Krellix
We travel slowerthan I like but I am in no hurry now that I have Julia safe with me once again. I nearly lost her—almost had, once it became apparent Sada had crossed the river. I was lucky that he was not spending any time trying to cover his tracks. It was easy to pick his trail back up on the other side. It only took me half the night to find it.
I was also lucky he had not gotten Julia very far.
And luckier still to find her unhurt by him.Mostlyunhurt.
She cannot walk for long without having to catch her breath, similar to how Olivia struggled to breathe right at the end yesterday. It puts me on edge.
Once we get back to the river and it is time to cross over, I pick her up regardless of her complaints, assuring her that I will make certain she does not get wet again. But when we get to the other side, I refuse to release her, choosing to carry her for a time so she may rest her lungs.
“I’m fine. They’re just a little burned.”
“And your head?” I growl.
She sighs and rests it against me. “It still aches.”
“Then I will carry you.”
“I’m not used… to feeling like a… damsel in distress.”
My eyes narrow down at her. “Are you in distresssss?”
She closes her eyes, settling against me. “Not anymore.”
My muscles tense and pressure floods my middle, lengthening my shaft. I try to push the sensations away but they only grow as I become increasingly aware of all the places where our bodies are touching. Between desire, worry, and everything that just happened with Sada, my emotions are riotous. I cannot catch a single one and conquer it before another comes along to take my focus.
Sada was also searching for his brother.
I should have killed him but I could not.
Instead, I felt his grief and… empathized. Unlike him, I still do not have a clear answer as to what happened to my clan. I will probably never know exactly what became of them at this point. They would not have fled. They would have fought. And if they had fought, they likely died, which is why they have been gone for nearly two years.
Their bodies may have been transported to some human or machine trash heap and buried too deep for me to find.
I shake my head. I have grieved my clan. Sada is still grieving part of his. Perhaps now that he knows the truth, his grief will not be so burdensome. The Boas and the Copperheads have never been at war, and though it seems we have both undergone trouble, it does not make sense to ignite a conflict now. Not with everything else that is going on.
Right now, Julia and her safety is of the most importance.
I find a dense group of shrubs between several tightly-knit bushes and trees and batter it down with my tail, making us a small but enclosed camp just a little ways past the river. Setting down Julia’s pack first, I gently place her on the ground in themiddle of the smushed thicket. Some of the grass springs back up to offer more camouflage. Good.
“We’re stopping? For how long?” she asks, drawing her legs under her and tugging her pack to her side.
“For the night.”
She tilts her head up at me. “It’s still… light out.”
“You have traveled enough today. It is time for you to get some food and rest.”
“Are you… sure it’s safe?”
“No. But it never truly is, is it?”
She slowly smiles and it makes my own lips twitch. “A joke? That’s new... And true.”
She goes quiet as she turns away and opens her pack. She pulls out her canteen, opening the top and taking a big gulp. When she is done, I reach for it. “Give it to me and I will fill it. We are still close to the river and there is a creek emptying into it closer still.”
Julia gives me the canteen and shifts her eyes to the side. “I think… I can hear it.”
