Chapter 11 - Hudson
Fuck he’s fast.
We had to abandon our Jeep a few miles back, but then Ash and I settle into a ground-eating jog.
It seems like as the years go by, there’s less roads that are navigable.
Fortunately with my healing ability, I rarely get tired as long as I have enough food to replenish myself.
Ash, on the other hand, starts to struggle after a while.
I’m pretty close to offering him a break when I catch the pungent scent of blood.
There’s been a few droplets that have kept me on the trail, yet nothing like the heavy saturation in the air ahead of us.
Slowing down in a small clearing, I start to stalk the debris to see if I can figure out what happened.
Did he kill her?
No, there would be more.
Ash collapses on an old log, dropping his pack. “Damn, dude. You’re in way better shape than me.” His heaving gasps echo in the silence of the thick humid air.
“You’re lazy,” I snap. “You need to get out of your office sometimes.”
“Man—” His middle finger raises, then falls to his lap. “—we each have shit we’re good at. My hands are the only thing I need to work.”
“You’re lucky you can still see your dick.” I pace the area, following my nose to the base of a large Ponderosa.
That monster had his way with her.
I can see the imprints of her breasts in the dirt. And the salty odor of semen almost overwhelms me with the urge to vomit.
She fought him and lost.
“Y’all right? You look sick.” Ash guzzles from his canteen with a sour look.
“We’re on the right path, but they’re way ahead of us.” The creature is outpacing us. “We’ll have to keep moving through the night if we’re to catch up.”
Ash lets out a groan. “There’s no freaking way, man.” He leans against his ruck. “I can barely even sit up, much less run until morning.”
“I’m not stopping,” I growl. “You can stay here or turn back.”
Touching the damp earth where her blood fell reinvigorates me.
She may have helped him escape, but now she’s a victim.
I’ll do everything in my power to get her to safety, even if she tried to kill me.
Giving Ash the benefit of the doubt, I do slow my pace as he groans through every step.
Once darkness falls, it starts to piss me off.
He can’t see as well as I can, so he trips and cusses constantly.
But then a chilling howl makes us both freeze.
Fuck.
“Did you hear that?” he hisses in a loud whisper.
How could I not? “Yea. It sounded close.”
“Think there’s just one?” He slides his sidearm from his holster and points it in the direction of his flashlight.
“Doubt it,” I grunt.
The dogs never travel alone. Only the half-breeds.
When a second chilling call echoes from behind us, we move quickly to stand back to back.
“Shit.” I let the word escape as I catch a glimpse of movement across the clearing.
Two or three of the creatures, we may survive.
More?We might be screwed.
“I saw one.” Ash’s voice is laced with panic.
He’s definitely not a field guy. I just hope he keeps his cool.
“Hold your fire until you have a good shot. Narrow in on that gap between those two trees.” I point over his shoulder to the spot.
That keeps his damn flashlight out of my vision and lets me focus better.
A growl circles us in the blackest section of the brush but I can’t see where the animal is.
I can sure as hell smell it.
Their dank fur seems to hold the rotten odor of the rancid meat they eat.
Except it’s drowned by the overwhelming rank of Ash’s fear boiling from him in waves.
He might as well be yelling “eat me” at the top of his lungs.
The slinking dark gray form of a wolf darts out, charging towards Ash.
Gunshots ring in my ears, buzzing over any chance I’d have at listening for the approaching animals.
But then his scream cuts through the sweltering night as he’s ripped from his feet.
Following the blur of movement, I manage to fire off two rounds myself before a second animal leaps at me from behind.
Jagged canines as long as a knife blade pierce my bicep, twirling me to tangle with its clawing limbs in the dirt.
Pain radiates down my arm. Luckily it isn’t the one holding my pistol, so I’m able to turn the barrel and land a direct hit through the neck towards its back.
The creature’s cry as it lets go almost has a human shrillness.
Don’t think about that now.
Pulling myself up, I drop two more rounds into the brain of the huge beast, then take off as fast as I can in the direction of Ash’s voice.
I reload while I sprint, thankful for the years of training I’ve had. And it’s nice to not have to pretend that an injury like that is debilitating.
Acting hurt is a nuisance when I can heal quickly.
Nothing like Jenny though.
Blood hangs so heavy I can practically taste it in the air, but I’m getting closer.
Ash’s frantic calls have dwindled to low groans when I finally catch up.
Shit.
He’s in a crumpled pile while the wolf gnashes on his lower thigh, ripping a chunk of flesh off to swallow it down.
I take steady aim before I pull the trigger, waiting until its nose is pointed at the sky.
It drops, soundlessly, into a heap over Ash.
“Ash? Can you hear me?” Shoving the dead animal off him exposes the mangled gore of his leg.
Fresh bone gleams in the dim starlight as the shredded muscles twitch in a failing effort to move.
“Hud—” His fingers clutch at the ground as he tries to open his eyes weakly. “—I’m so fucked,” he rasps.
Falling to my knees next to him, I rip off my belt and wind it just below his groin in a makeshift tourniquet. “No, man. I got you.”
Ash has been my go-to for years. The only person who’s ever done what he said he’s gonna do.
I can count on his word above anyone else’s.
“It’s ironic, I could really use some of that miracle girl’s life juice, man.” His torso jerks as his body tries to pull in on itself.
“Ash, you gotta swear you’ll never tell anyone.” I pull out my knife and stare down at him.
He doesn’t even look at me, his gaze unfocusing to some vague place in the treetops.
All he does is grunt.
Slicing my arm deep enough to bleed thickly, I cover his wound in my own fluids, then drop some into his mouth.
He doesn’t blink.
Fuck, am I too late?
“Ash? Ash! Swallow asshole!” I smack his chest in an effort to force a response.
Nothing.
I hit him again, harder.
With a gasp, he shudders a long inhale and his tongue works over his blood soaked lips.
Good.
Wrapping my wrist so he can’t see my cut, I rock back on my heels to wait.
Watching the gaping hole where the front of his thigh used to be is my main interest.
By the count of thirty, I start to see the arterial purge start to lessen.
His pulse is slowly becoming more regular. And stronger.
“That was a close one.” I pat his chest one last time, then sit back next to him.
I think he’s gonna make it. It’ll just be a long ass night waiting for him to heal.
Jen is going to have to use her wits to survive. I might be delayed, but I’m not quitting.
I’ll find her, somehow.