The Definer

Chapter 24

"Estelle, what are you doing here?" I asked.
She bent down casually and picked up her daggers from beneath a pile of leaves. "You didn't really think I'd let you have all the fun without me, did you?"
"How... How did you find me." I staggered.
"It's my gift. Duh."
"Your gift?"
"Yeah, you know, Mark has clairvoyance and your friends all have gifts of their own... Well, I can find people." She told me.
"Ugh! I don't want you here!" I yelled.
"News flash, if I wasn't here, you and your friend would be dead." She used the sleeve of her long-sleeved black shirt to clean the blood off her daggers and stuck them back in her belt, followed by her sword. "Who is your friend anyway?"
"We could have survived perfectly well without you. I was fine." James protested. "Who are you?"
"I'm Estelle." She replied and held out her hand for him to shake.
He looked at it cautiously but after a minutes hesitation, he took it in his own bloody hand and shook. "I'm James."

"So, how did you two meet?" She asked.
"It doesn't matter right now. Does anyone else know where I am?" I asked.
"No. Ariana had a feeling you didn't want to be found so she told me to go alone." She reassured.
"Estelle, you don't understand, with the help of others, I won't be able to succeed at what I'm trying to do." I protested.
"What are you trying to do? It looked like you needed my help a second ago otherwise you'd probably both be dead."
"I-" before I could finish, a horrible, rumbling yelp sounded through the trees. "Another one!" I yelped and began running.
Estelle caught my arm. "I'm pretty sure that one just died." She said.
Mark ran through the trees towards the sound and Estelle followed. I reluctantly followed them too. Mark stopped ahead of us and Estelle and I slowed our pace. There, laying dead on the forest floor was another wolf. Two arrows pierced through its chest and a paper was stuck under them. I ripped away the paper and read the handwritten words.

I warned you princess. The Bears lurk in the forest. If it wasn't for the girl, you'd be dead. Remember princess, you must come to me alone.

-D

I looked around and so did James. He must have read the note over my shoulder. There was no one there. The forest was quiet - too quiet. Not even a mouse stirred in the undergrowth.
"Let's get out of here." James announced.
"Would anyone care to tell me what is going on?" Estelle asked.
"There's no time. We have to leave - now." He said quickly.
"We haven't found what we were looking for." I protested.
"I only have the speed of a human too. It would take us at least another night and day to get there." He replied.
"I have the speed of a faerie." Estelle butted in.
I turned to her. "You have to go to the bottom of Niagara Falls and look for something in the water at midnight."
"What am I looking for?" She asked.
"I don't know."
"What the-"
"Please just do it." I begged.
"Fine."
She ran off into the bush within the blink of an eye. I turned to James who scanned our surroundings cautiously.
"We need to go now." He repeated.
"Why-"
"Because I care about you and if we stay here any longer, you are going to get hurt!" He hollered.
I went silent and followed him as he stormed to the edge of the forest and back to the board walk.

By the time we got back, it was light again. Estelle appeared next to us as we both sat eating a pack of chips I'd packed.
"There was nothing there." She said.
I groaned and offered her a pack of chips. She took it and quickly opened it, shoving one chip after another into her mouth.
"What now?" James asked me. "You just go home and admit defeat?"
"No. That was only the first place on my list of places to check." I took out my list and checked what was next. "I think we could try the great dividing range now."
"The great dividing range?" James asked.
"How about this princess," Estelle began, "if you don't tell us what is going on, we won't come with you and before you say, 'fine then, dont', you do need us."
I looked at her for a moment. She was right. What would it matter if I told them. I grabbed the three notes from D and handed them to her.