The Skullcap Chronicles

Chapter Seven

Dear ghost readers who never comment/vote, don't be shy; writers need every scrap of ego they can scrape off the ground. Sometimes your encouragement can help.

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 The countryside crawled by, fields and forests blanketed in the snow that continued to fall in thick white flakes from the sky. More snow than Georgia had granted in twelve years fell every minute. I sipped my coffee, a warm, bitter cup of gas station bliss, and glanced at Kai. She had her eyes steady on the road, neck subconsciously bobbing to Fleet Foxes' acoustic melodies as soulful voices drifted through the car.

 A big sign signaled the resort and we pulled in, slow on the icy roads. I glanced at the clock- 4:53, right on time for a place where you had to check in by five. It was already known, though, that we had been checked in for. Kai continued down the smooth, icy roads in gathering dark as cabins glanced by. Only one other had the glow of inhabitants lighting the frosty windows.

 "White Moose Cabin!" I announced, seeing the sign. Kai slid the vehicle in smoothly behind a black corvette. At the sight of it, we exchanged a glance, both amused and disapproving. We hopped out of the car and Kai grabbed our bags from the backseat, not allowing me to carry anything for the moment. I hurried through the bitter cold to the porch and opened the door. Lights were on, and a heavy bass came from upstairs. As I first entered, a kitchen with dark burgundy countertops and navy blue cabinets welcomed me, opening out to the living room, where a cozy living room with rustic decor waited. A staircase opened to the right behind the couch, and a woodstove sat against the far wall, a measley pile of firewood sitting next to it- enough for the night, but not much longer. Kai came in behind me.

"Upstairs?"

 "Yep," I answered, closing the door behind her and leading the way up. Upstairs, one room had the door closed, and the other had the light off. A bathroom was just to the right, smaller than we expected, and we headed into the room with the light off. In part, I was procrastinating going into the other room; I wasn't sure if I was ready to see what lie within. We set down our stuff, unpacking separately and making idle small talk in the meantime.

 When there was nothing else to do yet, Kai turned to me. "Think you're ready?"

 I gulped, glancing at the wall behind her, through which bass thudded out. "Definitely not, but no time like the present, right?"

 Cain's master plan had involved getting away from those involved with the dice. Since Kai already knew about Cain and skullcaps and all that jazz, she came with me. We left during school hours, when no one would expect us to be gone, and Cain disguised himself as a human to book our room- in a cabin in Maine. This was the gutsiest thing I'd done, but it bought us a week to plan further. Cain had a lot of information to get across, and a little rustic lodge seemed the perfect place to get away and figure out what the official plan would be.

 The part of this that my travel-addled, stress-strung brain was most blown about right now, however, was seeing a humanized Cain. I'd only ever seen him in a frayed gray cloak with a scythe and a skull mouth, so the idea of him being a human had me a little strewn.

 I took a deep breath and went to the door next to the room Kai and I would apparently share. I rapped my fist against it three times, and then three more, louder. It opened.

 The last thing I expected was a good-looking, shirtless, bronze-skinned, long-haired man in black leather pants with bold cheekbones, a straight nose, and deep-set brown eyes.

 "Holy shit."

 He laughed. "Didn't expect me to be a Native, didja?" He asked, his voice smooth and deep. "Originally, I was a Navajo, so I figured I'd take that guise again."