Kobal
“I think I know where Corson is taking them,” Bale said as the edge of the sun dipped beneath the horizon.
I had a pretty good idea where Corson was going too as I stared at the newest message left behind for us. It was a genius idea, but I didn’t know how River was going to react to what she would discover when they made it to their destination.
“Pearl’s,” I said.
“Yes. We must stop, Kobal, at least for a little bit. The humans haven’t had anything to eat or a bathroom break in hours.”
Resentment slithered through me. I felt completely unstable, but then I’d been unstable ever since I’d put River in that truck and told Hawk to drive away. Now I was leaning toward an escalating rage as I felt the hounds’ hostility building within me. River was my Chosen and they were as eager to get her back as I was.
I wasn’t used to this vulnerability clawing its way through my insides. I’d led River out here, I’d sworn to keep her safe, and now she was out there with countless enemies hunting for her. Lucifer had seen her, he knew what she looked like now and so would his followers.
I wanted to continue onward, I wouldn’t be able to take another easy breath until River was by my side again, but Bale was right. The humans needed a break. It would do all of us little good if they were too exhausted to continue.
River will have the same needs, I reminded myself. They wouldn’t be pushing themselves as relentlessly as I was pushing these humans. We were gaining on them, and Corson was most likely heading for Pearl’s. They might be able to find safety there for a little bit, or at least long enough for us to catch up.
Demons steadfastly avoided Pearl’s, and I doubted any humans would go anywhere near it, if there were any still alive in the area. Corson was probably dreading every second they got closer to the place, but he would do what he had to in order to keep River safe.
I stared at the red writing on the sign for a minute before thrusting the door of the truck open and stepping out. I strode toward where Captain Tresden sat in the pickup behind me. “We’ll stop for a half an hour,” I said briskly.
He nodded and climbed out of the truck before barking the order to the rest of the troops. Verin, Morax, and Shax strolled over to join Bale and me by our pickup. “You think Corson’s going for Pearl’s?” Shax asked.
“Yes,” I replied as I rested my arms on the bed of the truck. My foot tapped against the ground while the humans hurried into the woods and gathered food from the supplies. Most of them went to the woods to relieve themselves first, willing to eat on the drive if they had to.
“I hate that place,” Morax muttered.
“Which is why Corson would go there,” Bale said. “Everyone hates it.”
“True.” Morax shifted to watch the trees as people reemerged from their shadowy depths.
Turning away, I searched the horizon before shoving myself away from the truck. I walked down the road, passed the sign River had written, and over to a small hill in the road. Peering over the top of the hill, I stared down the road, searching the woods for any hint of something lurking amid the trees in the descending twilight.
The lanavours were still out there somewhere. Unlike the gargoyles, they would separate as they moved over the earth. They liked to attack in packs, but they would form smaller packs and spread out.
Movement drew my eye to the tree line as some of the branches and leaves rustled and creaked. I didn’t breathe as I waited for whatever was down there to reveal itself. Red flashed through the leaves before disappearing. Taking a step forward, I watched as the trees parted to reveal two humans, a man and a woman, moving amid the foliage.
All of the humans were supposed to have been cleared from this area years ago, but I’d always suspected some of them had escaped the evacuation. Given all the things the people on this side of the wall had to deal with, it was amazing any of them had survived on their own. What these people had endured, witnessed, and done in order to survive in the wilds would make them tough sons of a bitches, or complete lunatics.
Either way, I didn’t want them drawn to the soldiers we had with us. There was no telling the kind of people they would be at this point.
The couple made their way through the tree line, eventually fading from view. I remained where I was, unwilling to turn and walk away. I didn’t trust that the couple wouldn’t try to double back to get at our supplies if they knew we were here, and I believed they did. They hadn’t survived this long without learning their environment and having killer instincts.
I felt Bale near my side before she spoke. “It’s been half an hour.”
“Get the humans together and tell them to prepare for an attack; we’re going down there to make sure it’s safe before proceeding,” I replied.
“What did you see?”
“Two people, but there might be more and they could be setting a trap.”
“Just what we need,” she muttered and turned away.
I remained where I was until she returned with the other demons who spread out alongside of me. I caught a glimpse of something shiny in the foliage, most likely a rifle or scope. Yes, they definitely knew we were here, and they were waiting.