as we fall ✤ octavian ✓

ten

"So, Brigid knows our location, our plans, and is working on sending various creatures to kill us," Octavian said, one of the first forms of conversation Laoise and him had in the past few days. While nothing new had attacked since the man in the bathroom, they were all significantly more on edge now, with even little Logan sensing something was wrong. He too was as quiet as a mouse, only speaking to his teddy bear.

"Yes, that seems to be the case," Laoise rolled her eyes as she steered the boat, though there was little to pay attention to on the crystal clear river, with them inching closer and closer to the Gulf of Mexico. "Clever, really. Must've taken a lot of thought and contemplation to come up with that."

"I'm just...ugh, never mind," he let out a frustrated breath. "I just want to know how. How does she know?"

As the question slammed into her, her teeth found their place atop her bottom lip, biting down hard enough to draw blood. "I don't know."

"Well, I've been thinking-"

"-that's a first-"

"-shut the hell up, Laoise," Octavian snapped, the venom thick in his tone. Gone was their typical banter, while harsh, at the end of the day playful. This time, his attitude towards her appeared to be that of genuine annoyance, and she found herself shrinking. As though sensing his mistake, he exhaled a breath, flashing her an apologetic stare, before continuing, "I've been thinking, our worry was Ceres getting onto Brigid's side. Brigid may have eyes everywhere, but on the water, in the middle of nowhere? I doubt it. Unless..."

"Unless she already has a God on her side," she finished for him when he trailed off.

"It doesn't necessarily have to be Ceres, either," he pointed out. "She's the tie between Brigid and the Mayans, which is why that bitch-sorry Logan, mean person, is trying to recruit her. But I wouldn't put it past her to get another God or two on her side, for security's sake."

"It could be any of them. Neptune, maybe? Being the God of water and whatever."

A shudder ran down his spine, visible even from the side of her gaze. "I damn well hope not. The last thing we need is her having access to one of the big three."

She nodded in agreement, deciding there was little else to be said.

It was night when their silence was broken again. Logan was sound asleep, while Laoise, as per usual, was struggling to drift off, tossing and turning on her makeshift bed. While she didn't have a way of telling the time, she knew it must've been past midnight when she felt the boat stutter to a stop.

"What's going on?" She murmured as she sat up, eyes searching the darkness for Octavian.

"I don't know," he sighed, slamming his fist against the steering wheel. "It just...stopped."

"Are we out of gas?" Logan's small voice echoed from behind the pair. Against him, he clutched his teddy bear tight to his chest, eyes flickering back and forth.

"We just filled up this afternoon," Octavian said with the shake of his head. "Maybe something got stuck in the engine."

"Maybe..." Laoise pressed her lips together. "Do we just...sit here? Wait for help in the morning? Or what, do we swim to shore?"

"What, are you afraid of getting wet?" he cocked an eyebrow.

"A bit, actually, considering I only have two other changes of clothes," she sighed, glancing over at her bag, before reaching inside and digging around, with her grip eventually settling on her knife.

"What, are you going to stab me?"

"Maybe," she admitted, and when he rolled his eyes, she continued, "No, I figure we may need protection. Who knows what sort of people are on the shore."