Page 37

“What the fuck did you do, Jade?”

Her eyes cast downward. “He wrote something in the mud. A question. I saw it when I went to drop off a can of food, and I answered it.” She swallows hard.

“What was the question?” I ask through gritted teeth, wishing she would just spill it out already.

“The message said, ‘Where is he?’”

I tilt my head, and my voice comes out like steel—strong and cool. “And what did you tell him?”

She can’t even look at me anymore. “North.”

It took all my willpower in that moment not to end her. The dark urge was overwhelming before I contained it and watched Jade’s tears of betrayal with a mask of indifference and clenched fists, which is never a good sign for anyone near me in those circumstances. I regained what sliver of humanity I had left and walked away before I did something I might regret. Hopefully, I reminded her that a femur bone is not the worst of her problems and that Nigel isn’t the worst enemy to have on this island.

I’m sure I made my point.

I shove my guilt inward as the sun hovers dangerously low in the sky, knowing I’ve already let London down by not being back by dusk like I had promised.

She’ll have to wait a little longer, even though I’m sure she’s beyond seething by now. As soon as I untie her and she gets her hands on her pointy spear, I’ll be fucked.

I stalked to the lake site as fast as I could, needing to see for myself what was going on there, even though I was heading in the wrong direction.

It’s dusk as I approach the muddy shores of the rocky beach and the familiar forests surrounding it. Long shadows loom over the lake’s edge, the giant mountains glistening in the evening light.

I linger alone in the perimeter, my hood over my head and the winter wind still cutting through my skin. The temperatures are dropping quickly, and I suppress a yawn, knowing I will not be sleeping anytime soon. Nothing will stop me from getting back to London tonight—especially after what Jade told me.

However, I’m not worried about her.

The cabin is well-hidden, stuck in the middle of the thick woods. I barely found it myself, and I have much more experience than any of them regarding wilderness. Even if they got close, locating it would be like finding a needle in a haystack, and that is the only reason I didn’t kill Jade when she admitted to betraying London and me.

A mist swirls over the lake and hovers in the air, creeping over the abandoned camp. At least, it looks abandoned. I’m not so sure.

“Where the fuck did they go?” I mutter, resting my elbows on my knees as I squat.

After a few minutes, I figure it’s safe to walk over to the fire pit, the circle of rocks in the middle of the clearing where the main fire used to burn. The spot where my brother died is just a short distance away.

The snow has melted, exposing the dead, charred earth around the former fire pit. My heart aches for a moment as I absorb what I am seeing—Maison’s dried blood has frozen, the haunting stain marking the spot.

I stare at the blood-stained ground, paralyzed, knowing I let the person who did this to him get away. I can’t bring myself to look away. My eyes don’t seem to blink as I recall that night and relive it at least a hundred times. What I could have done differently, why I consistently fail the few people in this world I actually care about…

Olivia included.

My pulse quickens, and I instinctively start to fortify the shield around my heart, redirecting my attention to the air I abruptly stopped breathing. Bit by bit, I replace the stone wall until, once again, I feel nothing, and the burning memory in my mind is extinguished.

I focus all my energy on moving away from this place, reveling in the fact that, at least, I made Ezra pay for putting a knife to my neck. There is no denying the intense satisfaction I felt when chopping Ezra’s fingers off. He must have known he wouldn’t be leaving that situation unscathed.

My knees bend as I lean down and touch the ash in the fire pit, rubbing it between my index finger and thumb. It’s warm, and a heady smoke lingers in the air… There was a fire here recently, and the tracks are fresh. I rise and let the ash fall from my fingers.

I force myself to move on from the fire pit and check out the rocky beach until I’m satisfied that I’m completely alone. I wasn’t sure how I was going to respond to being here. Even though I lived here for weeks, this place never felt right. It never felt like home, not the way the cabin does now with London there. Seeing this site completely abandoned only proves my point.

My bone weapon is in a tight grip in my hand as I shift my attention to the shelters. Even in the dim light, I can tell they are trashed. Only one is barely intact, but then again, one is all someone needs to survive.

I cautiously make my way to the shelter, my footsteps barely audible since I’m conscious that if someone else is present, they are probably aware of my presence, too.

A moment of panic overwhelms me as I get closer. This could be an ambush. Jade could be working with them, tricking me into coming here instead of heading directly to my girl like I should be doing. But my curiosity was always a problem for me, and I had to see for myself what became of this place.

Keeping my body rigid, I dip down and peer into the darkness of the shelter. My old shelter, of course, is the only one still standing. The others either burnt down or fell into a pile of moss and sticks.

I strain my eyes in the dark, and amidst a slight shift in the light, I catch a flicker of bright eyes just as a whimper escapes into the silence.