Now that he’s not running from fear but with a goal in mind, Reid finds it easier to focus on what he’s doing. And how to go about doing it. He’s pleased with their success, not just with killing the hunter. Getting away is just as important. His father’s favorite saying, “He who fights and runs away, lives to fight another day,” rambles on and on in Reid’s head as he and Marcus race through the forest. Surviving and more fighting is exactly the idea.
After about a half hour of strategic evasion, planned in advance, the calls of the other hunters fade in the distance. Reid can’t help but grin to himself and say a soft thanks to his dad.
Reid lets them rest then, in a well-sheltered gully thick with underbrush just below the trail, also chosen before the trap was set. He can’t help but think staying organized will be their most powerful tool against the hunters. Aside from the night they burned the gas station in town where the kids tried to hide from them, there doesn’t seem to Reid to be any sort of organization among the creatures. They travel singly or in small groups of two or three. If that continues to be the trend, there is a good chance the kids can continue to make their traps work.
Of course, Reid doesn’t plan to rest on that. They need to be even more cautious than ever, now. Once the hunters find out what the kids are up to, it could turn into an all-out battle, the game cut off in favor of self-preservation. Reid hopes to have some options in place by then but refuses to stop no matter what. Whether the hunters pick them off one at a time or come at them with deadly intent, the end result will be the same.
Might as well take as many of them with him as he can. And even though the kids are behind him, eager to make this work, he’s pretty sure none of them have illusions about survival.
Reid returns his attention to his friends when Cole coughs softly. His little face is red, chest heaving as he pants for air. Milo isn’t in much better shape. Ashley hunkers down on her haunches and grins at everyone like it’s funny. Marcus turns away, arms crossed over his chest when Reid tries to talk to him.
“Good hunting,” Ashley whispers. There’s a glint of crazy in her eyes but Reid welcomes it as long as it doesn’t get her into trouble.
“We have to get back to the others and set the next trap.” Their decision to fight back wasn’t necessarily impulsive, but it did require a certain amount of organization and timing. Leila will be waiting for them, to switch out fighters and move the group to the next site.
Not that the suggestion went entirely smoothly after the kid’s excitement at acting wore off last night. It was Alex who questioned Reid’s idea to fight back.
“How do we stand up to them?” Reid remembers Alex pressing against him after the others stepped back and let him be.
“We set traps for them, lure them in. Remember Joel?” Everyone did, their groans and squeaks of fear made Reid grin. “Come on, not like that. But he had the right idea. We lure them with a runner and attack at a safe location.”
“Will they fall for it?” Leila was back to comforting Ashley who didn’t look like she really needed it anymore. From the moment Reid mentioned fighting back, the tall girl’s expression settled into fierce determination.
Reid thought about the question. Would the hunters fall for it? “I think so,” he said. “They won’t be expecting us to fight back, for one thing. And if we set it up so they are distracted, maybe we can keep them from figuring out what’s going on before we can strike.” He turned to Leila then. “When you killed the one back by the pit, it almost seemed surprised.”
She nodded. “I was so afraid,” she said. “I kept expecting it to turn around and see me, like it wasn’t fooled for a second. But it was so focused on you, it either ignored me or didn’t see me as a threat until it was too late.”
Ashley turned to Leila then and held up her fist. “You killed one of those things?”
Leila’s blush was visible even in the dark she was so pale. “Did.” She bumped knuckles with the other girl.
“I want to kill one too.” Ashley’s fear had obviously turned to more helpful emotions.
“Me too,” Milo said, though his voice shook.
“I want my turn.” Cole tried to look dangerous. Reid could have hugged him.
“We’ll all get a chance.” A plan was already forming in Reid’s mind. He turned to Marcus. “Tell me what you think of this.”
Marcus looked surprised again. “Shoot.”
“Teams of five. One as a runner, one to distract and three to attack. While the runner leads them in, the distracter gets the hunter’s attention at the last second leaving them open to the three with the weapons.”
Marcus nodded slowly. “The runner needs to be someone really fast. And the distracter has to be fast, too, just in case something happens.”
Reid turned to the group. “We’re starting right away. First thing tomorrow. Set up a trap, lure the bastards in and put an end to this.” He knew it wouldn’t be that easy. Still knows it while he crouches there in the bushes and shakes off the memory of the night before. He's even nervous everything seems to be going according to plan. And yet, Reid can’t help but feel empowered by what they’ve done.
After about five minutes he leads them out, cautiously, watching the path for telltale black flicker.
It is brilliant, really. Hunting the hunters in the daytime was Cole’s idea.
“We have the advantage,” he said as they made their plans. “Well, maybe not an advantage. But we can see them better, at least.”
Reid hates the idea they will still have to hide when it is dark, that they spent the entire previous night huddled together, listening to the hunters celebrate their victory, hovering around the burning building, shouting out their taunting calls and barks of distant laughter. Reid’s anger only grew those long and frustrating hours before the sun came up.
He meant to get started right away that morning but they were forced to relocate at dawn when the howls started getting closer. It wasn’t until he had the kids in a safer place, up an incline with a clear view of the forest around them, that he felt it was time to implement the plan.
Leila was furious with him when he chose Ashley to run for him.
“I can do it,” she said in a hissing whisper, pulling him aside. “You know I can.”
“You’ll get your chance,” Reid told her. “But I need you here, looking after the others. Please, Leila.”
She scowled at the tall red head bouncing in place, eager to be off.
“She’s pretty,” Leila said. Reid laughed at her, out loud and with real amusement, and realized his mistake the moment Leila’s pale eyes locked on his again. He hadn’t meant to hurt her.
“So are you.” Reid let his fingers trail over her cheek, felt her skin heat under his touch as she blushed and looked away. “I’ll be back soon. You’d better be here.”
She watched him go, arms hugging herself and he found it hard to tear his eyes from her.
He’s eager to get back to her, to tell her of the victory. And to keep going. Their plan will only work for so long. Sooner or later the hunters will catch on to the traps they set and Reid needs to come up with a secondary plan before that happens.
“So I figure we could do this twice more before we have to change tactics.” He turns to Marcus, trying to draw him out of the dark place he’s been hovering in since the hunter died. Marcus shrugs but nods and meets Reid’s eyes.
“Maybe less. But we won’t know until something happens.”
“Any ideas on our next strategy?” Reid wishes he had known Marcus’s dad was career military when they first met. Maybe they could have been fighting back a long time ago.
Three days, Reid reminds himself, not so long. But for them, out there and trying to stay alive, three days has been a lifetime.
“What about the fence?” Marcus scans the other side of the path while Reid covers his own. “Maybe we could trick them into frying themselves.”
“Maybe.” Reid fingers the knife in his pocket and considers telling Marcus about the powder. He knows it made him stronger. He briefly worries the others may find out by accident, that a stray inhale could change everything. But he doesn’t really believe it. The doses he’s been exposed to have been huge, from the hunter Leila killed falling right on him to the fist full of dust he breathed into himself on purpose. He can feel the potential in his limbs, the power waiting to be used. Reid is certain he could outrun all of them, even Ashley, who fiercely insisted on being the bait runner because of her track and field champion status.
And yet the private, secretive part of Reid doesn’t want to share this wonderful realization. Wants to be unique and special and keep it all for himself. That need is at war with the feeling he is somehow cheating, or putting the others in danger by not telling them what he suspects or even arming them with the same strength he has. It would put them on more level footing with the hunters, make this whole fighting back issue easier. But Reid doesn’t say anything, letting the struggle sink deep inside him and war it out while Marcus interrupts his thoughts.
“If we could find out where their base is, we could burn the bastards out like they did to us.” Reid glances at Marcus, suddenly worried about him again. His face is a tight mask of rage. Reid wonders if Marcus is punishing himself for the deaths of the four kids, killed and eaten when the hunters set fire to the gas station where he created a base. Reid forces himself to remember those kids and the horrific, almost demonic sight of the black shadowy creatures taking turns devouring them, all against a flaming backdrop.
It doesn’t matter anymore. Those kids are gone but the rest of them are counting on this plan to save them. Reid refuses to let them down. Still, it would be nice to figure out a way to take the hunters out more than one at a time.
When Reid runs into the clearing where the rest of his pack wait, Leila is still standing where he left her. He jogs into the small space and comes to a halt in front of her. Her face is pinched tight, whole body tense as she silently examines him with her eyes. She flickers her gaze over the others then back to Reid. Only then does she relax a little.
He can’t help the smile on his face. “One down,” he says, “who knows how many to go.”
He can tell she doesn’t want to smile back, but her lips betray her, light returning to her eyes. Meanwhile, the rest of the pack has a quiet celebration around them, kids jumping up and down, hugging each other, slapping backs and punching shoulders.
Reid lets it go on for a moment before turning from Leila. He spots Ashley with her back to a tree, knees pulled up, eyes closed, head bobbing as if to some private music station, right foot tapping along. She opens her eyes as if sensing he’s watching. He points at her and she instantly leaps up to join him.
“Next?” She grins at Leila, whole body jittery. “Let’s hit it.”
Alex and one of the other kids liberate the pointed sticks from Milo and Cole and run forward. Reid has to struggle for a name for the new boy and finally lets it go. Maybe after this is all over he’ll learn their names. Retain them, even. But not now.
Marcus hesitates but volunteers again.
Again Leila gives Reid her disappointed face. She grabs his arm and pulls him aside. “You can’t just keep leaving me here with them.” He can see the struggle in her, the tears forcing their way to the surface, flooding her eyes. “I need to be out there. With you.” She flushes bright, shaking her head. “That’s not what I meant. Helping you. Killing hunters. I have experience.”
Reid nods. “I know,” he says, very softly, for her ears only. “You’re one of the bravest people I know, Leila. That’s why I’m leaving you here.”
She just stares at him.
“Think about it,” he says. “I don’t leave just anyone to look out for the others, do I? Leila, I need you to protect them. Because you’re strong and smart and have the courage to act when you need to.”
She is crying for real now, fat tears trickling as she ignores them, eyes intent on his.
“I need to know they are safe,” Reid says, “and as long as you’re with them, I don’t worry.”
“I worry,” she whispers but finally wipes at her cheeks, a small smile returning. “All right. Fine. But you promise I get to run soon?”
“I promise.” Reid lets her go, misses the warmth of her skin under his hand. “Thank you for taking care of them. You’ll move to the next spot?”
“As soon as you leave,” she says.
“I’ll see you there.” He turns to go and this time she stops him.
“I’ll be watching for you.” She releases her hold on his t-shirt sleeve.
“I know,” he says. He sees Marcus and the others watching and raises his voice. “Be careful when you move. We’ll keep this up as long as we can but be prepared. For now, Ashley will keep running until she’s tired.” One look at the impatient track star tells Reid that will take a while. “Then it’s your turn, Leila. I suggest you get some rest.”
He hates leaving her again but has no choice, despite knowing it’s the right thing. This time he forces himself to not look back, knowing that doing so will only make going harder. Leila’s fear isn’t empty. Each trip increases the likelihood he won’t come back.
But they don’t have a choice, any of them. The hunters haven’t left them an option besides giving in and letting them kill them all. And that’s no kind of decision to make.
Reid jogs into the front, hearing the soft sound of Leila getting the kids moving, and leads his own pack of hunters into the forest.
***