When I didn’t say anything, he sighed and started walking again. I realized my silence was only hurting my desire to hear him talk. If I didn’t respond to him, he stopped talking.
“Yes,” I said after some time had passed.
“Hm? Yes what?”
I slid my fingers down the smooth wood of the bow on his back. It was so pretty. So well made. If those big hands could make something so nice, they could get these off without hurting me, right?
“Yes. I’d like that.”
“Like—oh!” His face lit up, and he gave me the biggest smile I’d seen yet, briefly squeezing my legs. “Okay, I can do that for you. I can definitely do that for you. When we get back, I’ll grab my tools. And I promise it won’t hurt.”
The joy that had started bubbling in my chest began to fade. I was supposed to be leaving.
When we get back?—
I wouldn’t be going back with him.
He kept talking excitedly, telling me all about how he was going to get them off, but it was hard to focus.
All I could think about was how disappointed he would be once he realized I’d left.
How disappointedIwould be.
What if…
No.
Even if I wanted to stay, I’d end up killing him during a storm.
I had to leave, if only to keep him safe, to not hurt the one person who’d ever helped me.
I had to.
The hikeoff the mountain didn’t take as long as I’d thought it would. Cain had left a small sliver of level ground at one end of the pit so he could cross it easily. It was hidden behind a bush and some vines I never would’ve found on my own. He also had an easier route down the ravine, but it really only worked for someone his size. It was at the far side, a shorter descent where rocks jutted out from the dirt like giant steps for him.
The sun was high in the sky by the time the crumbling ruins came into sight.
I stared down at what had once been a town. I’d been to a lot of places thanks to Hunter and Hayes. I’d seen many towns like this one. But I’d never gone anywhere voluntarily.
Because Iwantedto.
“This place used to be called Belle Ford. I mean, I guess we could still call it that.”
Belle Ford.
That sounded nice. Nicer than it looked.
Maybe I’d find another stuffed rabbit? Maybe this time I could keep it?
It wasn’t long before grass and dirt turned into broken concrete. A massive structure—a bridge?—came into view. Rusted skeletons of cars and trucks were scattered along the side of the road, vines curling over and around the metal frames. A tree had started to grow in the middle of the street.
There was a river here. It was vast, much, much bigger than the river in Cain’s woods. Did that one connect to this one?
Cain took us deeper into the town, long legs eating up the pavement. The ground slanted and became a little steep, heading right down to the river. But before that were quite a few buildings, some completely collapsed, some half standing. He seemed to know exactly where he was going, and when we stopped in front of a building that was mostly intact, he set me down.
“There should be some stuff in here, but if not, we can go looking around. Stay here, I’m gonna go check it out. I’ll come get you when I know it’s clear.”
I didn’t sense any Corrupted, so I didn’t argue.
