Page 70 of True Abandon

“He’s promised not tah sue da hotel, so we’re good,” Benji explains.

Jax turns to me, his perfect grin shining. “He didn’t kill me, so it seems pointless. Now had he stabbed me in the eye, we’d have a problem.”

Benji holds up a knife and twirls it between his fingers. “Nah. I’m an expert. Wanna see more?”

“No! One show was enough.” Jax chuckles. I find myself staring at his Adam’s apple and the way it bobs with the pull off his beer.

I take a long swig of my own, needing to cool off from the fire burning before me.

“We were just about to tell him about the night marchers,” Kal says. My attention is pulled to the other side where Kal is staring hard at Jax.

“We were?” Isaiah asks.

Benji’s hands rub together. “Haha! Da’ night marchahs!”

Jax looks at me for clarification. I’ve never heard of the night marchers, so I just shake my head.

Kal leans forward into the glowing light of the fire. “They’re ghosts of the ancient Hawaiian warriors who roam the island at night visiting the old battlefields.” Isaiah makes a beating sound on his gut. The rhythm is steady like an army marching through the field.

“Do not make eye contact,” Kal continues, with a long and sinister stare, the fire reflecting orange and red in his midnight black eyes. “If you hear chanting or drums, you should run inside and lie on your stomach.”

“What happens if you make eye contact?” Jax asks.

“You will die and be forced to walk with them for eternity.” Kal’s voice rises.

Jax lets out a sarcastic, low whistle. “That’s some story. If I see a night marcher, I’ll be sure to stop, drop, and roll.”

“Don’t whistle!” Kal quickly hushes Jax who raises a brow at the urgency in Kal’s voice. “That calls their attention.”

Suddenly, there’s a loud bang that makes Jax jump, and a beating of a drum sounds from the woods behind us. Thump, thump, thump.

“Do you hear that?” Kal asks, and his eyes dart back and forth in panic.

“Huma, hana, Huma, hana.” The sound is coming from deep within the woods.

My heart beats with the rhythm of the drum. Thump, thump, thump.

Jax goes rigid. The hairs on his arms stand at attention.

“Huma, hana, Huma, hana.”

“It’s the night marchers,” Kal shouts into the bonfire. “They’re here for your soul!”

All of sudden, two large hands grab onto Jax’s shoulders causing him to leap up into the air with a yelp.

“Gotcha!” Benji laughs and does a ridiculous dance around the fire. He has a small drum in his hands as he gives Kal a high-five. I never even saw Benji get up and walk into the woods. He is one sneaky little man.

Jax is smiling and grabbing his chest. “You didn’t happen to tell them I’m afraid of the dark, did you?”

I bite my cheek to control my laugh. “I may have mentioned that in passing. They have an uncanny ability to mess with people.”

“Thanks.” He gives me a shove.

Benji comes back around and shakes Jax’s shoulders. “We got yah good!”

I stand up as Kal walks around the fire and stops next to me.

“Trish, can I have a word with you,” he asks.