Chapter Three
While the othersloaded the cattle and supplies, I waited in the back of a truck with Adam and the fey who held him. The fey studied me far too closely.
“You can put him down,” I said. “He can rest his head in my lap.”
“I will hold him. He smells of infected and blood.”
“Yeah, he killed a few before I yelled for help.”
The fey continued to stare at me with his weird eyes. Even while freaking out on the inside, I wanted to ask questions. What was he? Where did he come from? Was it true that he and his kind killed humans? But until Adam was out of his hold, I’d rather not risk asking something that might upset him. I’d seen the aftermath of their destruction. Heads didn’t just pop off of bodies on their own.
I heard a flurry of low voices just outside, and a minute later, three fey rounded the corner, carrying another.
“June, please sit by Adam,” one of them said. “Uan was attacked by a hellhound and is covered with contaminated blood.”
I scrambled to my feet and changed sides of the truck.
Uan moaned as they gently placed him on the floor. It looked like the dog had chewed his neck and shoulder and torn open his insides. Blood glistened wetly with each of his gurgling breaths. If death had a sound, it was that.
“Be well, Uan. Nancy needs you,” one of the fey said before the group walked away.
I glanced at the fey holding Adam.
“Isn’t someone going to help him?”
“Cassie will.”
The engines started, and a fey jogged to the back of the truck. He hesitated at the doors, though. His gaze shifted between me and the fey holding Adam.
“Do you want a light?” the new fey asked me.
“I have one. We’ll be fine.”
He grunted and closed the door. In the dark, I shrugged off my backpack and pulled out the flashlight. It reflected off the netted supplies that jostled as the truck started to move and gave enough light that I could see the hurt fey was going into shock.
Digging through the items in my bag, I found the space blanket packet. The fey said nothing as I tore it open but stopped me when I moved to put it over the injured fey.
“It’s not safe to touch him.”
“I’ve had plenty of infected blood on me and haven’t turned yet. I promise I’m not going to roll in it. I just want to cover him.”
He grunted, which I took as a go-ahead. Uan’s shaking didn’t ease up.
“How far until that town Ryan talked about?”
“Many miles. Rest.”
With a sigh, I pulled up my hood and leaned against the truck’s cold wall.
* * *
“You are safe.”
The words startled me from an unintended doze.
“What?” I asked.
“June?”