Hidden (Book 3 of the Immune Series)

Pairs

Mya

I wake up to the sound of a heart.

It beats in my left ear in slow thumps, two hits, a pause, then two more hits, like a circle of sound. I smile at the feeling of warmth that bleeds into my skin.

I'm back at home again and surrounded by plush blankets. Finn curls up beside me, and his heart is as strong as ever, as in shape as ever, as alive as ever. I extend my fingers slowly and reach out without opening my eyes to feel his face above my head.

My fingertips come in contact with something wet and cold. Strands of slimy hair squish between my fingers. Has Finn been in the shower? I take a deep breath and open my eyes just enough that the shapes before me materialize into blurry squares.

What I see slams my body back into reality.

The cave wall stands in front of me, dripping with gray, calcium rich water. My hand has entangled itself in the disgusting green algae, and now my hand looks like a sea monster. I jerk my hand back and wipe the slime off on the blanket I'm wrapped in.

Glancing around the cave tells me Sakir is gone. His bag rests beside me, tied shut. The worn out spot he was sitting in cries about his absence, and the water pools in the shallow crater.

"Sakir?" I whisper and push myself into a sitting position. The rest of my surroundings fade into view as my eyes adjust to the honey-thick darkness. The moon illuminates the rocks with its silver light and casts eerie shadows behind the moss-coated turrets around me.

Silence answers me.

"Sakir?"

My whisper echoes around the hollow space as I unroll myself from the thin shield.

Nothing.

Not even a grunt of acknowledgement.

Did he leave me here?

No, he wouldn't do that.

Would he?

I mean, I saved his life, after all. He owes me big time, but it's not like I can exactly hold him to it. He could have easily just snuck off in the middle of the night and left me to wander in circles in the woods. I don't think he would do that, but do I even know him well enough to make that assumption about his character?

Earlier today he was willing to jump four people with fully loaded weapons. Is he really as harmless as I envision him to be?

Still, though, why would he help me find shelter just to abandon me?

I shake my head against the doubt and stand up. My legs ache from the walking, forcing me to limp towards the opening of the cave. I wince with every step, sucking air in through my teeth.

"Sakir?" I hiss once again out into the black and blue darkness of the forest. The skinny trucks couldn't hide his broad shoulders if they wanted to, but I can hope. Maybe he's just out for a walk.

Just as I'm about to turn and go back to my 'bed', a figure walks into view.

"Sakir! Where did you go?" I ask, clutching the dry section of wall I'm holding.

The bent over shape of Sakir continues to limp towards me, arms dangling at his sides, as if they weigh a thousand pounds. The moonlight behind him prevents me from making out his face, but it casts enough light for me to see that sweat has plastered his black hair against his head.

"What happened to you?" I ask, taking a step out into the open.

His clothes hang from his form in torn strips, reaching towards the ground just like the moss behind me. Something drips from his fingertips. Water? Is he sweating that badly?