Chapter 14

Fourteen

The sun slowly began to set as beams of golden light faded away beneath the thick foliage of the forest. Cain had led the group away from the cabin and through the woods, towards the supposed direction of the infamous graveyard, as we blindly followed him. He surprisingly seemed to know the way, despite none of us ever visiting this town before. His hand was firmly clasped within Alaska's, as if keeping her close. The sight of him guiding her through the woods annoyed me. I didn't like seeing him touching her, but I knew I had to keep those feelings to myself. I swallowed my emotions as we all hiked through the drenched, endless thicket.

Alastair shadowed Alaska's every move, sticking to her side, while Ruby struggled, tripping because of her clunky boots. Jinx did her best to help her, but Ruby wasn't having it. "How much longer, Cain?" she spat. "My feet are killing me."

"We're almost there," Cain shot over his shoulder. "Just try to keep up."

Ruby sat on a nearby stump, crossing her arms in protest. "It's been almost two hours. I'm stopping," she huffed. "The fucking cemetery can wait."

Cain halted, his head raising as he sighed dramatically. "Fine," he turned. "You got five minutes." He kissed Alaska's hand before letting it go. "I'm going to check the path ahead and make sure it's clear." She nodded as he continued walking in the direction we had been heading, his silhouette quickly fading into the forest as we waited for him to return.

Alastair's earsstood straight up, his stance firm, staring off into the distance. Alaska, now at Ruby's side, was unaware of the change in his behavior as the three women chatted amongst themselves. My attention returned to Alastair, studying him as the feeling of being watched settled into my bones. Alastair huffed lightly, drawing everyone's focus to him.

"What's his problem?" Ruby snipped. Alaska eyed the wolf as he stood on high alert. The sounds of nearby twigs snapping made all of us jump. The three women gasped, huddling together behind me as Alastair lightly growling a warning at something unseen.

Snap.

I turned to face the three women. "Keep quiet," I motioned. "I'm going to check it out. Keep him close."I pointed to the wolf.

Alaska nodded, signing back to me. "Be careful."

As I stepped past Alastair, I whistled softly, directing him back to Alaska, which he thankfully obeyed, still alert. The sound of fallen leaves crunched beneath my boots as I carefully reached into my bag, unlatching the sheath as I retrieved the large knife and slowly ventured into the woods.

The faint light from the setting sun barely reached into the thick woods, leaving it in a transparent layer of shadows, thickening with each step I took. I was careful to keep my presence unnoticed, moving with a cautious pace. I struggled to make sense of everything as the sounds of nature played, slightly disorienting my senses, the feeling of someone observing me heavy on my chest. My hand clutched the large blade close, nervous and unsettled with the way I was feeling.

Snap.

My body whipped around, my arm swinging in defense as something grabbed my wrist, pushing against my force. It took a few seconds for my brain to comprehend what was happening.

Cain was standing just a foot away, his arm resisting mine as the blade angled toward his gut, an odd smile branched along his face as he fought my strength. "Boo."

My nerves settled, my strength relaxing as I realized it was only him. My arm yanked free of his, lowering the knife. "Jesus, man." I stepped back, increasing the distance between us. "What the hell are you doing?"

Cain ran his hand through his wild hair. "I was heading back to the group and saw you wandering out here alone, acting all skittish." He smirked. "Couldn't resist the chance to make you jump."

Fucking prick. I returned the blade to its sheath in my bag, annoyed by his prank.

Cain motioned his head in the direction of the rest of our group. "Let's have a little fun now, shall we?" I sighed.

"I don't think scaring two witches and a wolf is such a good idea," I snapped, following close behind him as we trampled through the woods. I couldn't shake the feeling of being watched, even though no one was out here with us. "We should just focus on reaching the graveyard before it gets dark. We don't want to get lost in these woods. Who knows what's lurking in the shadows?"

Cain groaned. "You're no fun, Lazarus."

Good thing I'm not trying to be.

As we neared where I left the others, I whistled, hoping to alert Alastair before Cain could do anything stupid, but also in an attempt to avoid the wolf charging us.

"Lazarus?" Alaska called my name, aware of my whistle. Cain and I stepped from the shadows, Alastair rushing as he jumped, his front paws slamming into my chest. The large wolf wagged his tail, licking my face as I stumbled, his weight almost knocking me over. "Easy," I chuckled at his excitement.

"What was out there?" Ruby asked, sounding a little worried.

"Just Cain," I strained the words between Alastair's licks. Cain eyed me, unamused.

"The path ahead seems pretty easy. We should be able to head that direction with no issues and reach the graveyard by nightfall." His voice was flat, his hand extending out toward Alaska. "Let's go, babygirl." She stared at his opened palm, hesitating before placing hers within his. Alastair's paws dropped from my chest leaving it sore from his impact. The three women joined us, Alaska's hand now intertwined with Cain's as we stepped into the shadows and moved in the direction he led us in.