SONGS AND TRAILS (Book 1)

CHAPTER 13

And now, they were in the middle of the mountain with the sun on their heads as they stayed on track. Arabella had believed that Caldor would have reconsidered their talk last night. She had begged him but instead, they were there. She was there.

"...Don't break a thing even a branch or the forest will break back. Don't take anything or the forest will take back. Don't trust anything, everything here is not what it seems. Stay on track and most of all stay quiet." Bella instructed as per Caldor's orders. "Avoid violence for the Valprei are attracted to it. They will sense it and they will join in."

"Are you just saying that to keep us from cursing at you?" one of the trainees mocked.

"Cursing is just immature, there's nothing violent about it." Bella responded and before that person said anything else to defend that they're offended, Bella proceeded, "Anyway, if you follow these few rules, you're sure to be out of here before the dragon flame order can feel the sun set on their horizon."

Daya and Rai grinned at how she had just dismissed their classmate aiming to mock her. Surprisingly, Caldor grinned in secret too.

"Okay, everyone! Keep up!" Caldor told them as they walked on.

They talked in very small voices and avoided arguments or any violence. They ignored everything and focused on the track. For once they followed the rules and were moving peacefully. At midday, they stopped to eat whatever food they had left and water then proceeded with their journey.

Then at the brink of their silence, they heard it. A baby crying.

"A baby?" Marie said.

"It's not a baby." Bella said as they kept on.

"That's an actual baby." Marie stopped.

"Marie..." Bella turned to her.

"I know nothing in this forest is real but I know a baby's cry from whatever distance and that..." she pointed in the direction of the voice. "...that is a baby!"

"Well...whether it is or not, it has nothing to do with us." Bella pointed out.

"Yeah, let's go." Daya said.

They all turned to leave and Marietta just stood there watching them walk. "So we're just going to leave it here?"

"If it's here then she's probably with her parents." Daya said.

The cries increased in the forest. "Well, the parents sure do know how to calm it." Marie commented, standing her ground.

"What..." Bella turned almost annoyed, "...do you want us to do?" she finished calmly.

"At least go make sure it's fine." Marie said.

"We can't leave the tracks." Bella said. "We've come this far without being food to any creature - knock on a tree so I don't hex it - and we can't just start breaking the rules right now."

"Since when are you one to follow rules?" Marie snapped.

"This is not about rules. It's about survival." Bella said.

"Oh yeah, if it's about survival, you wouldn't have spent the night in the library risking getting killed by a lurking Valprei and managed to kill the school librarian in the process." Marie snarled and Bella's throat went dry.

"Uh! Guys! I thought we were supposed to avoid violence." Mia reminded.

"Or do you think I haven't noticed your night walks?" Marie stepped closer to her and Bella's heart thundered.

"I... I don't know what you're talking about." She said in a small voice. She thought she knew! Marie knew of her condition.

"You leave in the middle of the night and come back trembling. Where do you go? Tell us!" Marie said. "What? Cat's got your tongue." She grinned. "It would've been a good joke considering I'm a Cat's claw."