Chapter 30
“Civilian casualties are an unfortunate, but often-times unavoidable, consequence of a Warden’s job. Should such a situation arise in which an individual (either employee or non-employee) is missing, injured, or killed, HR must be contacted immediately.”
Entity Employee Handbook: Warden Edition
Nic’s plan was the perfect blend of irritating questions and encyclopedic superiority.
No, Alexys had not considered buying camping gear, but she was so glad he’d had the forethought to stop by an outdoor store before coming to her rescue.
Yes, packing non-perishable foods was clever.
And no, he couldn’t see what food she had left in her backpack (she would not be sharing her last two protein bars).
After a much-needed hot shower and clean change of clothes, Alexys met Nic in the living room to go over everything in detail. When they finally reached the part of the discussion that involved actually looking for Elliot, she realized Nic was as poorly prepared as she was.
What a relief.
He very helpfully pointed out, “We need better directions than the forest behind an old woman’s house.”
Alexys rolled her eyes. “Elliot was chasing the Hollow Walker. According to Opal, it’s been known to prowl the expanse of woods behind her house. So, yes, our directions are through those trees over there.”
Nic’s answering smile was insufferably smug. “Lucky for you, I’m the leading expert on our spooky fellow, and as such, I happen to know that the last known sighting was near Greenbriar Mine.”
“How does the world spin without you, Dyre?”
“Not well.” His smile widened. It made his eyes crinkle in a way that absolutely wasn’t endearing. “You’ll be pleased to know that Greenbriar Mine does in fact sit against a mountain to the north, which just so happens to be behind Opal’s house.”
She crossed her arms over her chest. “So, we were both right.”
He hummed in thought then nodded. “I suppose so, as rare an occasion as that might be.”
Nudging one of the sleeping bags he had so thoughtfully brought with the toe of her shoe, Alexys asked, “Do you really think we’ll be needing these?”
“Do you want to spend the night in those woods without shelter or warmth?”
She shuddered. No, that sounded far from pleasant. Although, she highly doubted the weatherproof fabric was going to do them any good against child-shaped ghosts or devils in fancy suits. Or worse still, the Hollow Walker.
“Point taken.”
“Great, a hand, then?”
Nic and Alexys divided up the gear. She wasn’t thrilled that Nic’s latest additions made her bag five times heavier than it was before, but she promised herself not to complain.
She wouldn’t give him the satisfaction. Besides, she had enough to worry about: Elliot, the woods, monsters and ghouls … Nic Dyre.
She did her best to suppress a yawn but it slipped out anyway.
“Am I boring you?” Nic asked, smirking.
“As riveting as this is, I’m exhausted. Woods, a Haint, running for my life, remember?” Alexys shook her head.
“Wait, you were out in the woods? Odd, you didn’t mention it.” Was he actually teasing her? Right now? Had he completely lost his mind?
“If we’re heading out at dawn, I should get to sleep.” She chose to ignore his banter. He nodded, turning his attention back to methodically organizing his backpack. “And you should too,” she added, her voice erring on the side of concern. He looked up at her, surprise in his eyes.
He cleared his throat. “Don’t worry about me, Keane. Go get some rest. You’ll need it.”
Infuriating, yes, but also right.
“Well, goodnight, then.” Nic nodded, turning to glance at the sofa. They hadn’t discussed it, but there was zero chance Alexys was letting him have the only spare bedroom. “Sleep tight,” she mused, flashing him a grin.
Alexys retreated to the back bedroom, dumped her bag and sat down on the mattress. Its worn springs squeaked beneath her weight. She sighed.
Everything ached. She was incredibly anxious and stressed out. But she’d have to put that all aside tomorrow. Right now, nothing else mattered apart from Elliot, and she felt more confident now that together they actually stood a chance of finding him.
Nic woke her before dawn. She could have killed him.
She waited for him to check his bag for the fifth time, pulling out her phone to search for service. She waved it around hopelessly.
No bars.
“Who are you trying to call?” Nic asked.
Alexys rolled her eyes. “Your mom, Captain Nosey.”
Nic snorted. “Tell her I said hello.”
“Why don’t you tell her yourself?”
His expression soured, and she immediately realized she’d hit a nerve. Alexys backpedalled and said, “It doesn’t matter. There’s no reception, we couldn’t call anyone even if we wanted to. You might as well leave it here.”
“If you’re trying to call Natalie, I already used Opal’s landline to call the office yesterday and informed her of our … situation. Kristin should have received an email from Natalie notifying her of your amended return date, next week.”
She shoved her phone into her pocket and tried to muster up a little gratitude. “That would have been nice to know before I spent ten minutes wandering around the yard staring at my phone.”
Nic smiled despite her tone. “It’s okay. I know the ‘thank you’ was implied.”
“It absolutely was not.”
“Such poor manners. How does Kristin put up with you every day?”
“Quite well, thank you.” Alexys squared up to him, poking him in the chest. “That’s why I’m not the one sequestered in the basement.”
“Oh, sequestered, eh? That’s a big word for you.”
She groaned and walked past him to Opal’s front stoop.
The witch was waiting for them by her front door, her thick shawl engulfing her boney frame.
“Are yens leaving now?” she drawled.
Despite the gruffness in Opal’s voice, Alexys smiled up at her. “Yes, ma’am. Thank you for your hospitality.”
Opal grunted, her sharp gaze looking past Alexys to where Nic was still rifling through his backpack. “You better hope your luck extends to that one.”
Alexys winced. “Maybe say a prayer for us? Twice lucky feels like tempting fate a bit.”
Opal’s eyes found her own, and the message Alexys had heard when the witch read the bones to her returned. Her dark eyes glittered with ghosts and secrets Alexys could scarcely imagine.
A shiver ran down her spine.
“It’ll take more than prayers, darlin’.” Opal shifted her weight. “Wait here.”
Nic finally stepped up beside Alexys as she watched Opal vanish back into the house.
“Are we ready to go?” he asked.
“Not yet. Opal has something for us, I think.”
Nic checked his watch. “Hopefully it’s not another lecture.” He smiled.
Opal returned a moment later with a glass jar clutched in her hand. She tossed it down from the porch to Alexys who barely managed to catch it.
“What is it?” Alexys was almost too afraid to ask.
“Something to keep you safe, at least from some of the things that’ll want to eat you.”
Alexys swallowed.
How thoughtful.
“Right. Thanks for that,” Nic said sarcastically. With that, Opal waved them farewell and went back into her house. The screen door slammed shut behind her.
Alexys regarded the mason jar in her hand, nearly dropping it when she noticed one of the finger bones inside.
“Is that—”
“Don’t ask,” she swiftly cut him off.
Rotating it gently in her hands, Alexys hoped whatever symbol was carved into the pale bone was, in fact, a protection spell.
She tried not to recoil at the thought of carrying a human finger around with her.
But if she had to choose between a demonic spirit and a human finger, she’d have to choose the latter.
“It’s a protection jar.” Nic pointed to the different items behind the glass, pointedly ignoring the bone. “Lavender, rosemary, and what looks to be ash. Probably from her hearth.”
“Great,” Alexys said. She stuffed the jar into the side pocket of her pack. “Let’s hope it works against whatever is waiting for us out there.”
He smirked. “If worse comes to worse, we could always throw it and run.”
She fixed him an unimpressed look. “If that’s your best attempt at survival, we’ll be dead within the first hour.”
“Come on, Keane. Give us a bit more credit than that.” He knocked his shoulder against hers and grinned. “I give us at least two.”
Alexys rolled her eyes, but a smile tugged at her lips.
It would take all of her patience to tolerate him now that they were in this together, but deep down she was relieved she wasn’t having to go it alone.
They didn’t need to get along to survive.
She could manage until they found Elliot and made it out alive.
“If we last more than two hours, I’ll let you throw the jar just for the hell of it.”
Nic’s eyes lit up. “You’re on.” He clapped his hands together, startling Alexys.
“Come along, then,” he called back to her.
He’d already set off from the porch, a pep in his step, bounding toward the forest’s edge.
Alexys spared a forlorn glance toward her rental car before hurrying after Nic.
She really hoped to see it sooner rather than later.
“Keep up, Keane! We have a schedule to keep to.”
Alexys muttered to herself as she crossed the overgrown field and disappeared into the pines.
As fate would have it, they did survive the first two hours, and the eight that followed, but the jar throwing was quickly forgotten in the face of humidity, bloodthirsty mosquitoes, and intolerable company.
“You’re absolutely insufferable,” Alexys spat out for what was probably the fifth time. She bent over, hands on her knees, and tried to will away the spots darkening her vision. “I don’t think I’ve ever hated you more than I do at this moment.”
“Should I take that as a compliment?” he called back to her. He had a map open in front of him, an old, yellowed one he’d borrowed from Opal which was admittedly more useful than the jarred finger bone she’d been given. “I’m not even trying to make you hate me. It’s just effortless.”
Her head snapped up, and she scowled. “So making me hate you is the goal. I’m pretty sure that qualifies as a toxic work environment.”
Nic rolled his eyes, but the teasing smile was still there. “Don’t go HR on me now, Keane. It’ll ruin all my fun.”
Alexys thought of her Get Dyre Fired folder in her email and smiled to herself.
“Technically, this isn’t a work environment.” He gestured to the endless rows of trees in every direction. “It’s more like a field trip.”
Her smile vanished. She hated the way he said the word technically.
Always so eager to correct her. “See this,” she said and gestured between them, “is why no one at the office likes your department. It’s semantics.
” She already knew Nic and all the researchers believed themselves intellectually superior, but the face he made—one eyebrow raised, the corner of his lips turned up in a slanted smile—confirmed that he did, in fact, believe he was better than everyone else.
Rather than say so, he let out a breath that closely resembled a laugh.
If she had any strength left, she’d hurl a branch at the back of his stupid, perfectly tousled hair.
They bickered like that for hours, all the while Alexys thought her legs, or her lungs, might give out. Nic, in true Nic fashion, never broke a sweat. They’d stopped once just after midday for a snack, and Alexys felt her heel beginning to blister.
Perfect.
They carried on, Nic leading them deeper and deeper into the forest, checking his map and compass every so often to correct their trajectory. The reminder of how poorly she’d done the day before further soured her attitude.
Why hadn’t she thought to ask Opal for a map?
“We should aim to cover more ground over the next few hours before nightfall.” Nic turned to give Alexys an apologetic shrug.
“There are a few abandoned cabins near the mine, we can make camp there.” Alexys wanted to protest but she bit her tongue.
“Spit it out, Keane, I can feel you ruminating away.”
Whatever retort she was preparing was lost as an eerily familiar silence settled over the woods. Not a bird chirp, not a cicada cry, not a breeze. It felt like someone had thrown a weighted blanket overhead, oppressive and heavy. Goosebumps rose up along her spine, her arms.
Nic turned back, started to say something, but Alexys held up a hand to silence him. She knew what would happen next. Their eyes locked, and then it came.
A whistling.
It carried through the trees, just as bone-chilling and haunting as the first time she’d heard it. Unnaturally low in pitch and far too loud.
It sounded too close for comfort—behind them, in front of them, all around them.
When the whistle faded, they just stared at each other. Both unsure what to say, both aware of what that sound foretold.
There was no getting around it. Night was coming. And with it, the Hollow Walker.
Suddenly, the woods ahead of them felt watchful.
Dusk settled, casting dark shadows, playing tricks on their eyes. Alexys couldn’t shake the feeling that something waited for them, crouched behind the trees, ready to hunt.
“That was a whistle, wasn’t it?” Nic’s enthusiastic expression was an immediate red flag.
“Yes?” Alexys squinted at him. “Why do you look so excited about it?”
“Because that means we’re in the right place.” Nic beamed. He set off with his compass in hand, his strides determined and confident. “Let’s go, Keane. We’ve got a creature to find!”
“Excuse me? Don’t you mean an employee?” She trudged after him, swatting at the thousandth mosquito that tried to eat her. “So much for being safe!” she called after his retreating form.
He threw his arms up in an exaggerated shrug but kept walking. “The monsters will be here whether we continue or not, Keane. I’m sure we’re going to be seeing—and hearing—far worse before this rescue mission’s over. Might as well get used to it.”
Alexys tipped her head back and inhaled a deep breath. She closed her eyes just long enough to whisper to herself, “Can’t never could.”
It was a balm to her fear, albeit a small one, as she looked back at Nic.
His gaze found hers, and his eyes lit up. “Are you coming?”
Only the threat of having to report two missing coworkers convinced her to follow after him.