Chapter Two
F L O R E N C E
“This is suicide, Florence,” Dad insists, trailing after me as I head to the weapons room to get all the things I need for the mission. “We don’t know what’s waiting out there and it’s not right for you to do this!”
I’m no longer listening to him. I’m tuning him out. My decision is set and I refuse to back out on Alpha Isaac and Luna Vera, who are still back in his office waiting for their son to be brought back.
And this is not just me trying to prove my strength.
This is me wanting desperately to bring back a son to his parents.
I load up a backpack with some knives and guns, knowing that my skill alone would not be enough for whatever is waiting for me out there. I’m about to sling the bag over my back when suddenly Dad grabs my arm and turns me around.
“Dad, please,” I start to say, but he shakes his head.
“This is not a good idea and you know it,” he hisses. “I would tell them now that we can’t help them. I can go to them right now--”
“Don’t do that,” I interject. Then I shake his hand off my arm. “I’m doing this, Dad. You don’t have to take part in it.”
I try to brush past him but he blocks my way. “You can’t go alone. I’ll come with you.”
I shake my head. “We can’t have too many people there. Just one person will suffice and it would not raise any kind of suspicion. I have a walkie in here, Dad. Just keep in contact with me and we’ll be good.”
With that, I head to the door to start my mission. But then, just as I grab the handle, I hear my dad speaking again.
“You’re all I have,” he whispers. When I turn to him, he shakes his head. “I can’t lose you.”
“You won’t. I’ll come back, and I will make everything right.”
* * *
The journey to the Sacred Grounds is silent and tense. There’s no light from the stars or the moon. There’s no wind.
It’s almost like the entire place is holding its breath, waiting for something to happen.
And in turn, that makes me nervous.
That’s why I jump a mile when Dad’s voice comes through my earpiece. “Are you there?”
“Yes,” I whisper. “So far no sign of the boy.”
“We’ll be on the lookout.”
With that, I examine the thick forest with my small flashlight in hand, wondering how the hell those kids ended up here. I don’t know what about this place signals that it’s for playtime, but I guess it’s time to fence the place and secure it for good.
The only sounds I can hear all around are the soft rustling of leaves and my boots squelching in the mud. I’m trying to be as silent as I can but the soles of my shoes are sticking on the ground, making it hard to take a step forward.
However, this is not the hardest part of being here.
The hardest part is feeling like being watched, like things are lurking behind the trees, witnessing my every move.
I’m actually half expecting to be faced with a billion entities as soon as I turn off the flashlight.
Trying not to be spooked, I focus on straining my ears for any sound, my eyes peeled for anything unusual.
And that’s when I spot the small footprints on the mud.
James.
My heart begins to race. The footprints are going forward, towards the thicker line of trees. I keep my gaze glued on it as I walk faster, waiting for the moment when I see the boy--
A shadow crosses in front of me.
Coldness spreads through my body. My flashlight sputters out in a shower of sparks, making me drop it. A strangled scream escapes my mouth, echoing all over the woods. I blink rapidly and turn my flashlight around, looking for the thing that just walked right in front of me.
My pulse is racing and fear is coursing through my veins. I can hear my heart pumping, the darkness closing over me like a fist.
Tension is crackling in the air. I slowly back away from the path, my instincts telling me to leave. . . .
Then the whole forest comes alive.
The wind begins to howl from all directions. Leaves and small branches swirl in the air. There’s a strange hum on the ground that I can sense on my feet, and it’s all rising to a terrifying crescendo.
“Florence?” Dad’s voice is booming from the earpiece. “What’s happening? Why did you scream? Why did--”
“HELP ME!”
The horrified voice of a little boy pierces the night like a gunshot. All my senses leave me and I find myself running towards the sound of the voice, my boots making loud spattering noises on the ground.
Something here might hear me. Something here might get me. But I don’t care anymore.
I already made my presence known, and now all I have to do is save James before something gets me.
“JUST STAY PUT!” I yell as I run faster. “I’M COMING FOR YOU!”
“HERE!” the boy yells back, and the desperation in his voice breaks my heart. I have no idea where I am going and the darkness is so thick that I have a sinking feeling that I’m going nowhere, that I’m never finding the boy...
But then, as my eyes adjust to the darkness, I see a familiar pale white face peeking through from behind a tree.
“Here!” he yells, and I almost sag in relief. “Please save me!”
I leap through a bush and land in front of the tree, holding out my hand. Little James runs straight in my arms, sobbing, and I hold him for a couple of seconds before securing my own jacket around his shaking body.
“You’re safe,” I tell him soothingly, even with a shaky voice. “I’m going to get you home.”
James nods and pulls away from me, his shoulders shaking as he wipes his tears. I open my mouth to assure him, but then the expression on his face changes from sad to scared.
And he’s looking at something behind me.
I watch as a looming figure covers his face in shadow, and I only get the time to yell, “RUN!” before a pair of big hands closes around my neck.