Revolting

The little group of rogues did not have access to a shovel. Instead, they piled up all the brush and fallen logs they could find to build a funeral pyre for their fallen friend and brother. "We need to be ready to move as soon as we light this," Michael said uneasily. They were too near human habitations, someone was likely to see the smoke and come to investigate.

Hannah had done her best to clean and bandage up the wounds on his hip and shoulder, but being silver-tainted they continued to bleed and ooze and would heal very slowly. Hannah was hovering around him like a mother hen, and in any other circumstance Michael would have been delighted to have her attention. But in the moment, they were in serious trouble. He was certain that the hunter who had escaped would be back for them. Not to mention the fact that they were starting to leave a trail of bodies behind them. First the man that Hannah took down back at the town, and now the three unlucky hunters. Sooner or later, those bodies would be discovered. Probably sooner if the survivor came back with law enforcement or more hunters.

"If we head south," Sarah suggested quietly, "we will hit state forest... I think about twenty miles from here."

Michael sighed. "What's between here and there?"

Sarah rubbed her temples. "I don't really remember... it might just be managed timber stands. There's a lot of logging in this area."

The detour would take them off course, but it would be easier to get lost in the Adirondack parklands than if they continued to skirt these small towns and farms. He wouldn't be doing Hannah any favors if he got them all killed in his rush to get her back to Rebel Moon. Rebel Moon would probably not appreciate it if he showed up at their door with a bunch of hunters either. "Okay, south. You lead," he reluctantly conceded.

Boyd continued to cry silently as he brought the torch to the pyre and set the tinder alight under his brother's body. Hannah slipped away from Michael to lay a comforting hand on the man's arm. Boyd turned unexpectedly to sob into her shoulder, his arms wrapping around her small, slender body.

Michael tensed, and had to suppress the jealous growl that bubbled up out of his chest at the sight of another male putting his arms on his mate. However, he knew that the embrace was not sexual. Far from it, it was like a child clinging to his mother in the midst of great sorrow. Except that in this case the child was a big man, and the 'mother' was a tiny woman. Hannah however made a low, purring sound and stroked the man's hair just as if he were her pup. The man's shoulders heaved painfully, and he made choking noises as he cried, dripping tears and snot down his face.

The sickly-sweet stench of burning flesh began to permeate the clearing as the bigger logs caught fire and the body began to combust. Hannah held Boyd in her arms until his sobs quieted. Michael moved in and put a hand on the man's sagging shoulder. "I'm so sorry, Boyd. Frank was a good man."

Boyd mopped his face with his sleeve and nodded miserably.

Michael gave his shoulder a squeeze. "We gotta move. I'm sorry."

Boyd nodded miserably and went to shoulder his pack, plus the things that his brother had left behind. Lonnie carried Michael's things on top of his own, and even Hannah had shouldered the gym bag, which was now loaded with supplies. They were quiet and somber as they moved down the valley, past the ice-cold beaver pond, and then turned south. This time as they moved, they took extra care to cover their trail. Caroline smoothed away their prints, and whenever they came to a small body of water, they would slosh through it for as long as they could bear. When their ankles were aching and numb, they would climb back out and resume their trek on land.

Farm land eventually faded away to managed forests that had been recently logged off for pulp wood. Michael was in a lot of pain, and his pace grew slower and slower as the miles passed. By the time they reached the tree line of an old growth forest sweat was beading on his face and he was panting for breath. The bandage at his shoulder was soaked through with fresh blood had his hip was burning like there was red hot poker in the wound. Hannah pulled at his hand until he stumbled to a stop.

She looked hard into his eyes, but he could only stare back at her tiredly. She shook her head and waved her hands to the other, pointing emphatically to the ground. She dropped her pack to make her intentions even more obvious. They were stopping, here and now. Strangely, no one questioned her or argued with her. Instead, they all shrugged out of their packs and began making camp.

Only Michael tried to protest. "Not here," he groaned, "This spot is not safe, we're too exposed. Lets find a more protected..."

Hannah gave him a glare and crossed her slender arms over her small breasts.

Michael sighed and sank to the ground. "Or we could just stop here."

She grunted and gave a firm nod before she set out helping the others. There was meat that Hannah had salvaged from the buck they brought down the previous night, so no one needed to waste energy trying to hunt. Everyone was exhausted and emotionally drained. Though they'd only been together as a group for a few months, Frankie's simple, lighthearted banter would be sorely missed.

Boyd refused to eat. As soon as he had done his share to fetch firewood, he shifted into his scraggly wolf-form. He went a distance from the others and curled up into a small ball. Hannah watched him with a pained look on her face, but she left him alone. She seemed to understand that he was mourning and he needed that space.

"It's not enough," Michael growled over his bowl of stew. "They'll find us here. We need to keep moving."

Hannah growled back at him, her gold eyes flashing, before she picked up the spoon to ladle the watery broth into her mouth. Michael watched her thoughtfully. He wondered if she was aware that she was feeding herself like a proper human, instead of trying to eat directly from the bowl like a dog. From time to time she would look up and scan the forest around her, but then she would return to her food.

"You knew it, didn't you?" Michael said. "You knew we were being followed. That's why you were so restless yesterday, isn't it?" He shook his head in amazement. "Man, your senses most be extraordinary. No one else realized until it was too late... Goddess, if only you could talk, you could have warned us.... maybe we could have..." Michael sighed heavily and raked his good hand over his face. "Maybe Frankie didn't have to die."

She frowned hard into her bowl, as though his words had penetrated her mind, and she didn't particularly like them. Suddenly her head jerked up and her gaze turned toward the West. Her golden-brown eyes fogged over, and she was so still that she didn't even blink.

"Hannah, Hannah what is it?" Michael's eyes followed hers, and he strained with his ears, but he heard nothing out of the ordinary. Then he noticed her clouded eyes. "Hannah?"

Sarah noticed Hannah's strange posture. She leaned forward and waved a hand in front of Hannah's face. "Is she... mind-linking someone?"