Page 29 of Run Like the Devil

It stretched out in every direction, with the walkway appearing like the stairs into an attic, where they came up at the center. The ground was rough and covered in rocks, with trees and other plants that broke up the space. Fog covered the ground in a thick blanket, obscuring anything too far away like some horror movie setting a mood.

The Path remained, with even the fog remaining off it, and twisted through the trees until I couldn’t see where it went.

Still, this wasn’t as bad as I’d expected. When we’d talked about the Path, I’d expected horrors at every turn, beasts and creatures of nightmares snapping at our heels without pause.

Which was why this place confused the fuck out of me. It was creepy, sure, but it didn’t appear all that dangerous from what I could see.

This place had driven people mad from what I understood, but I’d yet to see anything that could do that.

Either the others were little bitches, or we had yet to glimpse the true darkness of the Path. I had a feeling it was the latter.

Tyrus peered around before speaking up. “Let’s make camp here.”

Hale turned back, his expression holding all sorts of ‘fuck that.’ “Why? We won’t get anywhere if we stop all the time. We just got to the real shit here—we should push on.”

Yazmor reached down and plucked something from the ground, then held up the strange plant. It was gray, as if all color had leached from it. It wasn’t a flower, but instead looked like a rose stem with large thorns and only the center of the flower without petals. “This place seems pretty nice for a break. We could have a picnic!”

Gorrin spoke from behind me, close enough that I took a few steps forward. “Stopping can leave us open to attack. We should be cautious about letting our guard down.”

Their bickering went on, the lines drawn right at the center. It reminded me of the Chasm, of the fact that because there were an even number of Lords, nothing ever got done. They never could agree and there was never a tie breaker.

At least, normally there wasn’t, but now it seemed my job. The aching in my calves answered it for me. “Let’s rest here.”

Gorrin and Hale both gave me sharp looks, as if they didn’t appreciate my intervening against them. However, after they moved their gazes over me, they seemed to agree.

Gorrin sighed and nodded. “Very well. The Path is dangerous and will drain our powers faster than anywhere else. It wouldn’t hurt to take a small break before venturing on.”

Could he tell I was tired?

Probably, the observant bastard.

We hadn’t brought tents—they were too large and not worth the effort to pack or bring. Anything that was going to attack us wouldn’t be stopped by a little bit of tent fabric, after all. If anything, they’d just make us into a tasty burrito.

Instead, each of our packs had a sleeping bag hooked to it.

Gorrin looked around, his gaze careful as if studying everything he could find. He narrowed his eyes until only small slits of gold peered out, then shook his head. “Okay. We can set up here. Do not move more than a few feet from the Path. This place changes around us, and if you lose sight of the walkway, you may never find your way back. So set up sleeping bags touching the Path.” He dropped his pack, then took a step away from us.

“Where are you going?” I nearly shouted the question, an unexpected fear seizing me at the idea of him going out there alone.

He frowned as he looked back at me, as if thrown by my reaction. “It gets very cold here. We should start a fire.”

“Won’t that advertise our location?” Hale asked. “Rule number one in stealth—no fucking fires.”

“Hubis can’t see into the Path, and the only things here will be able to smell us well before the smoke of a fire let them know. The coldness here isn’t just a nuisance. It steals power, draining us faster. A fire will help keep us from exhausting ourselves as quickly.”

“Didn’t you just say to stay on the walkway?” I pressed.

“You need to. As an angel, this place doesn’t work to keep me out of the Plains. It means I’m not as affected as you are by the environment. This place won’t try to trick me, won’t hide things from me. If you look around, there is little usable wood just off the Path, because those who have come before have taken that. It means that to start a fire, I need to venture farther away. I’ll be back shortly—don’t worry.”

But I was worried. I didn’t normally stress that much, but for some reason the idea of letting him out of my sight made my chest tight. It was probably because I’d just gotten him back.

Some part of me thought if he left like this, he’d slip away again.

Gorrin stared at me, the gold of his eyes solid in a way that let me gain my bearings again. After a long moment, I nodded to tell him it was okay, that I’d gathered myself.

He returned my nod before turning and heading out, off the Path. I watched his back until it disappeared into the fog and trees, until I lost sight of him as if he’d never been there at all.

“We should get out the sleeping bags,” Tyrus said, his voice breaking into the moment and reminding me not to let my mind wander.

---