ta escape. Now question one. What’s yer name?”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">“M-Mandy Spell,” I stammered, after a momentary pause. Being threatened with death to answer questions correctly suddenly made everything seem impossible to respond to.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">“Why did ya wait so long ta answer that?” Dakota sneered, circling me and playing with her gun. “Have something you wanna hide?”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">“N-No, of course not.”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">“Then why are ya so nervous?”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">“Because you’re holding a gun at me!”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">She laughed. “Smart girl. Next question. Where ya from?”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">“The town of Autumn Brook.”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">“Is it true that Paulina Spell is your mother?”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">“Yes.”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">“And did she disappear?”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">“Of course. Why would I lie about something like that?”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">“It’s happened.” Dakota shrugged. “Had a boy here once around yer age, claimed his brother was taken and that he needed our help. Turns out the kid was a government spy.” She smirked and checked over her gun as if it were a delicious slice of cake. “Then he died.”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">I swallowed. “Well I’m not a spy. I’m telling you the truth.”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">“Yes, and Warren’s a professional singer.” She rolled her eyes. In the background I heard Warren mumbling something under his breath, and glanced over to see him leaning casually against a tree, arms crossed, watching me with cold eyes. “Back ta the questions.” I turned to face my interrogator again.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">“How old was yer mother?”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">“My mother is forty-four years old.”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">Dakota glanced at Warren. “Well?”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">“She’s right.” He muttered. “But it could have just been a lucky guess.”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">Lucky guess? I shot my cousin a glare and he returned the favor. My interrogator let out a laugh. “Ya guys seem to have hit it off quite nicely. Now, next question…”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">I rattled off answers to all her questions about my mother, all of which Warren confirmed were correct. Dakota seemed to be getting more and more desperate, asking questions like what her mother’s name was and the birth order of her family, things even my cousin seemed confused about when they were asked. But finally, it seemed she had given up, and returned her gun to the holster on her belt looking like she was starving and was forced to give up food.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">“Warren, I hate ta say this, but I think she’s legit.”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">Warren peeled himself away from the tree and wandered over, still looking angry. “Yes, I believe so, too. Well, Mandy, I’m sorry I didn’t believe you. I guess we’re cousins. Awesome.” He spoke each word as if he was tasting something bitter.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">It took all my strength not to snap back at him and instead answer, as nicely as possible, “It’s okay. I’m sure you had your reasons,”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">“So…Aunt Paulina’s really missing, huh?”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">I nodded.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">Warren swore and pounded the tree with his fist. He paced around, and made noises that sounded like they were meant to be words but he decided he didn’t want to say them at the last minute. Finally, he said, “Perfect. Just…just perfect.” As he slumped against a tree, arms crossed, I almost felt bad for him.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">“How are we going to help her?” I asked what I assumed to be an innocent question, but he hung his head.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">“I...I don’t know.”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">“What’s wrong?”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">“N-nothing.” He stood up and grabbed me by the arms. “But Mandy. Your mother’s in trouble. I promise I’ll help you save her, if it’s the last thing I do.” The urgency of his tone frightened me.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">“G-good. Thank you.”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">Warren sighed and let go of me. “Yeah...” Then he turned to Dakota. “Koda, please help her with, uh...you know.” My cousin walked away. “Thanks.”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">Dakota sighed and watched him go. “Yer welcome...” I had to clear my throat before she looked at me. She smirked and crossed her arms. “So, anything ya wanna know now?”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">“Alright. Koda, where do I…”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">“Only Warren calls me Koda.” She snapped, slapping me in the arm with her gloved hand. It felt like I was smacked with iron. “Everyone else calls me Dakota. Got it?”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">“Find, understood.” I mumbled, rubbing the bruise. “I won’t call you Kota. But seriously, where do I sleep?” I just remembered how late it was, and the exhaustion I’d been ignoring all night came back, crashing over me like a tidal wave on the beach and just as painful. I let out a yawn and almost tricked myself into thinking I would actually be able to get any rest that night. Best case scenario, I’d be sleeping very restlessly, if at all.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">“You can crash in any of the red tents. I’ll go dig out a sleeping bag for ya.” She started to walk off, but I called her back and offered to find my sleeping bag myself. Honestly, I just wanted a chance to walk around on my own for a bit and calm down before trying to sleep.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">“Feeling adventurous today, are we?” Dakota smirked. “Fine with me. They’re in that one blue tent way in the back. It’s where we keep our supplies.”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">If all of their supplies were in a single tent, I was surprised they could have as many people as they did running around. Still, I was glad for the easy directions, and with a quick thanks I walked off on my own through the clearing.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">This place wasn’t too bad, if I ignored the fact that it was a campsite full of people- criminals, probably- who wandered around all day with guns and no real aversion to killing. It was quiet and secluded, and had a nice summer camp feel to it. The stars were out, which were always nice. I could hear crickets chirping and frogs croaking; a bat fluttered above my head and disappeared into the night. Even that almost brought a smile to my face; it was nice to know that, on a night like this, life still went on as usual, even if today was anything but usual.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">I finally reached the blue tent and unzipped it to dig around inside. Everything in the tent was dark, and I fumbled around for a spare flashlight or lamp I could use. Eventually finding one, I realized how large the tent was. It was about the size of a small room in my house, and it was filled with stuff. How did they get all this stuff? Boxes and cans of food, extra guns and ammo, bug spray, canteens, ropes…and, finally, a sleeping bag I could use. It was thick and warm and despite being old, it was still in fairly good condition.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">Once I dragged it out of the tent and zipped it back up, I set it down on the grass and curled up inside of it. I was sleeping outside tonight. I didn’t want to wake anyone up with my inevitable thrashing and kicking and constant waking up.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">From where I lay, I had a pretty good view of the stars. I wondered if somewhere, somehow, my mother was gazing at the same stars and thinking about me? I remembered some happy moments as I stared at them, like the time my father took me camping and he fell out of the fishing boat. Or the time I had a huge bonfire with my friends, who I also missed desperately. I missed everyone, really, and everything. My home, my friends and especially my family were all could really call mine, and now here I was sleeping in the forest on the wet ground, mother missing, father probably oblivious and everything I knew turning out to be wrong. I had a new cousin I hated and I wouldn’t trust someone like Dakota in a dark ally.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">For once, I refused to accept that everything in Terces was okay, because it wasn’t, no matter what I used to believe. And just this morning, my biggest problem was my father working too much. I never knew how fast things could change, and just the idea of change horrified me.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.1in;text-indent:.3in">I wasn’t used to changes in my life, and now it seemed nothing would ever be the same again.