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Everyone knows they’re a sign of bad omens.
When I get to the mine, the first thing I do is check for signs of Kennedy Bellamy. Today has already been a mess, and the last thing I need is to run into him as well. I stalk past the empty spot he normally parks in and approach the entrance of the mine with caution.
It’s quiet, and even though Ziggy is mute, when he’s home, there’s usually noise coming from inside.
They’re not here.
Which suits me because I don’t have to deal with the discomfort of seeing another outsider, and I don’t have to deal with the gratitude Ziggy forces on me.
I leave the containers of food in his fridge and then pause over the ones left in my bag.
Sasha doesn’t trust me or my cooking, but is that a good enough reason to let him starve? He’s not my responsibility, I know that, but if he passes out in my crop fields, then he becomes my problem. This way is easiest.
I walk further up the hill toward Hobby Straight, following paths I created years ago. Being in Wilde’s End and having a purpose that gets me out of bed every day is all I needed after I left Appalachia.
A shudder brackets my spine at the thought of that place.
I’ll never go back there, mentally or physically, but it’s a fight to stay in the present. With each new outsider who finds their way into town, the past tugs at me, reminds me of what happens when a quiet little town is threatened by the people who don’t belong.
When we’re seen as sitting prey by people with evil in their souls.
People who don’t attack for survival, but to hurt.
This time though, I’m ready for them.
I might have confused Sasha for one of them, but while I’m letting him live here unchallenged, I don’t entirely trust him either. He’s made no secret of having a past in Wayward, but until I know what that past is, I won’t know if we’re safe from him. Tragedy can still happen by accident.
The straps of the backpack are digging into my shoulders by the time the first dilapidated cabin at Hobby Straight appears through the trees. It’s a logistical nightmare up here, and having so many blind spots to what’s happening around me has my hand seeking the familiar comfort of my knife.
I don’t pull it out, just leave it in the holster at my side, thumb rubbing the worn leather handle to keep the nightmares and what-ifs away.
Queenie’s cabin comes into view, along with where she’s sitting on the front deck, Rooney’s wind chimes playing a chilling tune. He’s made them up of treasures he’s found, and the small crystals throw rainbows across the house. I narrow my eyes at them as I approach.
“You’re calling evil spirits to you.”
Queenie laughs before she even sees me. “Lynx, my sweet angel soul. My avenging prince. It’s been too long. Come and have tea and fill me in on everything notable that’s happened since I’ve been gone.”
“We have another outsider.” I pause before her front steps. We both know that I won’t step foot into her house. Queenie dabbles in the occult, and while it might be different from the dark forest magic Rooney uses, I don’t trust any of it.
“If you mean Sasha, I’ve met him, and he’s a peach. I absolutely forbid you from being unkind to him, my darling.”
“I’m never unkind.”
Her dark lips try to flatten her smile. “Well, don’t give him your brand of kindness either.”
“There’s nothing wrong with my brand of kindness.” I eye the cabin next to hers, which looks just as abandoned as the others. “Which one is he staying in?”
“The one you’re looking at.”
“Really?” I don’t know why it’s surprising that there’s no sign of life there, but I guess I’d at least expect him to be home by now. Plus, given how bright and colorful everything Sasha wears is, I’d expected more … well, for it to look like Queenie’s place.
“He’s not home yet though,” she points out unnecessarily. “I’ve been waiting for him to have tea with me again.”
“He had tea with you?” I whirl on her. “Is that why he was so weak today?”
“Sweet thing, I didn’t drug him. It was tea. Not even herbal.”
I debate whether I can trust what she says, but she’s always followed the rules of the End, so why would she change that now?
