The Lycan Games

Chapter 5: Campfire

The sun was shining on the Carpathian mountains. A narrow, pebbled road wove through the trees. Along it, a rattling 4x4 truck was kicking up dust. It stalled every once in a while, then started up again. 

"I think I got it" Genevieve shouted as she giggled with delight. 

Genevieve was driving the truck. Rob sat shotgun, while Avram, Silvie, and Tomi were crammed in the back. Their bodies collide with every bump on the road. 

Rob watched the rob while giving Genevieve tips on how to shift the truck's gears. "Remember, shift and press the peddle at the same time." 

Genevieve yanked on the stick shift. The truck lurched forward and sped down the road. Avram cheered! "That's it! You got it!"

                                                                                           ****

Rob stood at the forest edge, staring down a path that was mostly cloaked by thick trees. Behind him, the truck was parked at the end of a dirt road. Avram, Tomi, and Silvie were pulling out their hiking equipment from the trunk. 

"So that's the path," Genevieve said as she saddled up beside Rob.

"That's right..." Rob said as he checked his phone. "....and according to the coordinates, we follow this trail."

Genevieve took Rob's phone and checked the digital map. "We're camping overnight?"

"That's why I brought this!" Tomi yelled from behind. Genevieve eyed Tomi. He was holding a bottle of scotch. "It will keep us warm at night!"

"Good call," Genevieve hollered back. 

Suddenly, Silvie budges ahead of her. Her backpack is on and she's raring to go.  "Are we going to stand around here forever?" Silvie disappeared down the path with Avram and Tomi following after her. They easily navigate their way through the trees. Like they've done this a million times before. 

Rob gives Genevieve a reassuring smile. "Came on. Let's get our stuff." 

                                                                                           ****

It was a long hike. About 5 hours worth through thick forest then into rocky, wide-open terrain. It was a breathtakingly wild display of mother nature at her finest. Genevieve was in awe. Not just at the splendor of her surroundings. But in a matter of weeks how everything has changed. From her life barely surviving in a busy metropolitan to now thriving and exploring a landscape many of not seen. There was also Rob on top of that. A supportive and very caring man who was attentive beyond her wildest dreams. Throughout the hike, he doted on her. Helped her cross streams, fallen logs and taste the sweetest wild berries. Perhaps chivalry wasn't dead, Genevieve thought. 

"What treasure did you bring, Genevieve?" Avram asked. "To leave behind?"

"Dracula" Genevieve responded with a grin. "A stuffed toy. A little bit stereotypical, but when in Romania."

Silvie scoffed. "So, what do you know about the blood-thirsty parasite?" 

Genevieve begins to explain. "Well, that the legend was born from Vlad the Impaler. Sunlight, garlic, the cross are his weakness. He can change into a bat, mist...wolves even. And he rises at night, sleeps all...."

"That's the thing with Romania," Silvie interjects. "Foreigners come here and only think of vampires. Strigoi. It's lame."

Genevieve does her best to not take offense. Rob attempts to soften Silvie's insult. " By foreigners you mean tourists. And by tourists you mean money. It's good for the economy. And plus you make new friends." Rob gives Silvie a friendly nudge. "Don't you think?"