Page 55 of Explorer's Revenge
“There’s no point regretting our actions, babe. It’s done, and we are here. We can’t let the past control us.” His eyelids flutter open, and he meets my gaze. “I’ll always protect you. You believe that, right? I will always keep you safe.”
“I know,” he croaks, “but what if something happens to you—” He hiccups over the word, a tear sliding down his cheek. “I don’t think I could survive without you.”
“Of course you can.” I smile, but it fades. “Aiy, you can do anything. You are so much stronger than you know. You don’t need me.”
“I do.” He fists my jacket as he looks up at me. “I need you, Way. I can’t do this without you, so don’t be a hero and get hurt, okay?”
“Okay,” I murmur softly as I press my forehead to his. “I’m scared too,” I admit. “But we are going to get out of here, and when we’re old, it will just be a story we tell.”
“To your kids,” he murmurs.
“No, to our kids,” I correct, my heart hammering despite where we are and what’s happening. “You’re my future, Aiy. Okay? I’m never leaving you, not here and not then. It’s us. Do you believe me?”
His eyes meet mine for a moment, and I swear they glance down to my lips. Something moves through me—something I’ve never told him about and never will. I will never be someone who hurts or uses Aiy like everyone else has. He needs a best friend, and that’s what I am and will always be.
“I do,” he murmurs. “We’ll make it out together?” he asks, his chest rising rapidly, and I frown.
“Of course, together,” I promise. “It will be okay—” I freeze as he presses his lips to my cheek in a soft, chaste kiss.
“Okay, then let’s get moving. I want to go home.” He pulls away, and it’s like the kiss never happened, but my cheek burns from his touch. It was such an innocent gesture, but it rocked me to my core. He moves back into line, and I keep glancing at him before I focus on where I’m walking.
I remind myself we are looking for Maeve.
A roar rocks the earth, and we freeze, sharing a look.
It was the creature, and it sounded close.
Too close.
“Maeve,” I murmur at the same time as Wilder. Forgetting all about our hesitation, we run into the jungle, following that roar.
The earth seems to shake from it, and I keep Aiyaret behind me as we burst into a clearing, my heart pounding in terror at what we might find. As I search the dark, though, all I see is turned-up mud and slide marks.
It was here, but now it isn’t, and the world around us seems to fall deathly silent. Wilder slips from the jungle like a ghost, his finger to his lips, then he points in a direction farther away from us. I scan the area, straining my eyes, and see the slide marks leading away.
Did it leave?
Why?
I get his message though. Logan and Rick emerge, and we silently move closer, freezing when we see the gun lyingcarelessly in the mud. Maeve had it, and there was no way she would let it go. Rick scoops it up, his eyes wide and worried as he looks at Wilder like a child demanding comfort.
Wilder’s expression is grim, however, and even my stomach rolls at the implication. There’s an abrupt tug on my arm, and I spin to see Logan pointing over the brim of a small hill to the left. I tread over and carefully walk along the edge, unsure what he’s trying to show me, but then I notice it.
Hand and feet marks, followed by what looks like slide indentations are etched down the slope. Wilder’s flashlight joins mine, and we search the bottom until our light catches on something big and unmoving—a body.
She’s covered in mud and being rained on, but it’s Maeve.
Rick goes to throw himself down the hill, but Wilder stops him, eyeing me. The message is clear—keep him here in case she’s dead. Nodding, I point at Aiy, who has tears dripping from his eyes, and then to Rick and Logan. It’s clear they understand, even if they hate it. Wilder and I carefully lower onto our sides and slide down the hill. My feet and hands slip in the deep mud, causing me to descend faster than I would like. I land on my ass at the bottom, but I ignore it and hurry to Maeve, dropping to my knees at her side. She’s facing away from us, her bad leg bent, and for a moment, she’s too still.
Wilder is beside me, and we share another look before he props up his flashlight and carefully turns her over. A whine leaves her throat, and relief almost makes me collapse before I get a look at her face. It’s pale, and blood slides down her cheeks like raindrops.
Lifting my flashlight to give Wilder a better view, I watch as he examines her and finds an epic cut on her head. It’s bleeding, and there isn’t much we can do about it, but he checks her pulse and breathing then nods.
She’s alive, but for how long?
Who knows what damage has been done? We need to get somewhere safe and dry to assess the extent of her injuries.
Handing Wilder my flashlight, I slide my arms under her, the mud making it easier, and carefully lift her as I stand. I eye the hill, the others watching from above, and realize I won’t make it back up with her.
