Page 50 of Jump or Fall
She pulled a plastic dagger from her pocket and held it out hilt-first. He knew it was fake, but the sight of it still made his breath catch in his throat.
“I’m not being an asshole right now,” she said. “I’ve seen your mangled bread. You can buy it pre-sliced, you know. Anyway… My mom had this tactic when we were scared of something as kids. My sister was terrified of spiders, so she gave her toy spiders with little wigs.”
He took the fake dagger, trying to keep his hand steady. “Did it work?”
“She doesn’t keep them as pets or anything, but now she doesn’t scream her fucking head off every time one crawls by.”
Gordon slipped the dagger into his pack. “Thanks, Kim. For all your help.”
He stared at the door separating him from the outside world. From the corner of his eye, he caught Kimmie giving him another strange look.
“Why do you look at me like that?” he asked with a laugh.
“You’re nice to look at.” Her eyes slowly moved up to meet his.
Heat crept up his neck. He wasn’t expecting that, though he had a faint suspicion.
“Kim. You’re a nice girl, but I’m at least a decade older than you. I hope you don’t think I’ve led you on.”
“No,” she said, frustrated. “It was a long shot. Had to say something before you leave forever since we’ve got the guy’s picture now.”
Gordon held his arms open. The corner of her mouth curved up and she accepted the embrace.
“Find a guy your age who likes a good robot-fucking story.”
She broke off the hug and scoffed. “Guys my age don’t know what the fuck they’re doing.”
“They just need practice.” He winked.
Kim punched his arm, then opened the tunnel door. The sound of the water crashing against the rocks grew significantly louder.
He gathered what little courage he had left and stepped out into the darkness.
***
The road was rough, and his crotch was sore from the constant jostling and effort to stay balanced. Thick trees lined the road, their dense canopy making it feel like he was riding through a tunnel of leaves and branches.
Any exhaustion he’d felt earlier was a distant memory—slowing down wasn’t an option. He had no intention of making himself an easy target for whatever lurked in the dark. A few times, he could swear he heard things crashing through the brush, sending his heart into a frantic beat. So far nothing had jumped out, but he was far from at ease.
When he finally broke free from the forest, it was like taking a breath of fresh air. The sky opened up above, freeing him from the suffocating confinement.
The road smoothed out with fewer roots, and he spotted the main highway ahead.
Hills stretched in the distance, but there was still no sign of the fork. He checked his map, but without a connection to the towers in Teichus, his location was a mystery.
Shit. Would his tablet even work in Naxos, or would he have to learn a whole new system?
Doubt crawled its way into his thoughts. He’d spent so many years learning how everything worked in Teichus. Naxos seemed more advanced. What if he couldn’t learn it?
Come on, it’s just tech. You can figure it out.
With the immediate sense of danger fading, the lack of sleep began to catch up to him. It was already around 1:00 a.m., but stopping to rest outside wasn’t an appealing option.
He had taken the right turn at the fork at least thirty minutes ago. A glowing sign had confirmed what his map had said—only twenty-five miles to Naxos.
He passed through a small town and nearly stopped, but pushed forward when he saw a sign saying Naxos was just another ten miles. His legs felt like they were about to fall off, and he had dozed off a couple times, but he refused to stop now.
The mountains were massive, though he had nothing to compare them to. There were no mountains near Teichus. The glow of the city was getting closer, and more roads branched off the main one.
