Dreamcatching

Chapter 27

"Kaden! Kaden!" Donovan yelled. "Wake up, man! Come on, don't do this, bro."

"Slate!" Kaden heard Donovan call as if underwater.

"Ohmmm," Slate groaned. He sat up slowly, and brushed dust and gravel from his arms and legs. He'd been sprawled unconscious across the nature center's dirt road. A cut on his palm was scraped raw and oozed a path of dried blood that matched a small knick behind his knee. Hissing, Slate sucked air as he tugged tiny pebbles out of his thumb pad.

When he pulled one rather sharp piece of stone from beneath his skin he remembered his best friend.

"Kaden!" He called out, catching Donovan's attention.

"He's out cold, Slate," Donovan replied. He was gently prodding Kaden and it was starting to work. Kaden didn't open his eyes but he did speak. "Stop shaking me, Donovan. You're gonna make me up-chuck."

"Oh, thank goddess," Donovan sighed. He sat back on the ground and ran a dirty hand through his spiked hair. It was a mess. Donovan'd clearly been pulling at it in panic.

As Kaden sat upright, Donovan stood and dusted himself off. He started to pace and it wasn't long before Slate realized the ramifications of them being there. "Donovan," he asked. "How did you get into---I mean, why am I-"

"Good questions," Donovan started to reply slowly and then loudly. "Because that wasn't the plan, was it?"

Donovan picked up a handful of rocks in his pacing and started chucking them into the trees with force. Slate didn't get a word in before Donovan continued furiously. "No, it wasn't. You see, you, my friend," he said to Slate with a pointed finger. "Were supposed to be outside the center with me. We were giving this one here the chance to talk to Nora alone; to explain things. Talks-with-the-Trees was supposed to be strong enough to protect anyone from breaching this area while they were inside. But, of course, something went wrong."

Donovan heaved a large grey stone at the nearest crop of poison ivy and cursed. "I fucking told you it would, didn't I, Kaden?" He yelled. "Didn't I? And now look! She's gone! The vampires were right on her when I arrived and damn it, I-"

By this time, both Kaden and Slate were swaying on their feet but standing. Kaden stepped forward and put his hand on Donovan's shoulder. "What do you mean, Nora's gone?" He asked. "Where-"

"What do you mean, where?" Donovan said. "Do you think I'd be losin' my shit like this if I knew where the fuck she was?"

"The vampires," Slate began as Donovan spun around.

"What?" Donovan asked.

"You said the vampires were on her? What do you mean? Were they biting her?" Slate asked with a cough. He had to wrap an arm across his ribcage when something pulled in his chest. The strain against his insides made him see stars. "Shit!"

Donovan sat down on a nearby tree stump and scratched his head. He saw a torn pattern of colored yarn twisted around an acorn and sighed. He knew Nora's work well enough by now. He picked it up and gingerly put it in his pocket for later. He knew Nora'd want something to remember her friend by.

Donovan took a deep breathe and started again.

"We were waiting outside the center when all of a sudden the shielding dropped. So you ran inside, Slate, while I canvassed the perimeter for intruders." Donovan reached into his back pocket for some gum. He gave some to his friends and then unwrapped his last piece and popped it in his mouth. He started to speak again and fidgeted with the wrapper.

"I knew losing the shield was bad. If we could get inside, so could anything else." The gum wrapper Donovan was worrying was quickly tearing under his rapid twisting. "As I made my way around the northeast bend, I heard Nora scream. That's when I ran inside. When I got here, Nora was standing in front of Kaden protecting him from Drexel and Utz-"

Slate glanced at his friend and caught the shame in his eyes. "I tried to stop her but she pushed me away before I could help," Kaden explained.

"At first, Nora threw herself at Drexel and I went after Utz. I had him in a choke hold when he threw me like a ragdoll. Nora was still going at it with Drexel when I got up and ran back towards Utz. I was too slow, though."

Kaden stood up and gave his friends a grief-stricken look. "Just as I was about to hit him, Utz dodged to my side and grabbed Talks-with-the-Trees by the throat. Utz held him off the ground by his neck before ripping it open with his bare hands."

Slate closed his eyes, knowing the agony of loss and guilt his friend was shouldering. It wasn't Kaden's fault, but Slate knew that wouldn't matter. He was sure Nora would be devastated as well. Talks-with-the-Trees was a good friend of hers.

"Blood was shooting everywhere, Donovan!" Kaden pleaded. "And when Drexel got a wiff of it it gave Nora a tiny advantage. She jumped in front of me and then before we knew what was happening, Nora threw Slate and I across the field and out of harm's way before taking off. She ran towards the southern exit, through the woods."

"With those two bloodbags after her!"

"What was I supposed to do?" Kaden shouted back. "She tossed us like a sack of potatoes, Donovan. When we hit the trees it knocked us out cold! I'm sure you saw what she did! I don't see you gettin' all worked up about what you could've done to stop her, or to have kept the vampires from chasing her-"

At that, Donovan jumped on Kaden and grabbed his shirt. "I should never have let you talk me into this. We should never have-"

But Slate had had enough. "Shut up! What is the matter with you?" He yelled. "Cripes. Get it together, the two of you. We gotta find Nora."

"Yes," an eerily calm voice behind them spoke. "You do."