“Do you think we should bring anything?” I asked Jonah. We were back at the house, getting ready to leave; I grabbed my backpack while Jonah thought.
“Probably, just to be safe,” He decided. I nodded, and pulled down a second pack for him. Speeding down to the kitchen, we filled both bags with snacks, water bottles, first aid, and flashlights.
“That’s all?” I asked. Jonah shrugged.
“Oh, get an extra jacket. The rainforest can get really cold at night,” He warned. Stepping over to the coat closet, I grabbed two jackets- one light, and one heavy. Slipping on the thinner on and stuffing the heavier into my bag, I waited by the door.
“What about you, how are you going to get a jacket?” I worried, and Jonah laughed.
“I’ve spent so much time out in the rain, I think I’m immune to it,” He replied. I frowned in unbelief, but didn’t press the subject- I didn’t want to remind him of his bad side today.
“I have no idea how I’m going to get the door to appear again, so let’s just hope that we have luck on our side,” I said. At the mention of the door, our moods automatically shifted. The excitement faded, and a cold, sharp feeling entered the air. Shrugging his pack nervously, Jonah shouldered the door open. An icy breeze blew in; shivering, I pulled my hood up.
The walk to the library was quick and quiet, filled with tension. Snow crunched loudly under our feet, leaving a cracked trail behind us. I glanced over my shoulder repeatedly, convinced of the feeling that someone was watching me.
When we got to the back of the library, I looked over at Jonah and saw an expression of almost relief on his face.
“So, how are we going to do this?” He asked, and I shrugged.
“I have no idea. If this works anything like last time, the door should appear on its own,” I said helplessly. We waited in silence for a few minutes, Jonah scuffing his shoes into the snow aimlessly. Finally he sighed heavily, and glanced up at me.
“It’s not working, is it?” He asked sarcastically. I raked my fingers through my hair in stress.
“I’m doing the best I can, but I don’t even know what that is!” I told Jonah. He rolled his eyes.
“You did it last time, why not now?” He pointed out defiantly.
“What do you want me to do?” I asked in frustration. “I have no idea how I did that. It just happened on its own,” I replied. Giving me his own frustrated look, he shook his head and crouched against a tree, muttering to himself.
“You’re not making this any easier,” I grumped. Jonah looked away and pretended that he hadn’t heard.
I looked up at the sky, thinking hard about how I was going to do this. What was the key, the trigger to make the door appear?
A sudden wind blew around the trees, making an eerie swishing noise. I glanced up, alarmed, as a clump of snow fell off a branch right in front of me. Jonah stood up in excitement, seeming to realize what was happening. I was completely bewildered, and spun around in confusion. From behind me, a loud whistling sound began and became louder with each second; in front of me, a door was slowly forming in midair. I smiled tightly with anticipation- It’s here!
Jonah didn’t see it; he was still glancing around in expectation. Sighing, I grabbed his hand and towed him towards the door.
I guess I had forgotten what the journey through was like, because it completely threw me off guard. Was it just me, or did the blackness seem darker than usual? Was the air supposed to whip my hair around like a rope? Strange pictures and visions swirled around me as we floated past the stars. They were too different to comprehend, and too scary to describe. It was like a dream- I knew I was going to come out into the forest and not remember any of this.
Then I blinked, and it was over. Jonah bent over, breathing heavily beside me. It seemed like the change of ground was a little much for him, too.
The first thing I noticed was the silence. The whole clearing was dead quiet; even the breeze was still. Something felt very wrong to me, but I couldn’t put my finger on it. Jonah realized right away.
“Where are the birds?” He asked in confusion. The chirping of the birds, the little songs they liked to sing, was completely gone. It was like we were in a graveyard. Jonah looked at me, and I could read the expression on his face. Let’s get out of here, it seemed to say. I nodded, and we both turned and began quickly walking deeper into the rainforest.
Neither of us made conversation- I felt as though if I broke the silence, something bad might happen. Jonah glanced up as a hawk flew by overhead, and sped up the pace nervously.
I could feel eyes on my back. It wasn’t a feeling, it was knowledge. Someone was out there, watching us. I needed to know who it was before I went crazy.
“Where are we going?” I finally asked Jonah. My voice was so quiet it was almost a whisper, but he heard it. Shrugging, he slowed to a stop and looked around.
“Napa didn’t tell you where to go?” He replied. I frowned and thought back.
“No,” I said, mentally berating myself for not settling that with her. “She just said to come- I guess I assumed that she would find us,” I said helplessly. Jonah nodded grimly, and then his eyes widened when he glanced over my shoulder.
“Get behind me,” He snapped suddenly, his eyebrows hardening into one tense line.
“What?” I asked in confusion, turning around. Before I could, Jonah grabbed my shoulder and roughly shoved me, blocking my view.
“Who are you?” He barked. I jumped at the abruptness of his call, but then realized that he wasn’t talking to me. Peeking around his tall shoulders with difficulty, I saw that six men had appeared, melting out of the trees for all I knew. Jonah straightened his stance, balancing both feet evenly on the ground and tightening his fists. I was glad that he was prepared to fight, even though the men hadn’t shown any aggression towards us yet.
They had stood still at first, but when Jonah began speaking, they fanned out and started to slowly walk towards us. With one hand, Jonah reached around and pushed me back, as we both retreated from the onslaught.
Stepping back rapidly, my foot caught on a tree root and I fell over backwards. Someone grabbed my arms and pulled me up; expecting to see Jonah, I turned around and shrieked in alarm.
Someone was holding on to me- someone I didn’t even know. I pulled away, but he tightened his grip even more. No self-defense class had prepared me for this. Jonah turned, seeing what was going on. His eyes narrowed.
“Let go of her,” He growled. The man stepped backwards, pulling me closer to him with a grim smile. Jonah took a few steps towards us, but was soon overtaken and surrounded by them as well.
A man stepped in the middle of us, his sandals flowing silently across the dirt. He turned, walking up to me.
“I didn’t think you would be back so soon,” He exclaimed in delight. Samuel, I realized in despair.
“Did you really think it would be that easy? Did you think that you could just come and go as you please?” He asked, incredulous. I bit my lip, forcing my reply down. The look Jonah was giving me told me that it would be better not to answer.
“We had this whole ambush thing planned out, and I thought we’d be here for a while,” Samuel confided. “So thanks for speeding up the process a bit,” He said.
“What are you going to do with us?” Jonah asked; Samuel smiled.
“I’m going to take you somewhere,” He paused. “Somewhere where I know you won’t be able to escape again,” He directed towards me. “Do you see the man who’s got his arms around you currently?” He asked me. I glanced back, and checked out the guy behind me. Shoulder length black hair framed a square face, wide set eyes, and a thick nose. The man stared into my eyes, giving me a smug smile. He flexed, making his grip on my arms very tight and uncomfortable. I winced, turning back to face forwards. Samuel grinned. “He’s my best warrior; he trained for fifteen years,” He said. “If you can get past him, then I will personally escort you myself, to wherever you want to be,” He laughed. “Rick will never let you out of his sight, and he’ll never be more than a few feet away. You two are going to get to know each other very well.”
Jonah suddenly twisted around, ripping his arms away from three men. He punched one in the face, tripped another, but didn’t see the third coming behind him. The man knocked him over, kneeling hard on his back. He yanked Jonah’s arms up, tying them painfully tight with a thick rope. Jonah grimaced, his faced pressed into the ground.
“What are you doing?” I shrieked. Trying to go to Jonah, I was immediately yanked back by Rick.
“Nice first try, but that approach will never work,” Samuel reprimanded Jonah. “And for any future attempts…” He glanced at Rick, and nodded. I didn’t know what was going on, until I felt something thin and cold slide across my neck. A shiver ran through my spine, and I looked down. Rick was holding a dagger, right up to my neck. My throat seemed very dry all of a sudden, and I resisted the urge to swallow. Samuel looked at me and winked. Jonah, having been pulled off the ground, saw me and his face went pale. But then he seemed to realize something.
“You’re really going to kill her over someone as unimportant as me?” He scoffed. “No one would risk that, with how valuable she is,” He pointed out. Samuel nodded, seeming to think about it. Then an evil grin spread across his face.
“Sure, I can’t kill her- but I don’t have to,” He began slowly. “I wonder how much it would hurt Sienna, how much pain it would cause her, to have that dagger slowly rip through the skin on her arm.” I sucked in a surprised breath, feeling the blood drain from my face. Samuel continued. “Would it bother you if her face was scarred forever?” He asked Jonah in amusement. “Because I can definitely arrange that,” He said. “You can do a lot of things with one knife, and they don’t have to be fatal.” He thought for a moment. “In fact, sometimes it’s even more painful when it’s not.” I closed my eyes, wishing that I could just disappear. Jonah’s reply was angry.
“Don’t touch her, or I swear I’ll…” Samuel interrupted him.
“You’ll what?” Jonah didn’t respond, only glare at him in mutiny. Samuel laughed, his chuckling seeming to echo around the rainforest. “Let’s head out,” He finally said, calling out instructions to his men. I was tied to two men, on either side of me. My neck was stinging- looking down, I realized that a small trickle of blood was running down it. Rick’s dagger must have been a little too sharp.
I stumbled, tripping to the ground and bringing my two guards with me. Rick grunted in anger, pulling me back up so hard that I cried out involuntarily. Jonah’s face lined in anger and distress, but couldn’t take more than a step towards me.
We had been walking for some time, when the group came to a sudden halt. I stood on my tiptoes, trying to see what was going on. Samuel’s voice brought me up to date.
“Napa, we’re so glad you could join us,” He called out, trying to hide his surprise; I gasped. What’s Napa trying to do? Does she think she can rescue us by herself? I thought in concern. Samuel seemed to be thinking the same thing.
“By all means, do your worst,” He said to Napa, and she smiled.
“Oh, by all means I will,” She assured him. Samuel seemed to falter at Napa’s confidence.
“You can’t possibly…” He began, when the man in front of me slapped at his neck.
“Darned mosquitoes,” He muttered- but from my view, the ‘mosquito bite’ on his neck looked suspiciously like a dart. Simultaneously, several men around me began scratching or itching at certain points of their body. Samuel looked around, bewildered at the sudden movement.
“Get it together,” He yelled at his men. They turned their attention towards him, as one by one, they each dropped to the ground, unconscious. Rick and the other man tied to me fell last, dragging me down with them.
“What do you think you’re doing?” Samuel yelled at Napa. I couldn’t see, but I could hear her smile through her words.
“My worst,” She laughed. With that Samuel fell to the ground, unconscious.
Suddenly, a flood of people seemed to melt out of the trees. They swept around, tying up Samuel’s men. Someone cut the ropes from my wrists and pulled me up.
“Jonah,” I said in relief, when I saw his face.
“Are you all right?” He asked, his eyes going right to the red line across my neck. I nodded, keeping my gaze to the ground.
“Sienna,” Jonah said gently, his voice coaxing my eyes up to his. He could read my expression, and seemed to know exactly what I needed. Holding out his arms, he gathered me in for a hug. I laid my head on his shoulder, hiding my tears from him. For the past hour, I had felt so much stress and fear, and had held it all in. Now it was all coming out. Jonah could feel me trembling against him- my knees quaked like a thirteen year old wearing high heels for the first time.
My mind kept playing over and over certain scenes in my head. It was as though I could feel the dagger, sliding back and forth across my skin. I shivered, remembering Jonah shoved to the ground, his arms pulled back so hard that he winced in pain.
“Don’t think about it,” He whispered. I nodded and stepped back, sniffling pathetically. Napa walked up and stepped between us. Examining my neck, she glanced back at Jonah.
“Is she all right?” She asked. I nodded my head, but she ignored me.
“I don’t know; she could be in shock,” He suggested worriedly, and I rolled my eyes. Napa nodded, and turned back to me, checking my pupils.
“Can I get a bandage for her neck?” She called out to someone behind me, and I sighed.
“It’s fine, just a cut,” I complained. Ignoring me again, she held her hand out for the bandage. After cleaning my cut and sticking it on, she turned to Jonah.
“She’s not in shock, but seems highly traumatized. The neck wound isn’t bad, but could get infected,” She listed. I resisted the urge to cover my face in embarrassment as Jonah stepped nearer to me in concern. He probably thinks that I’m going to collapse, I groaned in my head. And why does he care, anyways? I thought in confusion. Doesn't he hate me?
“All right everyone, listen up,” Napa said loudly. “Head back to the village, and continue the protection,” She instructed. People began speaking over each other at once, arguing about what she had said. Raising her hand for quiet, Napa continued. “Believe it or not, we will be safer with fewer accompaniments,” She said. “Not as many people mean not as many footsteps, which means it will be harder to track us,” She said. I looked up in alarm. Who was going to travel alone?
“Jonah, Sienna, Janie, and I will head forward,” She announced. “I will hear no protests about it,” She added, at the expected outburst. “Samuel and his men will be out for a while, and it will take even longer for them to untie themselves. Go now, before someone finds out that half the guards of our village are gone,” She said; under her stern gaze, the people slowly trooped into the underbrush, shooting one final curious glance in my direction.
When they were finally gone, I looked over at Napa. She was scanning the trees apprehensively, seeming to expect company. For the first time, I noticed the little girl standing behind her, eying me apprehensively.
“Is that your… daughter?” I asked Napa timidly. Taking the little girl’s hand, she tugged her forwards.
“No actually, she’s my niece- my sister died soon after her birth, and I’ve been taking care of her since,” She said. “Sienna, meet Janie; Janie, meet Sienna,” She said. Walking forwards, I shook hands with Janie, and then made a funny face at her. She laughed, her solemn expression disappearing in the process.
“Where are we going?” Jonah asked Napa. “We don’t have enough provisions to camp out in the wilderness for a month, and Sam’s men would find us in an instant. Not to mention Janie… she can’t last long out here.” Jonah pointed out; Napa nodded in agreement.
“We’re not going to be out here for a month. We’ll stay on the move, hidden in the shadows. I know someone who can shelter us, a man I’d trust with my life. He’s just a few days walk from here.” She said, and Jonah nodded.
“That sounds like the best plan for the moment.” He agreed, and then turned to me. “What do you think, Sienna?” I was startled- my thought had been more along the lines of, a few days walk? And I hadn’t really been listening.
“What- uh… yeah, that sounds great. Let’s get going.” I said enthusiastically, and he narrowed his eyes.
“Are you sure?” He asked skeptically. I rolled my eyes.
“Okay, okay. This might not be my element, but it’s not like I’ve never been hiking. Are you thinking that I’m some wimpy girly girl, with no muscles?” I demanded, hands on my hips. He opened his mouth as if to respond, and then thought better of it. Napa jumped into our debate.
“I’m not meaning to intrude on what was I’m sure a very intriguing conversation, but we should probably get going.” She pointed out, and I nodded.
“So… which way?” I asked, and she pointed ahead of us.
“North, duh.” I looked around at her, surprised to hear her say that word, but she was smirking. I slapped my forehead.
“Oh, North, I should have guessed.” I replied sarcastically. She grinned and started at a fast pace into the forest, carrying Janie on her shoulders. Jonah and I looked at each other, shrugged, and followed.
“Are you sure we’ve made any progress?” I gasped for breath as I surveyed our current surroundings- green, green, and greener- just how it had looked for the past three hours. I was beginning to feel claustrophobic, not to mention thirsty. Napa glanced back at me, in the front, not even breaking a sweat.
“Of course; we’ve made up lots of ground.” She assured me.
“Only about 45 hours to go,” Jonah said excitedly, trying to hide a smile. I groaned. Suddenly two-week grounding and no books didn’t seem so bad.
“This guy better be worth it,” I grumbled. Napa didn’t seem to hear, or she was just focusing on another sound… running water. My head jerked up from its drooping position; Janie’s hands clapped in excitement.
“Is that what I think it is?” I said hopefully.
“Yes, definitely,” Jonah exclaimed, and the two of us made a desperate dash toward the heavenly sound. Napa strolled smugly behind.
Jonah beat me, and then we were both cupping our hands into the cool water, drinking as fast as possible. Within minutes I felt like I had gained a pound from just slurping the delicious water, one handful after another.
Finally, I sat back onto the bank, patting my belly contently. I leaned my head back, enjoying the unexpected warmth coming from a break in the trees. I could see the blue skies, and happily noted the fact that there were no ominous storm clouds approaching.
I turned and noticed Jonah looking at me with a strange look on his face. I self-consciously smoothed down my shirt, and tucked a strand of hair behind my ear.
“What?” I asked him. “I know, my hair hasn’t been brushed in a day and my clothes are a wreck. You don’t need to stare.” I accused him. He shook himself out of his reverie.
“Huh? Oh, no, I wasn’t thinking that!” He said, startled. I folded my arms and raised my chin, still suspicious. He reddened, but still refused to reveal his thoughts.
“Alright you two, let’s get a move on,” Napa’s voice called over to us. Seeming relieved for a distraction, Jonah stood up and walked back to the trail. Heaving a sigh, I pulled myself up and followed after him.
