Shadows of the Night | BOOK 2 DRAFT

26

I'm alive! And so sorry for disappearing for a week. Sometimes our personal lives get in the way :( thanks so much to those people who reached out to check on me and sorry if I haven't responded yet, this is my first time on wattpad in a while! But seriously, I'm so grateful to have such supportive people reading this book, so thank you, guys. Hope you enjoy this chapter. 

26. 

The home stretch feels like it takes the longest. On the outskirts of the shifter village, home feels almost within grasp. We've been walking for merely a few hours and yet it feels like days. Malik is so silent beside me that it's like I'm alone again, walking through the forest with only the bird calls to comfort me. Usually, we travel together, but Eric suggested spreading out. With their heightened senses, even when they can't see each other, they know where one another is, and they have a larger range to scope out for potential hollowers close to the village.

Malik stuck with me in the middle of the pack, considering I don't have the heightened senses of the others and would probably go wandering off in the complete wrong direction—Eric's words, not mine. It's been an hour since we split from the others. Elias went ahead, and Cassia and Eric are bringing up the rear.

My stomach churns with uncertainty the further we get. Elias' words play in my head, the way he talked about home, how he wanted me to find a home. When we left the shifter village, it was falling apart. But now that we have Elias back, will Elias be the needle that stitches everything back together? The answer is more and more unclear as we move through the underbrush. Even if it is the case, it doesn't make me feel as hopeful as it once would've, not after seeing the look on Elias' face as he talked about leading the village. He doesn't want it. But he doesn't have a choice. None of us do.

I stare at Malik from the corner of my eye. Like the others, he is a part of the forest. The trees welcome him, guide him through, whereas it feels as though they cut me off, keep me from entering. Did Malik want to be a leader? Or was he thrust into it, just as Elias was?

The sun falls lower in the sky. Night will approach soon; the thought sends a shudder down my spine. A few months ago, I was terrified of the night because of the creatures, but then it became the only time I felt safe. Now, there is no time that's safe. Day or night, the hollowers aren't afraid anymore. But during day, there are no shadows to hide in. At night, when the forest turns sinister and the exposing sun hides away, the shifters have their wolves, Elias has his fire, and I have nothing but shadows to hide in. I quicken my pace.

My foot catches on a root and I stumble forward a few feet, righting myself before I fall. Malik puts a hand on my arm. "You okay?"

I nod, my cheeks warming. I'm still not as graceful as them, but I'd thought my days of clumsy stumbling were over. We carry on, but I can feel Malik's heated gaze on the side of my face.

"Caught in your head?" he asks, moving a branch out of the way for me.

"Something like that."

In the distance, a long, low howl echoes through the forest. It's a sound that used to send me hiding, but now, a familiar comfort swirls in my chest. "How are you doing?" Malik asks. "After what happened at the hollower village."

Instinctively, my hand palms over my pocket where the wooden bed frame sits. It's small and light, but it feels like it weighs a tonne, each step a chore. But I'm glad to have it with me, so grateful to Elias, even though he did risk his life to get it.

"Okay." I sigh. "There are much more important things to worry about."

He doesn't say anything for a few moments. I glimpse at him from the corner of my eye. He'd been so striking when we first met, with his black hair, pale skin and glacial eyes, an air of confidence lined each stride. Even now, after spending so much time for him, there's something sharp about him.