Island Of The Cryptids

3

The pathway seemed to go on forever. It branched off at several forks marked by rotten wooden posts, but the group had agreed to not stray too far. The mud was thick and slippery, and it sucked at the group's feet, anchoring them to the ground. With each step the slosh made a squishing noise, and overshadowed the sound of the crickets.

Birds fluttered from the trees as they passed. The forest gave off a very unsettling feeling, very foreboding, very ominous. Misty felt invisible spiders skitter up her spine. Wind coursed anxiously through the small valley in the trees.

"What do you think of Tucker?" asked Carlin. Misty looked at him. God, he was attractive. His face was scruffy and masculine, and his smile was so enticing. His eyes stared into her, devouring her with their gaze. She blushed, even though she shouldn't have.

"He seems like a loser," she replied. Carlin looked forward.

"Do you think he's hiding something?" he asked.

"Probably. We're all hiding something," came the response.

"I meant about this island. He's obviously spooked by something. That makes him easy to mess with." Misty frowned, then smiled.

"Oh, I see what you mean," she toyed. Carlin didn't react.

"I like the weak ones," Carlin said. "I'm a natural leader, you see. When I was a marine, staff sergeant, I ran those boys into the ground. Made 'em into men. It's just always been in my blood. To take control. To prey on those lesser than me." Misty looked intimidated. But deep down, she knew she liked that kind of guy.

"You're not weak," he said, turning to her. "You're one of the strong ones. Assertive, always get what you want, I can tell."

"Thank you," she stammered, taken aback by the

compliment. Carlin turned his nose up to the clouds, feeling the wind slap the skin of his neck. A scar ran parallel to his jugular, bulging and serrated, traveling down the rough skin of his neck then disappearing at his clavicle.

"I can see a lot of things in people," he continued. "I like analyzing people. It's quite easy, in fact. Fun, even. You can see their fears just by the way they act. If they're fidgety around people, then they're socially awkward. If they're nervous in new places, they have a fear of isolation, or of change. It gets more complicated than that, but it's simple human nature. Some people you can just see right through."

Carlin straightened his jacket and toyed with the cuffs. He then folded it over his torso, and buttoned a single button. He looked at Misty.

"How'd you get that?" he asked, pointing a nimble finger at her hand. She raised it, showing off the marvelous diamond ring that rest on her ring finger.

"I was engaged a month ago," she explained, jubilant in it. Carlin smiled.

"I see how it is," he said. Misty looked confused.

"What?"

"Oh, nothing. I can see how you are. The way you act, the things you have. You take what you want, and don't care about how to get them." Misty became angry.

"What are you trying to tell me?" Carlin's smile fanned out even more. Then he put his arm around her waist.

"Let's keep walking, shall we?" he said, and they kept walking.