Night World : Black Dawn Chapter 6

Because in that respects no point. Shes as good as dead al busy. Jeannes expression was as heavy andclosedas it had been in the beginning. just now Cant you think? Shed slow us master. in that locations noway she could manoeuver with come by of the closet help. And besides that,P.J. utters shes blind.Blind. A new little shock went though Maggie.What would that be like, to be in this situation andsick and blind on top of it?She tugged on the girls shoulder gently, tryingto see the averted position. nevertheless shes beautiful.The girl had smooth skin the color of c attainee with cream, sensitive features, high cheekb ane and only(a)s, perfectlips. Her black hair was pulled into a loose, glossyk non on her neck. Her eye were shut, dour eye lashes tremblingas if she were dreaming.It was more than just the physical features,though. There was a quiet about this girls baptistery,a gentleness and stillness that was unique.Hey, at that place, Maggie said softly. Can you hear me? Im Maggie. Whats your name?The girls eyelashes fluttered her lips parted. ToMaggies surprise, she murmured fewthing. Maggie had to bleed down close to catch it.Arcadia? she repeated. It was a strange name she wasnt positive(predicate) shed heard right.The girl seemed to nod, murmuring again.She can hear me, Maggie thought. She canrespond.Okay. Can I call you Cady? Listen to me, Cady.Maggie agitate the girls shoulder slightly. Were ina bad place nevertheless were exit to try to escape. If we help you out, do you think you can run?Again, the eyelashes fluttered. Then the eyesopened.Doe eyes, Maggie thought, startled. They wereextraordinarily large and clear, a warm brown withan inward radiance. And they might be blind, stillMaggie had the oddest sensation that she had justbeen seen more clearly than ever onwards in her life.Ill try, Cady murmured. She sounded dazedand in pain, provided quietly rational. Sometimes I qualitystrong for a little while. She pushed herself up . Maggie had to help her set up into a sitting position.Shes tall. alone shes bewitching lightand Ive gotgood muscles. I can support her.What are you doing?Jeanne said in a voice thatwas not just harsh and impatient solely horrified. Dont you see? Youre only making it worse. You should just have let her sleep.Maggie glanced up. Look. I dont know whatyoure thinking, but we cant leave anybody with them. How would you like to be left lav if itwas you?Jeannes face changed. For a significance, she beliefedmore like a savage animal than a girl. Id understand, she snarled. Because thats the way it has to be. Its the law of the jungle, here. Only strong deal survive. The weak ones .She shook her head. Theyre better off dead. And the faster youlearn that, the more chance youll have.Maggie felt a spurt of evil and anger-and,fear. Because Jeanne clearly knew the most about this place, and Jeanne might be right. They mightall thwart caught because of one weak person who wouldnt make it anyway.She turned and looked at the pleasing face again.Arcadia was Miless age, eighteen or nineteen. And although she seemed to hear what Jeanne was saying-shed turned her face that way-she didntspeak or argue. She didnt lose her still gentleness, either.I cant leave her. What if Miles is alive but hurtsomewhere, and somebody wont help him?Maggie shot a glance at P.J. in her baseball cap.She was young-she might be able to dash care ofherself, but that was all.Look, this isnt your problem, she finally saidto Jeanne. You just help P.J. get away safe, okay?You take care of her, and III be responsible for Cady.Youll be caught with Cady, Jeanne said flatly.Dont care about it.Im not. And Im telling you right now Im notgoing to help you if you get in trouble.I dont want you to, Maggie said. She lookedright into Jeannes angry eyes. truly. I dont wantto wreck your chances, okay? But Im not going toleave her.Jeanne looked furious for another mowork forcet pastshe shrugged. All the emo tion drained from herface as if she were deliberately distancing herself.The bond she and Maggie had shared for that brief moment was severed.She turned, looked through a crack behind her,then turned back.Fine, she said in a dull, indifferent tone. Whatever youre going to do, youd better get ready todo it now. Because the place is coming right up.Ready? Maggie said.They were all standing-or crouching, actually,since there wasnt manner to straighten up-withtheir backs against the walls of the cart. Jeanneand P.J. on one side, Maggie on the other, with Cady in the corner.When I say go, you guys jump over here. Thenall of us throw ourselves back that way, Maggie whispered.Jeanne was peering out of the crack. Okay, thisis it, she said. zero(prenominal).Maggie said,GoShe had been a little worried that P.J. would freeze. But the moment the word was out of Maggies mouth, Jeanne launched herself across thecart, crashing heavily into her, and P.J. followed.ThecartrockedsurprisinglyhardandM aggieheard the groan of wood.Back she yelled, and everybody lunged the other way. Maggie hit a solid wall and knew shewould have bruises, but the cart rocked again.Come on she yelled, and realize that they were all already coming on, throwing themselvesto the other side in perfect sync. It was as if someflocking instinct had taken over and they were all trey piteous as one, throwing their weight alter nately back and forth. And the cart was responding, corrasion to a halt and lurching off balance. It was like one of thoseparty tricks where five or six people each use only devil fingers to solicit someone on a chair. Their combined force was impressive.But not enough to tip the cart over. It was surprisingly well-balanced. And at any minute, Maggie realized, the people driving it were going to jumpout and put a stop to it.Everybody-come on Really hard Really hardShe was yelling as if she were encouraging her soccer team. Weve got to do it, now.She launched herself at the other side as the cartbegan to sway that way, saltation as highas shecould, hitting the wallas it reached the distantthestpoint of its rock. She could feel the other girlsflinging themselves with her, she could hear Jeanne giving a primal yell as she crashed into the wood.And then there was a microprocessor chip sound, amazingly loud, amazingly vast. A sort of groaning and shrieking that came from the wood itself, and aneven louder weep of panic that Maggie realizedmust have come from the horses. The whole world was,Run, Maggie thought. Stop facial expression now. Run.She ran into the forest, dragging Cady with her. They had to find a place to hide underbrush or something. Maybe they could climb a tree.But one look at Cady and she realized how stupid thatidea was. The smooth skin of the girls facewas clammy and lambent with sweat, her eyeswere half shut, and her chest was heaving.At least Jeanne and P.J. got away, Maggiethought.Just then there was a crashing behind her, and a voice cursing. Maggie threw another glance backand run aground herself staring at a mans figure in the mist.A chilling man. The mist swirling behind him madehim look eerie, supernatural, but it was more thanthat. He was huge,with shouldersasbroad as a two-by-four, a massive chest, and heavily muscledarms. His waist was surprisingly narrow. His face was cruel.Gavin Ive got two of them he shouted.Maggie didnt wait to hear more. She took offlike a black-tailed deer.And for a long time after that it was just a nightmare of running and world chased, stopping sometimes when she couldnt hold Cady up anymore, looking for places to hide. At one point, she andCady were pressed together inside a hollow tree,trying desperately to get their breath back withoutmaking a sound, when their pursuers passed right by them. Maggie heard the dally and squish offootsteps on ferns and started praying. She couldfeel Cadys heart beating hard, shaking them both, she realized that Cadys lips were moving soundle ssly.Maybe shes praying, too, Maggie thought,t, andapplied her eye to a crack in the tree.There were two people there, horribly close, justa few feet away. One was the man shed seen before he was doing something bizarre, somethingthat sent chills up her spine. He was turning his face this way and that with his eyes shut, his head twisting on a surprisingly long and lissom neck.As if hes smellingus out, Maggie thought, horrified.Eyes still shut, the man said, Do you sense anything?No. I cant feel them at all. And I cant see them,with these trees for cover. It was a younger manwho spoke, a boy really. He must be Gavin, Maggiethought. Gavin had dark light-haired hair, a thin nose, a sharp chin. His voice was impatient.I cant feel them either, the big man said flatly,refusing to be hurried. And thats strange. Theycant have gotten too far away. They must beblocking us.I dont care what theyre doing, Gavin said.Wed better get them back fast. Its not like theywere ordinary slaves. If we don tdeliver that maiden were dead. Youre dead, capital of Switzerland.Maiden? Maggie thought. I bet in a placewhere they have slaves its not weird to talk aboutmaidens. But which girl does he mean? Not meIm not important.Well get her back, Bern was saying.Wed better, Gavin said viciously. Or Im goingto tell her that it was your fault. We were supposedto make sure this didnt happen.It hasnt happened yet, Bern said. He turned onhis heel and walked into the mist. Gavin staredafter him for a moment, and then followed.Maggie let out her breath. She realized that Cadys lips had stopped moving.Lets go, she whispered, and took off in the opposite direction to the one the men had gone.Then there was a time of endless running andpausing and earreach and hiding. The forest was aterrible place. Around them was eerie twilight,made even spookier by the mist that puzzle in hollowsand crept over fallen trees. Maggie felt as if she were in some awful fairy tale. The only good thingwas that the d ampness softened their footsteps,making it hard to track them.But it was so quiet. No ravens, no gray jays. No deer. Just the mist and the trees, going on forever.And then it ended.Maggie and Cady suddenly fall apart out into an-.other meadow. Maggie gavea frantic glancearound, looking for shelter. Nothing. The mist was thinner here, she could see that there were no trees ahead, only an outcrop of rocks.Maybe we should double back.But the voices were shouting in the forest behind them.Above the rocks was a sodding(a) ledge. It lookedlike the end of a path, winding the other way down the mountain.If we could get there, wed be safe, Maggiethought. We could be around the corner in a minute, and out of sight.Dragging Cady, she headed for the rocks. Theydidnt belong here they were huge granite boulders deposited by some old-fashioned glacier. Maggie clambered up the side of one easily, then leaned down.Give me your hand, she said rapidly. There sa path up above us, but weve got to cli mb a little.Cady looked at her.Or-not looked, Maggie supposed. But she turned her face toward Maggie, and once again Maggie had the odd mite that those blind eyescould somehow see better than most peoples.You should leave me, Cady said.Dont be stupid, Maggie said. Hurry up, giveme your hand.Cady shook her head. You go, she said quietly.She seemed completely rational-and absolutely exhausted. She hadnt lost the peace of mind whichhad infused her from the beginning, but now itseemed mixed with a gentle resignation. Her fineboned face was worn with weariness. Ill justslow you down. And if I stay here, youll have moretime to get away.Im not going to leave you Maggie snapped.Come on Arcadia remained for just a second, her faceturned up to Maggies, then her clear and luminousbrown eyes filled. Her expression was one of inexpressible tenderness. Then she shook her headslightly and grabbed Maggies hand-very accurately.Maggie didnt waste. time. She climbed as fastasshe could, pulling Cady, rapping out breathless instructions. But the delay had bell them. She could hear the men getting nearer.And when she reached the far end of the pile ofboulders she byword something that sent shock waves through her system.She was looking up a black cliff face. There wasno connection from the rocks to the ledge above.And below her, the hillside dropped off steeply, ahundred feet down into a gorge.Shed led Cady right into a trap.There was nowhere else to go.