Page 167 of Darling Wildfire
“He’ll be fine, Nyx,” West called after me. “You know he will.”
I didn’t answer. If it was anyone else, I wouldn’t be this bent out of shape. But this wasAtlas. The man I’d been with for the last three-ish years. We’d tackled everything together and I couldn’t remember the last time we were apart for longer than a few hours. We never left anyone behind.
If I lost him before I could explore whatever these feelings were…
I bared my teeth at the thought, pacing along the back wall as I jerked my gloves off.
North came over, just watching me with arms crossed over his chest. He wasn’t even out of his tactical gear yet, AR still slung over his shoulder.
“Nyx.”
I didn’t answer, still pissed at him for making the call even knowing it was the right one. Any further hesitation would have gotten us all killed.
“Nyx.”
I whirled on him. “I thought we never left anyone behind?”
North’s eyes narrowed and his lips thinned.
“He’s a SEAL. Have some faith in him for fucks sake,” North said irritably. “Come help stack the gold.”
78
ATLAS
I signed off with the team and made my way back through the trees. I planned to head towards where North had dropped the pack for me and then make a plan from there. Being here with the enemy until the storm died was not ideal, but it was the reality of the situation so I’d have to make it work.
Darkness was already falling, faster with the storm clouds sitting heavy in the sky. I looked around and jogged deeper into the woods. I hated to admit it but this was where I was in my element.
Alone. Working off adrenaline with only my training and instincts to rely on for survival. The thought of Nyx crossed my mind—I knew he was probably freaking out and livid at having to leave me behind but it would have been worse if they’d tried to stay. Much worse. In fact I’d probably be the only one still alive if they’d stayed.
Pushing Nyx out of my head, I focused on the present. I couldn’t afford to slip up here and be distracted when I was vastly outnumbered.
I made it to the area North said the pack would be and after searching for a few minutes, found it snagged on some branches ten feet up in a tree. I looked around carefully before slinging my gun across my back and scaling the branches. Once back on the ground I took inventory. I had my rifle and plenty of ammo thanks to the supply drop. The pack also had a water filter, a few energy bars, a first aid kit and a tarp. In one of the pockets was a compass and one of our terrain maps.
I studied the map briefly, orienting myself and then took off through the trees again, headed west towards the new drop zone. For the first few miles I didn’t run into any issues but then my luck ran out.
I don’t know what made me duck down, instinct or something else, but a bullet bit into the tree where my head had been. I rolled behind a stump just as another few peppered the ground around me.
I’d barely made my feet again when two men rushed me. I shoved the first one past me and wrapped the second in a choke hold. I twisted just in time to have him shoot the first one, then snapped the other’s neck.
I knew it would take me most of the night to reach the new pickup spot, but I also didn’t want to lead the enemy to it. To avoid this, I headed back towards the guardhouse we hit first, hoping to pick off a few more and get me on more even footing. It was on the way to the new extraction point anyway and I’d be able to raid their guns and ammo in the process.
The rain was still pouring down, making my hearing untrustworthy and visibility in the dark was nearly nothing. I needed to find a place to hole up until morning. I found a shallow cave under some tree roots and wedged myself back in the deep shadows, hoping it would be enough. I ate an energy bar, drank some water falling off the leaves and settled back to wait for daylight.
79
ATLAS
The next morning, the rain hadn’t let up at all but the grey of dawn was a welcome sight. I carefully extracted myself from my hide, stretching stiff muscles and working a kink out of my neck. This had all been a lot easier when I was younger but I didn’t have time to think about the discomfort. I made it to the guardhouse mid morning. My plan was to raid the weapons and then pick them off from the treeline, but as I was exiting the structure, I heard the men approaching through the trees.
I grabbed a few of the rifles I’d found and leaned them against the wall under the two windows, then I posted up at one and started picking them off. That was working until they got smart and circled the cabin. A group of them rushed the door. I dropped the first few with my rifle before I had to use my knife.
I slammed it into one man’s chest, getting a sharp hit to my side by another. A third shoved me against the wall and I blocked his knife just in time, redirecting it into his buddy. I fought my way viciously out of the guardhouse, grabbing the last man standing to use as a shield. I stumbled out of the shack with him in front of me, a knife pressed to his neck. I looked around for any enemies in the trees but no bullets came.
“You’re dead—” the man rasped.
“Shut up,” I muttered.
