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They had been walking for three days straight since the fight and a tacit peace and understanding had settled among them. Everything was going smoothly, too smoothly in fact and this, in itself, should have given them some cause for concern.
It was on the next day that the incident happened. The day began as normal as ever giving no indication of the storm that was to come. They woke up, had their usual meagre breakfast of roots and berries, packed up, and set off before the sun was in the sky.
The sun was well up in the heavens when a cold sense of foreboding trickled down Jayden’s spine. He paused and looked around, seeing nothing out of the ordinary he shrugged it off and continued on the path.
It was an hour later after they had stopped to take their midday break when he noticed it, the silence.
The forest was quiet.
Too quite. It seemed as if the life in it was hiding, the entire forest holding its breath. Warning bells went off in his head.
‘Come on,’ he said, getting to his feet. ‘We should keep walking.’
The others looked at him in surprise. They were about to protest when they noticed the look on his face. They nodded and silently got up and continued their journey. It didn’t take long for Jayden’s tension to spread to the others causing their feet to become heavier with each step they took. Their hearts thumped in their chest as they cast worried glances around them. For what? They did not know.
The sun had almost begun to set when Jayden saw it. His blood run cold and a cold dread settled like a rock in the pit of his stomach. He said nothing but silently moved behind Samuel and slipped a stake he had earlier whittled from a piece of wood into his hand.
Samuel jumped in shock when he felt the cold wood in his hand but before he could say anything Jayden had slipped away as silently as he had come. He reappeared behind Paul and did the same. Paul looked up in surprise but nodded in understanding when he also saw it.
He moved soundlessly behind Cam and Leo and whispered into their ears. ‘Stay close and don’t make a sound.’
Before he could get to Charles and Noel who were ahead, he heard it. Paul turned to look at him with wide eyes and Charles and Noel froze in their steps.
The sound was unmistakable. It was the huffing, sniffling sound of a bear. Jayden’s mouth opened in a half-shout but it was too late. A large black bear stepped out of the trees to Noel’s left and it looked hungry.
‘Don’t move,’ Paul whispered.
They all stayed still as the bear fixed them with a baleful eye. It studied them curiously and stepped close to Noel.
Jayden’s eyes widened when he saw the killing intent in its eyes.
‘GET OUT OF THERE!’ he screamed at Noel but it was to no avail.
Noel had frozen in place, his limbs petrified with fright and he could only stare up with terrified eyes as the bear reared up on its hind legs and roared.
It swung its powerful hand towards him, claws extended in a deathly slash. Charles jumped in front of the attack and shoved him away before he fell, chest gashing open as blood flowed out, staining his shirt a chilling crimson.
The bear reared up again and roared furiously, startling birds from the trees and into the orange sky. It stomped its feet and moved towards Charles who lay unmoving on the ground.
Samuel leaped up from its side and stabbed it with his stake. The bear swung around and knocked him away with its paw. Samuel landed on the ground with a sickening crack and looked up helplessly as the bear stalked its way towards him.
It stopped in its tracks when a hail of rocks descended on him from behind. It turned in fury to Cam and Leo who were tossing wave upon wave of rocks on it to distract it.
Leo was jumping and waving his arms about as he threw the rocks, taunting it. ‘Over here you big ugly thing! Your momma must have died after taking one look at you. Come on, or are you too much of a pussy. Come and let me show you who’s boss you big stinking baby!’
A rock hit it square on the nose causing it to roar in fury and charge towards them. This was the moment Jayden had been waiting for. He had perched on a branch and as soon as the bear passed beneath him, he jumped down onto its back.
He clutched its fur tightly and before the bear could react to the presence on his back, Jayden reached behind him and pulled out a stake, plunging it directly into its left eye.
The bear reared up, letting out a blood-curdling roar as it tried to toss Jayden off its back. Jayden barely managed to hold on, reaching behind him to pull out another sake before plunging it in the bear’s other eye.
The bear roared in agony and managed to throw Jayden off. It stomped around in anguish and Jayden managed to roll away before he was crushed to death beneath those powerful limbs.
The bear turned at the sound of a twig snapping and charged in that direction. It leaped on Paul barely giving him enough time to thrust the stake into the soft underside of his neck.
The bear gave a final jolt before it finally collapsed dead, on top of Paul who struggled before pulling himself out from beneath it. He rushed to Samuel who was writhing on the ground in anguish as he clutched his arm.
Jayden rushed over to Noel who knelt beside Charles, cradling his head in his lap as he continued to lie unconscious on the ground. His face was pale and the blood had pooled beneath him, turning the ground red and staining Noel’s pants.
Samuel limped over as Paul supported him followed by Cam and Leo and they all gathered around them.
‘Is he…?’ Cam asked shakily, not able to finish the sentence.
Jayden placed a finger to Charles’s neck and they all waited with bated breath as he searched for a pulse.
Jayden nodded after a while. ‘He’s alive but his pulse is faint. He has lost a good amount of blood.’
‘Wi… will he be…be alright?’ Noel choked out, tears running down his cheeks as he stared at the barely breathing boy below him.
Jayden nodded. ‘Luckily, it’s just a surface wound. He has lost a lot of blood though, we need to staunch the flow. We also need blood replenishing herbs, Paul?’
Paul nodded and transferred Samuel to Cam. ‘I’m on it. I better get some bone-strengthening ones too, Samuel has broken his arm.’
Jayden cast a glance at Samuel’s arm, which he clutched tightly to his chest in pain. An unreadable expression flashed through his eyes but it was gone before anyone noticed.
Noel continued to kneel by Charles, unblinking and unmoving. Jayden placed an arm on his shoulder and squeezed it comfortingly. ‘Don’t worry, he’ll be fine.’
Noel shook his head as hot angry tears fell from his eyes onto Charles’s body. ‘He sacrificed himself to save me. He pushed me out of the way to take my place. He wouldn’t have had to do that if I wasn’t a bleeding coward that was too scared to fucking get out of the way. It’s all my fucking fault.’
Jayden blinked in surprise. He had never heard Noel curse before. ‘Hey, it’s not your fault and thinking it is will not help anyone, especially him. Now help me clean up his wounds.’
Noel nodded furiously and blinked the tears out of his eyes. They got to work cleaning his wounds and Paul soon appeared with some herbs which they placed on it before bandaging them.
Paul gave Samuel some herbs to chew as he quickly applied the rest on his arm before tying it in a sling using a stick, a string and a piece of shredded cloth both of which had come from their parachutes.
Night had already fallen by the time they were done attending to the wounds of the injured. Jayden stood up and stared up through the leaves at the stars blinking in one by one.
‘We better get moving,’ he said, casting a wary eye at the bear’s carcass. ‘It won’t be long before the smell would attract other predators.’
He looked over the carcass regretfully. ‘It would be a shame not to take a part of the meat with us but we have nothing to skin the bear with. Also, it would be safer not to take carry the smell of raw meat along with us lest it attract other unsavoury creatures.’
The others nodded and got shakily to their feet, still a little shaken at the events that had just transpired. For another moment they realised again the full import of how dangerous their situation really was.
‘What about Charles?’ Noel inquired worriedly. ‘He is still not awake.’
‘Paul would carry him.’
Jayden nodded at Paul who nodded back and turned worriedly to Samuel who he was supporting on his shoulders.
Samuel nodded and waved him off. ‘Go. Don’t worry about me, I can walk by myself.’
Paul looked him over with concern before nodding and letting go of him. He walked over to where Charles lay and waited patiently for Noel to let go of him before picking him up gently and placing him over his back. He stood up and Noel placed Charles’s arms around Paul’s neck, securing it firmly before stepping beside Paul, walking beside them for the rest of the day.
Samuel swayed unsteadily on his feet after Paul had let go of him. He took a step forward and then another before he lost his balance and fell sideways. Jayden’s arm immediately wrapped around his waist, stopping him from hitting the ground.
Samuel’s mouth parted open as he stared up at Jayden in surprise. Jayden didn’t say anything as he placed Samuel’s arm around his neck and propped him against him, supporting him as they began to walk.
‘You don’t have to do this you know,’ Samuel muttered. ‘Cam or Leo can help me, I know how you don’t like being touched.’
‘Shut up,’ Jayden mumbled and tightened his arm around his waist, continuing to support him as they moved forward.
Samuel had to fight to hide the happy smile that broke out across his face. He could feel the heat radiating from Jayden’s body as it was pressed to his side and for some strange reason he found it oddly comforting.
They walked for hours, not talking or taking a break the danger still fresh in their minds. Normally they wouldn’t have been able to walk that long but the adrenaline from their confrontation with the bear helped to give them the needed energy to make it this far.
However, the adrenalin couldn’t last forever and it was almost midnight when it finally run out. They collapsed in the middle of a clearing too tired to set up camp.
Charles had regained consciousness sometime along the journey. He had remained quiet throughout and said nothing when Paul set him down against a tree and reapplied his bandages.
Noel came up to him and sat beside him after Paul had left. They sat silently for a while. It was until Cam finally got up and got the fire going before Noel whispered, ‘Thank you for saving my life.’
Charles stared into the flickering light of the flames. ‘Don’t mention it.’
Noel raised his knees and placed his chin on them. ‘I’m sorry.’
Charles blinked and looked at him. ‘For what?’
‘It’s all my fucking fault that you are in this condition. If I had just fucking got out of the way you wouldn’t need to fucking save me. Hell, this whole mess is my fault. If I wasn’t so fucking stupid to fall off the fucking chopper, none of you would be here.’
‘Hey,’ Charles grabbed his hand. ‘Don’t do that, don’t blame yourself. You froze in terror, it happens and I knew full well what I was doing and the consequences of my actions when I decided to save you. You didn’t force me to save you, I decided on my own free will to put my life in danger for you. If anything, I’m the stupid one, I could have just turned away. The same goes for the others, they could have left you and they knew what they were getting into but they all decided to jump out after you, you didn’t push them.’
Noel frowned. ‘But Paul pushed you.’
Charles gave him a wry smile. ‘That he did and I was mad at it at first but now,’ he glanced down at their interlocking hands. ‘Now, I’m kinda happy he did cause I wouldn’t have had the chance to save you and be here with you right now.’
Noel felt his cheeks heating up and quickly looked down to hide the smile that was working its way up his face. They sat in companionable silence after that each enjoying the warmth of the flames and the warmth of each other and both deciding to ignore the fact that their hands were still entwined by their sides, neither willing to let go.
Jayden was watching them as he sat silently in the shadows. He studied them with an unreadable expression on his face turning away only when he heard his name.
‘Oi, Jayden.’ Samuel called up from beneath the tree. ‘What are you doing skulking up there, come down.’
‘What?’ Jayden asked as he appeared behind him.
‘Jesus,’ Samuel swore as he clutched his chest. ‘You’re like a freaking cat, where did you learn to move like that?’
‘In the Israeli army.’
‘What?’ Samuel stuttered. ‘You are joking right? You were in the Israeli army?’
Jayden just stared at him.
‘Is it one of those things where if you tell me you have to kill me?’
Jayden continued to stare at him.
‘You’re doing it on purpose, aren’t you? You won’t answer my questions only answering the ones which are bound to raise my curiosity and cause me to have more questions.’
‘Yes.’
Samuel groaned. ‘Damn you, I’ll get the answers out of you one way or another. In the meantime,’ he held a small bundle out to him. ‘I need you to change my bandage and reapply my medicine.’
Jayden looked at the bundle proffered to him. ‘Get Paul to do it.’
Samuel humped. ‘I would but he’s asleep and I don’t want to wake him.’
Sure enough, Paul had fallen soundly asleep by the corner. In fact, it was a miracle he had stayed awake for as long as he did seeing as he literally carried Charles for the entire way.
‘Fine, then get Cam or Leo to do it.’
‘Also asleep, look at them snuggling up by that tree. Honestly, I swear those two use every single opportunity to snuggle together.’
Jayden rolled his eyes and snatched the bundle from his hands. ‘Fine. Sit.’
Samuel sat against a tree, wincing slightly as Jayden unrolled the bandage from his arm. He turned to look around as Jayden cleaned his arm and reapplied the herbs.
His eyes settled on Charles and Noel who had fallen asleep holding hands, a small smile on their faces as their heads lay against each other.
‘Aww, those two look cute. If it weren’t gay I would have sworn that they had a thing for each other- OW! Not so hard.’
Jayden ignored him and continued to apply the herbs.
Samuel hummed thoughtfully to himself. ‘You know, this is the first time I’ve seen Noel, both of them in fact, sleep so peacefully.’
He turned to Jayden with a playful smirk. ‘Hey, maybe we can try it, sleeping together to conserve body heat, after all, it gets so cold at ni- OW! Go slower.’
Jayden’s face was expressionless as he wrapped the new bandage around his arm. Samuel stared at his face as the firelight danced across it, noticing how his brow furrowed in concentration. He didn’t know how to describe it but it was, kinda cute.
He tapped his chin thoughtfully before reaching out to poke his finger in the middle of Jayden’s left cheek. Jayden looked up at him but said nothing, turning back to his work. Samuel mouth formed into a cute pout as he tugged on Jayden’s cheek, trying to force his lips into a smile. When that failed, he moved his finger to the corner of Jayden’s lips but he pulled his hand back when Jayden suddenly tightened the bandage sharply.
‘Ow! Why do you have to be so rough? Please be gentle, it freaking hurts you know.’
Jayden rolled his eyes and leaned back. ‘Stop your whining. I’m done.’
Samuel looked at the neatly wrapped bandage over his arm and nodded in thanks. They sat together under the tree and as the sun began to rise, it wasn’t long before the exhaustion and events of the previous day caused them to fall into a deep slumber.
Back at Lumière, the mothers were becoming frantic with worry as another day dawned with no sign of their children. They were going out of their minds as they sat in Francesca Fontaine’s office listening to the briefing that was being given by the Air force commander.
Charlesetta was wearing a hole in the carpet as she paced up and down. ‘So in short, you found nothing.’
‘Yes, ma’am. If I might be so bold to make a suggestion.’
Charlesetta waved her hand impatiently. ‘Go on.’
‘We have combed the entire forest for two weeks and we have found no trace of them anywhere. We have found no signs that they’re alive so maybe we should prepare for and accept the possibility that they are-‘
Charlesetta swung around eyes blazing but it was Lady Sylvia who cut in coldly. ‘If you value your position and your life Commander you won’t dare finish that sentence.’
The Commander gulped and bowed his head. ‘Forgive me, your highness.’
Victoria turned to the commander in charge of the ground forces. ‘What about you general, anything to report?’
‘I’m afraid not, madam. My men have been systematically dispatched to various parts of the forest but no sign whatsoever. I’m afraid I have to agree with the Commander.’
Victoria fixed them both with a stony gaze. ‘You said you have had no sign that they’re alive but let me ask you, have any of you had any sign that they’re dead?’
The two shook their heads.
‘If you don’t know if they’re alive and you don’t know that they’re dead, I think it’s safe to assume that we need to continue searching until we’ve proven one of those theories true.’
They nodded silently, too afraid to say anything.
‘Besides,’ Victoria turned away. ‘We do know that they’re alive. We would know if they’re not. You’re both military men and therefore very practical, hence you’ll dismiss it as women’s fancies. But women’s intuitions are rarely wrong and a mother always knows.’
She took a deep breath. ‘The search goes on gentlemen until we find them. Dead or alive. Dismissed.’
They saluted and filed out of the office. Victoria wandered towards the window as Charlesetta continued her frantic pacing.
‘This is ridiculous! We should have found them by now.’
‘I know.’ Ma sighed.
They all looked haggard, days with little to no sleep had taken their toll on their looks.
‘Where could they possibly be?’ Maria wondered aloud. ‘If only there was a way to track their exact position.’
Victoria spun around. ‘What did you say?’
Everyone looked up at her in surprise. Maria looked worried as she repeated herself. ‘I said where could they possibly be.’
‘No, the other one!’
Everyone was worried now. Victoria’s eyes had taken on a frantic gleam as her mind worked furiously.
‘If only there was a way to track their position?’
‘That’s it! Maria, you are a genius!’
Maria looked confused. ‘I am?’
Victoria ignored her as she muttered to herself as she searched frantically around the office. The other mothers were well and truly worried now. Victoria Mills never broke composure.
‘Guys,’ Lady Sylvia spoke up slowly, her eyes wide with worry. ‘I think she’s finally lost it.’
Sandra nodded. ‘I’ve seen it happen before in the hospital. It begins when they start muttering to themselves like she’s doing now, then they behave sporadically, destroying whatever they can touch.’
‘What next?’ Charlesetta asked, backing away slowly as Victoria began to toss items out of her handbag.
Sandra shrugged. ‘I don’t know. Usually, at this stage, they have been subdued by the orderlies and wheeled away.’
‘You think we should subdue her?’ Ma asked warily.
Victoria scoffed. ‘I would like to see you try and by the way, I’m not crazy. I was just looking for- aha!’
She held her cell phone in the air.
They all stared at her with varying degrees of incredulity.
A phone?
‘Okay?’ Sandra begun, still not convinced. ‘What does your phone have to do with anything?’
Victoria huffed impatiently as she tapped frantically on her phone. ‘I can’t believe I forgot. After Jayden was born, I had a tracking device embedded in his neck. I had them changed every year when he goes to the dentist. It was so long ago and I’ve never had any use of it that I completely forgot about it. I don’t even know if it still works.’
The moms immediately crowded around her and held their breath as Victoria activated the tracker.
‘Come on, come on…’
A slow beep sounded and Victoria allowed a triumphant smile to fill her face.
Found you.
AUTHOR’S NOTE: Sorry for the long delay. I had a pretty long week. From panic-attacks to back-to-back exams I’m glad the shitty week is over. I made the chapter extra long as an apology. At almost four thousand words it’s one of the longest in the book.
So an unexpected character development for Charles. Do you think it’ll last?
Also, has any of you met a bear in the wild or been attacked by one?
Lemme know your answers in the comments.
Don’t forget to light up that shy star below if you enjoyed this chapter and I can’t wait to find out what happens next. Can you?
Till next time!
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