Tested

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Our way into the next village was barricaded by tree trunks and boulders.

Dad smacked his palms against the steering wheel. “Another setback.”

“We can find a different way,” Sunny said, but even he was losing the confidence in his voice.

“People are trying to protect themselves,” I said. “We can’t blame them for that.”

“No,” Dad said. “We can’t.” He stared at the barricade. “But that wouldn’t even protect them from a monster. The only thing that would stop is traffic.”

“Not everyone knows what’s happening,” I said. “A few miles back we passed a small road, maybe it would bypass this village or give us another way.”

“We have to go back anyway,” Parker said. “Granddad can figure out where to go from there along the way.”

Dad nodded, looking grim. “We’ll need more petrol. We’re not going to get far if we don’t find something.”

“We’ll have to look for a tractor, like Parker said,” I said.

“I know,” Dad said, and he yawned. “I don’t think it’ll be a good idea to wander around here. Outsiders are obviously not welcome. Parker and I will have to look around somewhere else.”

“Jessica is still injured,” Parker said. “She can’t guard the van alone yet. What if someone tries to take the van? And you’re exhausted as it is. Jess and I can go look together.”

“I do need some fresh air,” I said hopefully. “And I’m faster than you, Dad.”

“Let them,” Sunny said. “They’re restless cooped up in here all day.”

Dad considered it the whole way back up the road. I expected him to say no.

“Okay,” he said. “But be careful.” He glared at me. “I mean it.”

When Dad pulled up, Parker and I got out of the minibus and headed across the fields, trudging through wet grass and slushy snow in an attempt to see a tractor or a house or something we could use.

“Your Dad’s really afraid to leave you alone with me,” Parker said, looking bemused. “Do I give off some kind of creepy vibe?”

I laughed, hyper now I was outside. I had desperately needed to get out of the bus. “No, it’s not you. He doesn’t trust me.”

He frowned. “What on earth does he think is going to happen?”

My cheeks burned. “I made some bad decisions before we met you and your grandfather. We were in a detention centre, and there was this… fake soldier who kind of… Let’s just say I fell for his lies, and he sold me to the vampires.”

Parker stopped walking. “What?”

“Yeah,” I said. “I know. And I had already told him where other groups were, so it was just a cluster of mistakes. The vampires had set up these games where we had to fight each other and those monster things. That’s when the fae came with their werewolves, and we escaped. I made it back to Dad, and we moved on.”

“That’s some story,” he said.

I kicked a tuft of grass. “Yeah, it’s a little surreal.”

He was still staring at me, so I started walking again.

Parker caught up. “So what’s your thing?”

“My thing?”

“My thing is fire. What’s yours?”