SWNOVELS Chapter 97
Chapter Ninety-Seven
There's a hunting cabin sixty miles north of town where we can spend the night safely. Eric insists on driving even though he doesn't know where we're going. It's already better than the plane, though, because we're entirely alone.
I don't have to pretend to be happy anymore.
"Follow the signs toward Highway 2. I'll let you know when we reach the turn-it's not marked," I tell him.
He drives in silence. I stare out at the landscape, watching the city fly past the window.
I wish I could run. We're faster in the truck, but I feel useless sitting here. If I could run, at least I'd be doing something. The silence doesn't help.
"Thanks for the coat," I say.
The truck is stocked with better gear than what we brought with us: sleeping bags, a real parka for me, food. Weapons. Not that Eric would let me touch the weapons. He's still convinced I'm guiding him toward Philipe.
"It's cold," is all Eric says in response.
I give up on conversation.
We make it past the city limits right as the sun disappears behind the mountains and plunges us into darkness.
Eric's hands grip the steering wheel. He's hyper-alert, scanning the road around us, speeding up.
"Relax," I say. "We're not out of light yet."
He glances at me, one eyebrow raised. Then he sees what I've been watching for-what I knew was coming.
The Northern Lights.
The first shocking-green tendril of light snakes slowly through the sky beyond my window. The road curves gently toward it, heading further north.
Eric eases off the accelerator as the sky brightens. Purple follows the green, the swirls and eddies growing more pronounced as the sun sets lower.
I haven't seen the Northern Lights in ages. It was a sight I took for granted when I was younger-no more remarkable to me than a sunrise. But I don't take anything for granted anymore. Seeing the lights again is a balm to my soul.
I'm struck by the urge to share this feeling with someone-to show the lights to my daughter and watch the colors play over her tiny, perfect face.
I imagine she'd have the same look of wonder that's splashed across Eric's rugged features.
I turn my face back to the sky. I have to believe that I will get the chance to show this to Merilee. She'll be here soon, and we'll find a way to save her.
"It's beautiful, Ash," Eric says almost reverently. "Always wanted to see this."
"On the right. The turn to the cabin is on the right, just ahead," is all I say in response.
He makes the turn, lapsing into silence again. It's more comfortable now though. He's still watching me out of the corner of his eye, but the gaze feels more like curiosity than distrust.
Who knew a few colorful lights in the sky is all it takes to convince a man you're not dragging him on a revenge-fueled suicide mission.
The dirt road that leads to the cabin is narrow, and the trees grow closer together the deeper we get into the wilderness. The cabin's only about a mile from the main highway, but it feels like a world away. The Northern Lights still flicker overhead, but they're subdued now because it's starting to snow.
The gathering clouds promise a real storm, and soon.
The cabin itself is a dark shape crouched among the trees, barely visible until we're right up on it.
Eric pulls up the gravel driveway and cuts the engine, but he doesn't move to get out of the car. "What is this place?"
I shrug. "A hunting cabin. They're all over up here. I know it's not much, but it's four walls and a roof. Some of them even have a fireplace or a wood stove if you're lucky. It's a place for hunters to get warm." "Human hunters," he says darkly.
I shove my door open and get out.
The subtext is clear: this isn't a place for wolves. Normally, I would agree. But with snow coming we need shelter, so this is what we're stuck with.
Eric rushes up behind me, catching my shoulder before I reach the door.
"Wait."
He doesn't explain the command, but I've spent enough time observing him to know he expects me to obey. I'm tempted to fling the door open anyway, but I don't. His eyes are gold, his wolf at the ready. He's sensed some kind of danger.
"When was the last time you were here? Years ago, yes?"
I nod. I haven't had a reason to stop on this road since I was little, before I had my wolf.
Eric grunts out a frustrated sound, then opens the door slowly.
The small interior of the cabin is covered in blood. I can smell it, even without my wolf. It's dried, old enough to have a vaguely rotten smell to it, but it's unmistakable.
"You meant vampires," I say. "When you said human hunters, you didn't mean humans, hunting. You meant creatures that hunt humans."
Eric turns on the flashlight on his phone and shines it around the cabin, illuminating every rust-red splatter.
A shiver runs through me at the carnage in front of us. The thick layer of dust over everything does nothing to mute the impact. This cabin is a feeding ground for vampires. Maybe just a single, particularly hungry one.
The snow is already heavy enough to cover the dirt road we came in on. The Northern Lights are all but invisible. Driving out of here isn't an option.
Eric's hand comes down on my shoulder again, guiding me away from the cabin.
"Looks like we're sleeping in the car."