Page 12 of Sohut's Protection

“Hey, Wawa,” she breathed and he bumped his head against her gently.

He was her constant companion, the little soft thing, keeping her company when she’d otherwise have gone mad.

Balancing on his four legs, Wawa stretched his neck as his ears perked.

“What do you see, boy?” Cleo whispered, her gaze moving back to the road.

Wawa seemed focused on something at the bottom of the mountain, and it took her a few moments before she saw movement through the undergrowth too.

A vehicle of some sort was on the road.

Now and then it would go out of view, hidden behind the foliage, and then it would pop back into the open.

Her heart stilled a little and she didn’t know why.

This vehicle was different from the others she was used to seeing.

It looked like a stocky milk carton on wheels—not like the usual carts that drivers traveled these parts in.

As the vehicle came to a stop, she eased forward a little, her eyes widening even as her brows dived toward her nose.

Vehicles didn’t usually stop.

They were too afraid of those sounds she’d heard deeper in the jungle.

For a few seconds, she waited for the vehicle to continue on, but nothing happened.

That made her stiffen.

From the distance, visibility wasn’t at its peak, but she could see enough to tell it was her original captors—either them, or more of their kind. Their green bodies were clearly identifiable in the transparent front windows of the vehicle.

But something wasn’t right.

They weren’t exiting the vehicle, but neither were they moving on.

Regardless that they’d failed at finding her for so long, it still made her anxiety rise whenever they came looking for her.

At first, she’d considered moving farther into the jungle but two things hindered that:

1. Dangerous things lived in the jungle’s depths. She’d take their roars for a warning.

2. She wasn’t an idiot to not realize she’d found the perfect spot to live in.

With Wawa’s help, she’d found shelter, food, and water.

She had a comfortable house, the weather was good, she didn’t go hungry and she had her own private pool.

The logic of survival demanded that she stay put unless she was forced to leave.

So whenever the green orcs came around, it made her anxiety rise. Life in the wild was as perfect as it was going to get. Leaving to venture deeper would most likely cost her the one thing she wasn’t willing to give up: her life.

She didn’t know how she’d been so lucky to survive this long but her luck hadn’t run out and she was thankful for that.

Eyes still on the vehicle far below, Cleo watched for any movement.

For a good few minutes. There was none.

Usually, the green orcs would be out of the vehicle already and would be searching the undergrowth close to the road for any sign of her.

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