From the Woods

by Charlotte Greene

  “I forgot—this is your pack. Mine had the first-aid kit. And the compass.”

  Fiona tried to laugh and then hissed, her right hand instinctively going for her left shoulder. Roz caught it, shaking her head.

  “Try not to touch it with your bare hand. It’s not bleeding very much. Just a graze, I think.”

  “Feels like more than a graze.”

  “I bet. I thought for sure it was going to be worse. In fact, for a second, I thought…” She shook her head, eyes suddenly shining and cast downward. She took a deep, shaky breath. “Anyway, let me push back some of your sleeve here and check it. I’ll wash it out a little with water, and we can tie a bandana around it for now.”

  “Are we safe here?”

  Roz lifted her hands. “Who knows? They could head down this way any minute. But they don’t know exactly where we are. It wouldn’t be the smartest thing for them to try.”

  “Yeah, but they have guns and we don’t.”

  Roz hefted a grapefruit-sized rock in one hand. “It would still hurt like hell to be hit with one of these. Maybe even knock a fucker out.”

  “Or kill him,” Fiona said.

  “We could hope. Anyway, I don’t think they’re coming down this way. I bet they’ll descend somewhere else and wait for us at the bottom.”

  Gingerly, Roz pushed Fiona’s sleeve back, and Fiona couldn’t help but let out a low hiss of pain. Roz took out her Leatherman and snipped up the side of one sleeve, exposing the bloody shoulder. Fiona had to look away, suddenly woozy, and she hissed again when Roz poured some of their water over her wound.

  “It seems okay,” Roz finally said. “Like I thought—grazed the skin and muscle along the edge there. I’m going to fold one bandana to cover the wound and then tie it on with a second, so I’ll need you to hold this folded one while I knot the other one. Think you can do that?”

  Fiona mumbled an assent, still not looking, and Roz guided her hand to the wound. Fiona took a deep breath before pushing down, seeing stars for a second before her head cleared again. With the wound covered, she could risk peeking again, and Roz tied the second bandana under her armpit and around the top of her shoulder.

  Roz studied it and then shook her head. “I don’t know that it’s going to hold very well. Maybe you should put your long-sleeved shirt on over all this to help hold in in place.”

  She seemed so frustrated and disappointed in her work Fiona almost laughed. Instead, she touched the side of Roz’s face. Roz jumped slightly and then smiled, apologetically, before taking Fiona’s hand in hers.

  “Sorry.”

  “Don’t apologize. And thanks.”

  “What? For this? It’s sloppy as hell.”

  Fiona rolled her eyes. “It’s fine, and not just for that.” She squeezed Roz’s fingers. “For saving my life. You ran through gunfire for me. Thank you.”

  Roz’s fingers slipped through hers, and she went back to rubbing her mouth. It was dark enough that Fiona wasn’t sure if she was blushing, but something told her she was. She touched Roz’s arm.

  “I owe you my life.”

  Roz shook her head, tried to talk, and then cleared her throat. “You don’t owe me anything.”

  If her shoulder hadn’t hurt so much, Fiona would have leant forward right then and kissed her. As it was, the moment passed. Roz looked away, staring down the rock scramble toward the flat ground at the bottom. It had never seemed farther away.

  “So what’s the plan?” Fiona finally asked.

  Roz sighed and moved close to her, leaning back against the boulder Fiona was propped on.

  “We’ll have to wait. At least until it starts to get dark—maybe later. It’s stupid to go down these boulders and rocks in the dark, and even stupider without a light, but it might be our only chance. I don’t know how long they’ll wait up there before leaving to head down themselves. And they could split up, too.”

  “How many are there?”

  “At least three—that’s how many I saw in the clearing back there.”

  “What were they like? Did you recognize anyone?”

  Roz didn’t respond beyond shaking her head, still staring at the ground in front of her. She’d crossed her arms over her knees.

  “What?” Fiona asked after a long pause. “What is it?”

  Roz made eye contact. “It’s crazy. They were all wearing masks.”

  Fiona frowned. “Masks? Like ski masks?”

  Roz shook her head. “No—like Halloween, but not quite. More like something you’d see in a movie. Like at a festival or a carnival or something.”

  Fiona continued to frown at her, still confused. “You mean like at a masquerade—that kind of mask? Wood or leather or something like that?”

  Roz lifted her shoulders. “Sort of. They’re hard to describe. It was hard enough to believe my eyes when I saw them the first time, but I don’t understand why they were wearing them there by themselves in the woods. It was just them. Why cover their faces up like that when no one’s around? It was creepy as hell.”

  It’s more than creepy, Fiona thought. These people, whoever they are, were complete lunatics. Everything they’d done had been the behavior of someone completely detached from reality.

  “Did you see anything else? Anything stand out?” Fiona asked.

  Roz shook her head. “No—except that one of them is a woman. She was watching the big guy chop at the tree. The third one was a guard, maybe. He was standing apart from the big one and the woman, watching the woods and pacing back and forth.”

  Fiona couldn’t help but shudder. Roz slid an arm around her waist, careful of her shoulder, and pulled her closer.

  “So they were just standing there, chopping a tree down?” Fiona asked.

  “They weren’t cutting it down. The big guy was making those marks we’ve seen in the trees a few times now. He was standing on a ladder, of all things.”

  “Did you see anything else? Any other equipment, horses, anything like that?”

  Roz shook her head. “Nothing. Only the three of them. I didn’t even see their guns.”

  “So they must have some kind of camp or something nearby.”

  “Maybe.”

  They were quiet for a while. Fiona couldn’t help but think that they were missing some crucial piece of information here. These people, whoever they were, had been one step ahead of them from the beginning. To her, this suggested a base of operations and maybe means of surveillance.

  The sun had partially set, the world now dim and gray around them. Already, most of the heat of the late afternoon had drained away, and she couldn’t help but shiver. The sweat all over her was now chill and unpleasant, and her shoulder was throbbing, dully but constantly.

  “Let me get the hammock out,” Roz said. “It could work as a blanket. You should put on your long-sleeve shirt, too.”

  “Okay, but you should wear my fleece.”

  Roz helped her pull her long-sleeved, silk undershirt over the shirt she was wearing, and the pain from her shoulder so sharp and searing she had to bite her tongue to keep from crying out. If their pursuers were still watching for them, they would no doubt have heard them long before this, but she also didn’t want to make their location too obvious.

  A few minutes later, both huddled under the space blanket and the hammock, Fiona felt relatively comfortable. Sitting here would eventually start to bother her—the rock was already hurting her butt and back—but for now she was content to wait here with Roz. They’d joined hands under the hammock over their backs and the crinkly space blanket over their legs, and Fiona’s knees were slightly crossed over Roz’s. They couldn’t have sat closer unless she was in Roz’s lap.

  Surprisingly, despite the unforgiving rock behind and below them, Fiona felt herself jerk awake a few minutes later.

  “You should keep sleeping,” Roz said, almost whispering. “I’ll wake you in an hour or two when it’s darker.”

  “What about you?” Fiona asked, stifling a loud yawn
.

  “I’ll be okay. Sleep now and get some rest. We can’t move until there’s no way for them to see us.”

  Fiona wanted to protest, but, half-awake, she let her eyelids drop closed and was fast asleep within seconds.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Fiona awoke with a start, almost calling out in fear. In her dream, she’d been trying to run away from something, but the branches in her way had been barbed, tearing at her skin and clothes. She’d been alone but knew someone or something was chasing her. The harder she tried, the thicker the brambles and thorns grew, so that eventually she’d been snared, web-like, caught and waiting for something from the woods behind her.

  “Didn’t mean to startle you,” Roz whispered next to her.

  It was so dark Fiona could barely see her silhouette. They were still cocooned inside the blanket and the hammock, and Roz felt warm and comforting pressed next to her. Her shoulder was stiff with pain, but the bandage didn’t seem wetter than before, so at least there was that. Judging from the crick in her neck and the numbness on the right side of her face, she’d been sleeping on Roz’s shoulder. She felt a little thrill of embarrassed pleasure, glad it was too dark for Roz to see her face.

  “How long was I out?” She kept her voice low.

  “Maybe two hours. I’m sorry to wake you, but we have to try to keep going.”

  “No. Thank you for getting me up. I’m sorry you had to just sit here all that time. Did anything happen?”

  Roz shifted a little next to her. “I heard some noises, maybe half an hour after you dozed off—footsteps up at the top, that kind of thing, but nothing since. They didn’t talk, or at least so I could hear.”

  “You think it’s okay to move?”

  “Even if they’re still up there, they won’t be able to see us. I can barely see you, and you’re right next to me.”

  Fiona rubbed her eyes, peering into the dark. It was true—even squinting, she couldn’t see anything clearly. But that created its own problem. How on earth were they going to navigate their way down these rocks in the dark?

  “You’re probably thinking the same thing I am,” Roz said.

  “How are we going to do it?”

  “The moonlight is blocked a little here from this boulder, so it might be a little brighter a few feet from here, but we’re going to have to go slowly. Once we’re down and in the trees, I think we could risk a dim light if we keep it covered as much as possible. But I’m not sure it’s a good idea when we’re exposed like this.”

  Fiona tried to rotate her hurt shoulder a little, but the resulting pain made her grimace. She’d have to try to keep it still and not use her left arm.

  As if sensing her discomfort, Roz asked, “How’s that shoulder?”

  “It’s fine. I mean, it hurts like hell, but I think it stopped bleeding, anyway.”

  “That’s good. Let me know if you need a break, okay? Don’t push yourself too hard.”

  “I won’t.”

  They spent the next couple of minutes getting their blanket and hammock folded and back in the little daypack. Without the covers, Fiona was instantly chilled. At this elevation, the air didn’t hold any heat without sunshine, and she was immediately shivering. Roz pushed something into her hands, and she felt her fleece hat. Once she had it on, she was a little warmer, but she was going to be very cold soon.

  Packing made another problem suddenly obvious. Roz had been carrying the bulk of their supplies in her backpack, including their water filter, but had left her pack in the woods during their hasty escape. As it was now, they had less than two liters of water for the two of them and no way to filter more. As Roz had mentioned, they’d also lost their compass and, as Fiona recalled the situation, half their food and the first-aid kit. Roz had likely thought of this already, so she saw no reason to bring it up, but it brought their situation even greater peril. If they didn’t make it back to safety soon, they’d be in real trouble.

  She heard rather than saw Roz slip the backpack on, and then she leaned closer to Fiona, the warmth from her body radiating off her like a beacon.

  “Okay. Let’s get this over with. I know it’s hard to see, but try to follow me as carefully as you can. Keep low, just in case. It’s maybe a couple hundred yards. Touch my back if you need to stop. Try not to say anything once we’re exposed.”

  “I understand.”

  Roz immediately moved away, and Fiona finally made herself get up onto the balls of her feet, her shoulder sending out a flash of agony. She had to ignore that for now. Seconds later, she was scooting down a long, flat boulder, skittering to a stop when her boots hit the bottom. Roz had waited there and offered her a hand, and both stood upright for the first time in hours. The relief was almost enough to forget where they were, and she rubbed her butt to nurse the feeling back into it.

  It was indeed brighter here out of the shadow of the boulder, but barely. Fiona could see the curve of Roz’s cheek at she stared up at her, and the glimmer of her eyes, but everything in front of them was still a gray-black shadow. She sensed that it sloped downward here, sharply, but it was like peering into an abyss.

  Roz crouched down, and Fiona did the same, and then it was as if Roz disappeared. Fiona crept forward, waving her hand waving wildly in front of her, and then Roz’s fingers found hers. Roz guided her forward slightly, and by inching forward, Fiona was able to navigate down and over the next set of rocks and small boulders.

  Things went on like this for what felt like hours. Roz, however, without a single word from Fiona, seemed to sense when Fiona needed a break, and the two of them would stand still for a few minutes, letting their backs relax and their anxiety lessen before moving onward again.

  Fiona tripped twice, but both times it was a minor slip, as they were quite literally creeping along the ground, almost sliding down on their butts. Still, the jarring punch of the falls sent pain screaming through her skinned hands and injured shoulder, and on the second slip, she couldn’t help the little sob that broke free of her clenched jaw.

  “You okay?” Roz whispered, speaking for the first time since the safety of their boulder.

  Fiona nodded and then, remembering, made a quick sound of assent.

  “Almost down,” Roz said, and started moving again.

  Whether she’d meant this last as encouragement or whether she outright lied, it wasn’t true. By the time they were, in fact, at the bottom, Fiona was quivering with fatigue, barely capable of putting one foot in front of the other. She’d kept going only through pure will. If they didn’t clear this field by dawn, they’d likely be killed here. Still, perhaps half an hour before the last of the scramble, Fiona began to wonder if perhaps being shot wasn’t such a bad thing. Anything was preferable to this endless torture.

  When her feet hit solid ground, she almost didn’t believe it. The difference was immediate, the feeling of actual earth, not stone, obvious beneath her boots, but she couldn’t face the possibility that she was fooling herself. It took Roz pulling her into a rough embrace to realize that, once and for all, it was over.

  Roz held her for a long time, Fiona silently crying into the rough texture of her shirt. She slid her hands under the backpack so they could more easily hold each other, and Roz’s warmth seemed to seep into her like a hot bath. She was dimly aware of Roz kissing the top of her head and squeezing her almost as hard as she squeezed back, but neither of them said anything. They weren’t safe yet. Those people, whoever they were, could be anywhere, waiting for them. Even in the woods, they would have to stay as quiet as possible.

  Finally, she felt Roz relax and took a step backward, the cold returning almost at once. She suddenly felt worn, paper thin, wrung completely free of any last reserve of energy. If she didn’t sit down soon, she would simply collapse. Roz, again as if sensing this predicament, grabbed her hand, and the two of them started moving again. Fiona barely managed to shuffle along, her feet leaden and clumsy.

  She sensed the trees rising before them, finally
spotting their tall heads as they began to block out the stars. Soon, they were in the woods again, and she felt safe for the first time in hours. Still, Roz kept them moving, the two of them stumbling over several fallen branches, boldly announcing their location to anyone listening. Finally, Roz stopped and pulled Fiona down to the ground.

  The two of them collapsed next to each other, and Fiona soon heard Roz digging around in the backpack. She felt the mouth valve for her water bladder pushed into her hands, and the taste of the cool liquid was sweeter than any water had even been before. She had to stop herself from gulping it all down. She heard some more shuffling, and then a dim, red light appeared, illuminating the little spot they were seated in. Three fallen trees bracketed the space around them. They sat between the trunks, Roz leaning on one, Fiona on another facing her, their knees touching.

  Roz had the headlamp cupped in her hands and lap, but even with the bare minimum of light it let out, Fiona’s heart gave a great lurch of sorrow at the sight of her. Roz’s eyes were sunken in her face, deep and dark, the red light making her pupils dilate so far hardly any iris remained. Her face was streaked with something dark—dirt and sweat, probably, and her hair was a tangle of matted, curly locks.

  Not thinking to stop herself, Fiona leaned forward and brushed a sweaty piece of hair off her face, running her fingers down the edge of her cheek. Roz smiled and took her hand in hers, squeezing it gently.

  “You’re exhausted,” Fiona said. It was a statement.

  Roz’s face hardened a little, that stubborn pride rising into her eyes. “So are you.”

  “Yes, but I got some sleep, at least. Why don’t you close your eyes for a little while? I can keep watch.”

  “No. We have to keep going. We might be able to make it to the road if we hike all night.”

  “Not if you fall down from exhaustion. Two hours. One. Please.”

  She saw the temptation in Roz’s eyes and leaned forward again, pulling Roz toward her with their linked hands. Roz met her eyes, and Fiona smiled, sensing victory.