“I did,” Jackson confirms. “I’ve got a sturdy constitution, though. I don’t need much sleep.”
Tension runs through me, making me clench my fists, and Rex squeezes my shoulder again.
“Well, it was nice running into you, Jackson,” Rex says. “But we’re about to head off, so—”
“Oh, I’ll come with you,” he says. “You’ll need a guide.”
“We’re splitting up,” Rex says. “And we’ll cover ground faster without you. Really, we won’t be long, you should just wait—”
“Wouldn’t dream of it,” Jackson says, grinning. “There are all kinds of danger in these hills. You guys split, and I’ll stick with Shawn. What do you think?”
“Great plan,” I snap, before anyone can say anything. “Stick to your original idea, Rex, and Jackson and I will take due west. Should we move out?”
“Absolutely,” Jackson says.
Rex and the others don’t look happy, but I scowl back at them, shaking my head.
Don’t fucking kill him, Rex lip-syncs at me. I raise my hands in an exaggerated shrug.
We shift and head in opposite directions, spreading a wide net that covers the woods on three sides of Clover town. Jackson keeps pace with me as we run through the woods, and I know I won’t be able to shake the old dog. He’s tougher than I thought.
After running several miles along the westward ridge, we shift back to our human shapes, and Jackson leads me to a rocky gorge on the north slope.
“We’ve found gold in this gully,” Jackson says. “As well as natural minerals. We haven’t mined it before because of the terrain, but with help from your friends, we could cultivate this entire area.”
“Yeah,” I reply, barely listening to him.
“It could make us rich,” he adds, but I’ve turned my back on him to keep my nose to the wind.
Is that her scent? It’s faint, but I think it’s coming through on the breeze.
“Come on down this way,” Jackson says, gesturing to a narrow track. “I’ll show you the first section of caves. The ores are visible right by the entrance. We’d need explosives to start mining, though, I think.”
Yeah, right. Like we’re going to let you have explosives.
“Sounds exciting,” I mutter, turning in the opposite direction to examine the wind more closely.
“Shawn,” Jackson says in a mocking tone. “I really thought you were smarter than this.”
“What?” I mutter. “Why?”
“Because you fell for this way too easily,” he says. “Unless you know what I’m up to, and you’ve just got brass balls the size of fucking tractor tires?”
His words cut through my thoughts, and as I turn to look at him, all my rage, all my confusion, narrows down into a single, sharp spear pointed straight at him.
“Jackson,” I say. “Have you been a naughty boy?”
The old man laughs, slapping his knee. “That’s it. Now you’re getting it. You really should be paying more attention.”
“Oh, you’ve got my attention now,” I say, turning to face him. “And you’re about to find out that’s not something you should want.”
“Oh, but Shawn,” Jackson says, slowly moving away from me and onto the rocky path. “If you don’t pay attention to where I’m going, how will you ever find her?”
“I knew it!” I shout. “I knew you fucking took her! Where is she?”
“Come and find out!” Jackson yells, turning to run down the gorge.
I don’t even think. I shift into my wolf shape mid-stride and leap after him.
