Separated in the Phantoms

Chapter 7

I shook Faith awake. She turned to me and looked grumpy.
"Wake up sleepy head! Torin's coming at dawn. Get your lazy ass out of bed and get ready!" I said as I pulled the blanket off of her. She mumbled something and got out of bed. I looked at her pretty hair and perfect skin. When she turned to me, I quickly started picking up my clothes. We were both ready just in time. I pulled my shirt over my head when Torin knocked on our door. I quickly straightened the shirt and opened the door. Torin was standing in front of me, holding a plate with two sandwiches on it. I smiled.
"Come in, Torin." I said. Torin awkwardly smiled and walked in. He sat down on Faith's bed. Faith came out of the bathroom. She immediately lit up when she saw Torin.
"Hi Torin." She said. I swear, I almost gagged at that moment.
"Hello Faith." He replied.
"I brought ya lot some food. Gotta eat some breakfast." He added as he handed us the sandwiches. I smiled as a thank you and took a bite out of it.
"Thanks!" Faith excitedly said as she took the sandwich.
After a few minutes, we were all packed and ready to go.
"Ya gals ready?"Torin asked. Faith and I both said yes and we took off. The first few miles were mostly town or grassland. But, soon the trees started to surround us. Dark, almost black trees. Or that could be the lack of sunshine. The trees were so close together, no sunlight could enter the forest. That place really gave me the creeps. Mo was sitting on my shoulders. He didn't look scared at all. He looked amazed. Every now and then he would say "MogwaI!" and point at a tree that looked weird or where he heard a sound. Torin loved him. He kept petting him and telling us how cute he was. At some point I even handed Mo over to him and Torin couldn't be happier. They were a fearless duo. Faith and I, on the other hand, were anything but fearless. We almost died every time we heard a suspicious noise or when we thought we saw something creepy.
We wandered for hours when we finally came across a lot of trees that were impossible to cross. I took out Fyren Graves' letter. Torin curiously watched over my shoulder as I opened the letter. I saw the messy handwriting of that cruel man again.
"What's that?" Torin asked. I looked at him.
"The reason we're here." I took a step forward, making Torin almost fall because he was leaning against me.
"Only those pure of heart, will make those trees move apart." I muttered. I looked towards the trees and turned around towards Torin, Mo and Faith.
"Only those pure of heart, will make those trees move apart." I repeated. Torin raised his eyebrow.
"What do ya mean?" He asked. I told him about the letter and the riddle.
"I have to try. I think I'm pure of heart." I said. Torin started shaking his head.
"No, Ruby! What if you're not?" Faith exclaimed. I looked at her.
"I'll be fine, Faith. Continue searching for the hint." I said. Faith sighed. Before she could say anything else, I walked towards the trees. I took a deep breath and kept walking. I closed my eyes, thinking I would hit the trees. But instead, they moved away. One by one, all the trees moved aside for me to pass. I excitedly smiled as the others followed me. We followed the pathway as the trees moved back into their original positions behind us.
Eventually, we reached an open spot. I looked at the letter again.
"Go left or right or maybe straight ahead. You must go where most people bled."