Following the River

Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Hailey entered the room quietly, noticing that Zora was unaware of her presence. It had been exactly forty-four minutes, and Zora had just seemed to sit there beside Aira.

"Is she-"

"No." Zora replied before Hailey could even speak anymore. "She was injected with some sort of poison..."

Hailey just stood in the doorway, gaping. When she had seen Aira hurt the boy, it didn't look as if he had even tried to defend himself. But it was possible that he could have.

"Hailey...I want you to go out and find a plant that looks like this," Zora handed Hailey a photo of a strange-looking plant. Hailey examined how the long roots spiraled aimlessly around the wheat stem.

"Where do I find this?" Hailey asked, not taking her eyes off the rare plant.

"Around the river...I think..." Zora trailed off, then demanded, "Go, please!"

Without another word, Hailey escaped through the door, lightly shutting it behind her.

Hailey suddenly stopped in the tall undergrowth, her lungs filling with the strong scent of earth. Sneezing, Hailey began to move on.

Another thought began to form in her mind. She gazed around one last time, then bolted onto the dirt path trying to sight the open moor.

The forest thickened in front of her, but behind her the forest began to thin. She began to head in that direction; her feet were beginning to ache from walking without shoes for so long.

A sign was posted in the ground ahead. Hailey was lucky to have found it, otherwise she may have gotten herself lost.

The words were scratched out by a sharp object. Whoever wanted to change the sign had failed to erase the words, for Hailey could still read what they said.

"Mainlands to the right...flowing river-forward. The Land of Ice and Snow to the left..." Hailey followed the sign that read, "flowing river". When Aira had met up with that person, they had been near a river.

As she began to head down the now grassy path, she began to feel the wind change. The summer-felt breeze gave her the shivers. Big, fluffy cumulus clouds billowed in the sky, promising fair weather.

Soon the trees began to thin, and she found herself strolling alongside a river. An open moor was spread out in front of her. The vibrant green grass was dotted with yellow buttercups. A sweet scent arose from the reeds that danced around the river.

Within a few moments, Hailey began to see a familiar sight. The river, the trees in the distance, and the rocks that surrounded where the wolf had sat.

Only there was no one in sight. Hailey emerged the scene where Aira had been and noticed a bit of scarlet blood smeared on the ground.

Bending down to examine it, Hailey realized that only one person could have gotten hurt. Aira had made the first move, and it seemed that he had dragged himself somewhere.

Hailey cautiously began to follow the fading path, glancing behind her shoulder every once in a while just to make sure she wasn't being followed.

Hailey wasn't watching where she was putting her feet; as a result, she tripped over an object that was lying on the ground.

"Mrowww!" Hailey shouted out. She shakily turned to face a boy with bright blue eyes staring right at her.

"W-who..." The boy stuttered aloud, his face burning with embarrassment.

"Uh...I-I-I was just leaving..." Hailey shakily began to stand, avoiding his gaze. A hand pulled her back down, and a finger was held up to her mouth.