Page 22 of The Hunt

Chapter Six

The following day wentby without a single problem.No bear, no wolf, no quicksand, no deadly enemy.They just walked.

Calliope started to have her doubts about their assessment of the place.They rarely had days where there was nothing going on.They were always coming up with some amazing adventure.

Just when she was about to have her doubts, it suddenly became abundantly clear.

“You have got to be kidding me,” Calliope said.

In front of them was a bridge, which was missing several steps.Some of them were cracked and hanging down.The rope didn’t look like it was going to hold either of their weights.It was so high up, she could barely see the water below.

“The rickety bridge,” Jaxson said.

This was no joke, and now she hated their childish ideas.Who would agree to allow them to play like this?It wasn’t fun, nor was it exciting.As kids, this was everything she lived for.Right now, it was terrifying.

“We’ve got to get over to the other side,” Calliope said.

She glanced behind and watched as their open forest changed to that of a cliff edge, with no way of going back.

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” he said.“There’s no other way than going across this bridge.”

“Which is exactly how it was when we played, remember?”She glanced over the edge of the cliff and took a step back.“Oh, this is not good.This is so not good.”She couldn’t help but open and close her hands.

She felt that wedge of fear slide down her back.

Jaxson reached for her.“Stop it, okay?We made this game up when we were kids, and remember, this was fun.”

“Damn it, Jaxson.Of course that was fun.We had gotten a bunch of old rotten planks and placed them on top of chairs, or bricks.Thisis not fun.We didn’t have to deal with a hundred-foot drop that would kill us.I know you’re a wolf, and it takes a lot to kill you, but I’m not.Okay, I’m human, and this is...”She put a hand to her chest.“I think I’m having a panic attack.”

She felt her heart race and before she could say or do anything, Jaxson was there.She didn’t know what it was about him cupping her face, but the moment he did, it was like she could finally think.Only, he didn’t just cup her face, he took possession of her lips and kissed her, hard.This was not a gentle kiss, nor exploratory.This was an intense-moment-in-time kiss.It was either sink into the moment, or flail around panicking.

She kissed him back, wrapping her arms around him.Everything was forgotten.The insults over the years, the anger, the hurt.It all faded into nothing.

They couldn’t keep kissing, and as he pulled away, he cupped her cheek.“We’ve got this.You and me, we can do this.Just like we did when we were kids.It’s just a bridge, formed from our imagination.”

She took a deep breath.“You’re right.We can do this.It’s easy.”

Jaxson took hold of her hand.“Together?”

She tightened her hold around his, and together they started to make their way across the bridge.That first step on, Calliope thought she was going to plunge to her death.They had no choice but to stop holding hands as they grabbed onto the rope.

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