by Beth Reason
Chapter 2
That night turned cold at the top of the mountain. Tenet woke up shivering head to toe, searching in his sack for something warmer to wear. He put on all three shirts, and he still shivered. He didn't want to wake Scarab up, but there was nothing else to do. He nudged Scarab awake. “How do you stay warm?” he asked through chattering teeth.
Scarab hadn't really considered that his body wasn't used to handling the cold. He sat there bundled in all of his shirts and she cursed herself for not buying him a warm jacket from Narp. They'd reach the Borderlands well before winter with their seeds to trade for more supplies, and she thought that traveling light was the best way to go until then. She motioned for him to come closer. “Lie next to me. It'll warm you up.”
Tenet didn't need to hear the offer twice and in seconds, her arms were wrapped around him. Heaven. He was in heaven. It occurred to him that he was the man and should be the one warming her up, but she laughed when he said as much.
“I'm not the one that's cold.”
He couldn't fault her logic. And it felt so warm and safe. Warm, safe...and tempting. Without thinking about it, he wiggled closer.
Scarab pushed her palm firmly on his shoulder. “Sleep, Tenet,” she ordered in as strict a voice as she could. She felt him chuckle and knew her point was made. The minutes ticked by and soon he was pulling in the deep and even breaths of sleep. Scarab shifted to be more comfortable and wished she could nod back off. He was so quickly relaxed next to her, the bastard, while everything in her body was tense and alert. She felt like giving him a little kick to wake him back up and even the score.
A branch snapped and her hand instantly went to the butt of her gun at her belt. She breathed slow and shallow, her ears straining to determine the threat. There was a shuffle in the brush, then the familiar snorting chirp of a coonskunk. She took a deep breath and tucked the gun back in the belt, and chided herself for being so jumpy. She never would have admitted it to Tenet, but the man earlier in the day really shook her up. She only hesitated a second before putting her arm over Tenet and nestling in closer.
Death was a fate she could handle. Had it been just a matter of the man wanting them to die, she wouldn't have had any qualms at all. She'd had to kill in the past, and she knew that unless the promised new government really was working as the gossip said, she'd most likely have to do it again. It wasn't the idea of death, hers, Tenet's or that vile creature's that put the fear inside. It was the look in that bastard's eyes that gave her the chills.
Scarab shivered as his face flashed in front of her. She wasn't kidding when she told Tenet she knew first hand of things worse than death. She knew that look, alright. She knew it and understood it far better than anyone ever should. It's why she became a hunter, why she chose that path. People who could do such things to other people existed and needed to be brought to justice. There was a reason she chose mostly violent bounties, a reason she allowed herself to be a tool in the gover's plan to hide the truth from the masses. She couldn't let that man live. How many times had he already...how many more if she had walked away?
But the look. The look always got her. It was the same no matter how different the man looked on the outside. That awful look of heated hatred, the eyes that flashed the dark within right before they unleashed the beast. She shivered again and squeezed her eyes tight, trying to block out what was already inside.
Tenet shifted, woke slightly. Scarab pulled back, feeling ridiculous at being caught in a moment of weakness. Tenet simply rolled over to face her, then pulled her back against him and tucked her safe in his arms. All of Scarab's past told her to push him away, to pull away, to go away. "Run," the little voice said. "Run and be alone. You don't need this." And yet, she stayed. As Tenet fell back into a deeply contented sleep, she stayed. She felt his heart beating under her cheek, and she still stayed. She smelled the mix of new clothing and man that said she was far too close, and she still stayed. The voice continued to yell at her, that familiar little voice that had always kept her safe in the past. And even though she didn't sleep a wink the rest of the night, she stayed.
When the first of the sun's rays crested the horizon and shone over them, Scarab finally pulled out of Tenet's relaxed hold. She inched herself out from under the blankets so she wouldn't wake him, then went to the bushes to take care of her morning needs. When she came back, she carried an arm full of the scrub branches that grew in the higher elevation and made a small fire. She pulled out a can of coffee and a pot, then combined the coffee with water from her canteen and set it to steep over the small fire. And then she just sat back and wondered about the night she'd just spent. Though the little voice was totally disgusted with her, she was oddly comfortable with the fact that she spent the entire night in the arms of a man.
Tenet woke a few minutes after the coffee started to bubble. "Is that coffee I smell?" he asked, rubbing his eyes with his fist.
"Thought you could use a little liquid warmth this morning. It'll be full of grounds because I don't have filters."
He pushed up from the blankets and stretched. "I like my coffee chunky," he said with a grin.
"You're in a good mood."
He shrugged. "I got a surprisingly good sleep."
Scarab reached in her pack and got out two cups. "It's the cold air," she said, suddenly embarrassed. It wasn't the air and she damn well knew it. "You sleep deeper in the cold."
"I didn't know that." He put his shoes on and tied them, then pushed to stand, wincing a little. "Any way we can make the rocks a little softer?"
"Go take your morning piss and get back here before your coffee gets cold." His good mood made hers begin to melt away. Of course he was in a good mood. Of course he got great sleep. One of them had to keep guard all night, didn't they? She stabbed at the fire with a stick, spreading the few coals around to cool faster, letting the uncomfortable feeling of embarrassment settle into the easy familiarity of anger.
Tenet came back and stretched, twisting back and forth to work out the kinks in his back, all the while keeping that damned goofy grin on his face. He rubbed his hands together quickly then sat on the rock next to Scarab. "What a beautiful morning," he said, taking the coffee. "I didn't know you bought coffee."
Scarab gave a shrug. "I suppose I should have informed you of that supply choice."
He sighed. "Are we going to do this for every single thing now?"
She wanted to pick another fight. She was much more secure with how things stood between them if they were bickering. Last night was too close and she wanted distance. "I'm sorry if I'm a little grouchy. I didn't get much sleep being on watch all night long."
He looked truly surprised. The grin was almost instantly replaced with a frown. "Oh man, I'm sorry. I didn't even think about that."
Scarab gave a little snort. "Clearly." She stabbed at the coals with more force than was necessary, sending one skittering away from the circle of stones. She stood and quickly stomped it. No need setting a scrub fire and announcing to everyone there was fresh blood in the area.
Tenet watched her face. She was obviously annoyed, but he didn't think it really had anything to do with being on watch all night. She'd been on watch their entire time together. Besides, the lady was an absolute control freak. He doubted she'd ever let him take a watch. That wasn't what was eating her. But even if he pressed the issue and called her out, she'd never come right out and say what was actually bothering her and he knew it. He'd have to reason this one out for himself and he damned well knew it. So she said the problem was night watch, eh? Well then, he'd just have to take the bones out of that debate. He wondered if he would have to spend the entire day cutting down little arguments one by one.
"You have made your point and I couldn't agree more. I should take turns on watch, and it was selfish of me not to think of it before." He drained the rest of his coffee to hide his smirk at her suddenly outraged expression. He spat a small mouthful of grounds, then tapped the empty cup ups
ide down on a rock to get the rest of the grounds out before he handed it back to Scarab to place in the pack. "What kind of schedule would work best for you?"
She blinked at him, too frustrated to say anything. He wasn't supposed to agree and take watches. He was supposed to be sullen and contrite and walk five steps behind her in shame all day and give her some peace. "You...you don't have to do that."
"Now don't backtrack. You brought up a valid point. Should we do nightly shifts? Or would a day on/day off situation work best?"
She shoved the cups and empty pot back in her pack. "You can't do a watch. You don't even know what you're watching for."
"I'm sure you'll teach me."
When Scarab looked up, he was grinning again. Her eyes narrowed. He wasn't playing by the rules anymore. She didn't know if she liked this new Tenet or not. "The way we've been doing it is fine. Just don't expect me to be a ball of sunshine in the morning." She cinched her bag shut with a series of quick, angry tugs. "Roll up the damn bedding and let's get off this frickin' mountain."
Tenet bit the inside of his cheek to keep from smiling. He rolled up the bedding and tied it to his pack like she had shown him. The morning was chilly, so he left the extra shirts on. Scarab had only one, and as she hoisted her pack on her back, she told him he'd regret wearing so much. "You're going to heat up fast."
"Then I'll take off the layers as needed."
She huffed, her breath making a little puff of steam in the bright morning air. "Or, you could just save us both time and take them off now."
"Yes, Mom."
She glared, then turned without another word. He let out a loud laugh that grated on her last nerve, the little voice in her head saying a cadence of 'I told you so' with every step. She moved fast and hard down the rocky terrain, glad for the grunts and frequent swearing she heard coming from Tenet behind her. He slipped and almost slid into her.
"Damnit Scarab!" He fumbled for a second, the heavy pack weighing him down. "Whatever the hell I said or did to piss you off, put it aside. I'm not a mountain goat!"
She sighed and held her hand out. He took it and she pulled him up. She wanted him as annoyed as she was, not dead. "I'll slow it down."
It was as close to an apology as he was going to get and nodded as he brushed the dirt off his hands. He gripped the straps of his pack and followed, grateful that she did, indeed, ease the pace.
They made their way down the mountain. As they lowered in elevation, they started to enter proper forest land again. Tenet was glad for the trees, but the roots and needles on the ground made the travel frustrating. As the morning progressed with more slipping and sliding from both of them, his leg began to once again throb. Damn Weevil and his half-assed way of life, he thought to himself, gritting his teeth. Around noon, he couldn't take it anymore.
"Hold up," he said, the first words either of them spoke in hours.
Scarab stopped and turned. One glance at the look on his face told her the problem. "Shit, Tenet." She took her pack off and set it on the ground, then ordered him to take his pants off.
He didn't have any fight left and flopped down. She helped him shimmy out of his pants. He didn't want to look and squeezed his eyes shut tight. He had plenty of training in healing and just by the kind of pain he was feeling, he knew what he'd see if he looked.
Scarab stared at the gaping wound and tried to will her heart to slow down. She shouldn't have pushed him. If she had taken one second to think and cool her jets, she wouldn't have. She let her own emotions get the better of her. The little voice stopped with the 'I told you so's' then, and told her instead to stop the self deprecation and help the poor bastard. She took a breath and cleared her mind. She'd berate herself later. She'd dish herself every punishment she absolutely deserved. Later. Right now, they faced a serious problem.
"You should have said it was this bad," she bit out.
He was trying to slow his own breathing. "It wasn't until I fell. I think that ripped it open again."
She gave a little poke. That wasn't the only problem, and she believed they both knew it. "It's infecting, Tenet."
"Yes."
Scarab wanted to punch him in frustration. "So I'm the only one that needs to abide by these partnership rules?" She didn't need an answer and he didn't give one. The wound was ugly, worse than the day before. "What do you have for first aid supplies?"
He took a few deep breaths, then pushed up on his elbows to look for himself. His stomach rolled with the sight, but he pulled from his experience helping his mother with her healing duties on the ranch and made himself calm down. "We'll need to get to water."
Scarab stood and looked around. "I don't see any. We've got our drinking water..."
"Which is probably contaminated. I need fresh water." He glanced around. "There's got to be a creek or something nearby. It's very green around here."
"You can't go traipsing around hoping to find one." She didn't want to leave him, but she saw no choice. "I'll leave my pack and scout." He nodded. She noticed a sheen of fresh sweat on his brow and her guilt deepened. She squatted next to him. "You've got the gun. Use it if you need to."
"I will."
"I mean it," she said, frowning. "Even a coonskunk's a threat right now."
"Yes, Mom." She ground her teeth together and gave him her fiercest look. He held up a hand weakly. "I get it, okay? Just trying to lighten the mood."
Scarab opened her mouth, then snapped it shut again, deciding to keep whatever she was thinking to herself. Without another word she stood and looked for familiar signs of water. The forest was too thick to see though, to spot a gap in the skyline. There was moss on some rocks to the west, and a cliff to the east. Moss meant water, so west it was. She took a hard look at the cliff, committing it to memory.
"If I'm not back by dark, can you get yourself to those cliffs?"
He craned his head. "Absolutely," he lied.
"If you need me, shoot and I'll come."
"Got it."
Scarab stared at Tenet another minute before he made a little motion with his hand. She turned and headed towards the moss and, hopefully, running water. Within minutes, she could no longer see either Tenet or the cliff. She felt the stab of guilt again, but forced it back. She'd need all her focus on the surrounding landmarks to be able to find her way back, and her ears strained for any sound other than the crunching of twigs and leaves beneath her feet. Even though the forest was dense and shaded, the summer heat was oppressively humid, trapped in the shell of leaves that cocooned the land all around her. Very shortly, she found her own canteen empty, and the importance of fresh water doubled.
Less than an hour away, she began to hear the gurgling of water. She couldn't help the bubble of excitement, but knew she needed to keep calm now more than ever. She couldn't let the relief cloud her concentration. It was vital to take it slow enough to remember the path, even if everything inside begged her to run to the life saving coolness of the mountain stream. Scarab kept her pace until she saw a surprisingly wide, clear stream. She nearly cried at the taste of the pure water, and refilled her canteen before taking stock of the area. If she could get Tenet here, they'd have a much easier night than the one before. There was an alcove of larger rocks that ended short of the river, leaving a sandy bank a few hundred feet down from where she stood. As long as it didn't rain, they could spend a couple of days there to let him recover. There were probably even fish in the stream.
Satisfied, she turned and made her way back to Tenet. The return trip was much slower, as she had to scan for landmarks and pick out her own signs of travel to backtrack. When she finally reached him, she found him sleeping. It was foolish to let himself fall asleep, but she couldn't find it in herself to feel anything but pity. Sure, any animal could have come and eaten him, any bandit robbed him blind and killed him, or left him for dead with nothing. But at least he wasn't feeling the pain.
Scarab gave him a little shake. "Tenet."
He moaned and
his eyes rolled open slowly. He stared at her with unfocused eyes.
"Tenet," she said, more firmly, shaking his arm. When he still didn't respond, she tried to bite back the panic. "You get your lazy ass up right now or I'm leaving you here!"
He focused and let out a little snort of laughter. "Where have I heard that before?"
Relief flooded through her. "Get up. I found water." She pulled the canteen off her belt and opened it, giving Tenet a sip. He took a few swallows and then let her pull his arm and help him stand. He wobbled, and she held him more firmly until he got his feet. "You need your pants back on. The undergrowth gets thick in some spots and we don't want you torn up worse."
He couldn't talk, just nodded forward. It was a struggle to get the pants on and keep him standing, but they managed. She ordered him to take another long sip of the water before the set off.
"You need help, tell me. We've got a good three hours or so before dark and can stop if need be."
Tenet grunted and lurched forward, regretting that he'd spent a couple hours immobile. He should have kept his leg moving and he damn well knew it. He just wanted to get there. With fresh water and perhaps a fire, he could help himself far better than he'd managed to so far. He should have demanded Weevil handle him with more care. He should have restitched himself before they left the last town. He should have spoken up last night instead of letting the exhaustion take over. He should have said something this morning. All the admonitions filled his head as he followed Scarab, and he was glad for them. They were something to hold on to, a focus. Beating himself up was keeping him going, and he let his mind continue.
Scarab did the same in her own head. One more push in this awful afternoon and they could get back on the right track. One more push and then they could start to make it right. They'd get to the river and she'd get a fire going. She'd gather whatever he needed. She'd scavenge for some greens for him to eat. Fish. Make him a bed of the branches so he could have a more comfortable night. She'd do whatever it took to apologize.
Tenet stumbled several times, but shook off her hand each one. Scarab knew that look in his eye, the determination she'd felt herself so many times over the years in a bad situation. That look told her to back off and let his adrenaline control the situation or it would be too late. "Don't touch me or I'll lose it," his eyes said. She felt a surge of pride at it, then quickly chastised herself. He wouldn't have to suffer through it like this if it weren't for her. Besides, what right did she have feeling proud? It wasn't her place. She was foolish and ridiculous and...
"There," she said, pointing her finger ahead, grateful the miserable trek was almost over. "It's right over that last rise. If you listen you can hear it."
Tenet gave a nod. "I'll listen when we're sitting next to it," he said through clenched teeth. He couldn't let his relief take over the adrenaline. He put his head down and marched forward. "One more step," he told himself over and over.
Scarab heard him chant the mantra. She didn't think he knew his was speaking out loud and said nothing. When they pushed through the scrub bushes that lined the river, he finally gave up and slid to the sand with almost no sound. Scarab stripped her pack and knelt beside him. He definitely had a high fever. She opened his shirt and tugged off his pack. She rolled him enough to push one of his extra shirts under his head as a pillow and took the third shirt to the river to get it wet. She wrung out the water and placed the cool, damp shirt around his forehead, knowing she had to get his body temperature down. With that done, the next step was getting the pants off again, a task far more difficult with him dead-weight. Relief flooded through her when she noticed that the wound was still awful, but no worse than earlier. She patted his good thigh. "You're one strong bastard, I'll give you that."
Scarab let out a long sigh. It felt good to speak out loud, helped her calm down. "Wish you told me what to do before you passed out." She knew basic first aid, of course. She knew how to raid the nearest farmstead for the proper medicine or equipment to treat a myriad of diseases, injuries, and ailments. They didn't have a farmstead, though. They had no equipment. They were utterly on their own, completely reliant on whatever Tenet packed for first aid supplies. She pulled his pack closer and rummaged through until she found the white life-saving box. "Please, please let him have been anal about this one thing," she whispered to the sky before opening the kit.
Silver compound, thread, needles, syringes filled with...something. Packets of dried herbs. She snorted at that. "Fat load of good that does me." He'd have to wake up and tell her what they were before she knew if they'd be useful. That explained the need for water, though. She shuffled through the many little herb packets and her hands brushed a small bottle. She picked it up and read the label, then grinned when she saw it was a common antibiotic. "Good boy!"
Setting the supplies aside, she stood and looked around for enough dead wood to make a fire. Even though the water looked clear and clean, she'd still have to boil the water before adding the antibiotic liquid to it to create a poultice for his leg. Working as quickly as she could, she made the fire, scrubbed the dried coffee bits out of the pot with some wet sand, and put the water on to boil while she got Tenet's forehead rag wet with fresh, cool water. His head was still hot, but cooler, and she knew getting him undressed had been the right thing to do.
While Scarab was straining to read the tiny printed directions on the bottle of medicine, Tenet woke with a start. "We made it," he said weakly.
"Yes. Now lie still."
"Thirsty," he croaked out.
She jumped up and got out her canteen, holding his head up so he could drink.
"How's it looking?" he asked after a long gulp.
"Better than it was an hour ago, that's for damn sure." Hearing his voice so strong and clear gave her a buoyant feeling. "And you woke up just in time to tell me what the hell I'm supposed to do."
"There's some bactinated tincture in my pack..."
She held up the bottle. "Got it."
"Get some water boiling..."
"Check. Next?"
He gave a little laugh. "I like an eager student." He pushed up on his elbow and winced. "I need the scarlet pinnacle leaves," he said, sobering with the pain.
"Which are they?"
"They're labeled."
Scarab looked through the little packets until she found it. "Got it."
"Now, take three leaves and put them in the water."
"Add the tincture?"
"No. Not yet." He watched Scarab walk to the fire and count out three leaves. "Now take it off the fire and let it steep for about twenty minutes."
"I don't have a watch."
"They leaves will turn brown and soft when they're ready." He pushed himself up further. "Besides, we need to get this cleaned and stitched first, and that'll take at least that long."
Scarab looked horrified. "If we stitch you first we'll just be sealing in the infection!"
He shook his head. "Won't matter. We've got to fight it from the inside at this point, and I'll leave a gap for drainage anyway." When Scarab said nothing, he looked up and almost laughed at her horrified expression. "It'll be fine. I've got a plan. Prop me with my pack and give me the first aid kit."
Scarab jumped to help, and in a few minutes had assisted in setting up the needle and thread for suturing. He took the cap off one of the syringes. "What is that?" she asked.
Tenet took a quick couple breaths, steeling himself from the pain he was about to cause his own leg, then stabbed the needle into his upper thigh, releasing a string of curses loud enough to drown out the sounds of the river. He leaned back and panted, spent. Without a word, Scarab pulled the needle from him, then wiped his forehead again with the wet shirt.
"That was morphine," he panted. "And I've only got a few more minutes before I'm looped out on it." He pushed up and took the little bottle of the tincture. He opened it and dribbled some directly in the wound, glad the morphine was already taking the edge off. Still, it burned like a
bastard and he asked Scarab to flush it with fresh water. Once that was done, he dribbled more tincture on it and writhed with the burn. Scarab bent down to blow on it, trying to lessen the sting, and Tenet almost laughed. It was like trying to dam a river with a pebble. Things started to wobble in his vision. "Aw hell."
"What? What's the matter?"
"I...I can't...it's all woozy on me. I don't have enough time."
She swallowed hard and squeezed her fists tight. "What do I need to do?"
"Sew it. Best you can. One loop, knot, snip. Do another. Weevil put 'em all together like I was a blankie." Tenet's words were starting to slur and his eyes were getting droopy. "'S why they ripped. Do one at a time."
"How many? Come on, Tenet. Stay with me! How many stitches do I put in?"
Tenet was fading fast. He felt her shake him by the arms and almost shout her commands in an attempt to keep him awake. "At least ten," he answered, forcing his mouth and mind to work together for just a few more minutes. "The more the merrier."
"What do I do with the boiled water?"
"Add the stuff." He nodded off again and she shook him hard.
"Goddamn it Tenet stay awake just one more minute! What do I do with it?"
"I gotta drink it." His eyes popped open and focused for just a second. His hand found hers and he gave it a squeeze. "You got this, wife."
Scarab was so startled she let go of his arms and he flopped back, rolling off his pack. She moved the pack, then pulled him over, laying him flat on his back. The sun was starting to set and she knew she had less than an hour to get this done. "You got this," her internal voice insisted, echoing Tenet's words. She took a deep breath, picked up the needle, and hoped her best was good enough.
By the time fifteen mostly neat little stitches were in place, she was covered in sweat and shaking. There was room for one more stitch, but he had said something about leaving a gap for drainage. She hesitated a second before deciding to leave it. The stitching was done and she sat back on her heels and shook with relief. She did it. The worst was done.
After a quick drink of cold water, she poured a little of the tincture directly on the fresh stitches, then applied a smear of silver compound to keep out any dirt. Once it was wrapped, good and tight this time, Scarab combined some of the remaining tincture with the steeped herbal tea. She dipped a cup in, not really knowing how much to give him, then awkwardly propped his head on her knee as she tried to get him to drink some.
"Dammit Tenet, open your mouth right now!" She hadn't meant to yell, and she almost felt bad for it. But when his eyes popped open and he moaned, she yelled again. "Come on, you bastard! You made me do all the dirty work but I can't do this part for you." He gave a little snort, which she had to assume was his best attempt at a laugh, and then opened his mouth enough to swallow. He nodded off quickly, only able to take a few sips, but she knew it was the best he could do at that moment.
Scarab eased out from under him, then set about making a better camp. Tenet needed to be on the blanket, not the sand, and it took nearly the rest of her strength to roll and shift him back and forth until it was underneath. Panting with exhaustion, she looked around the little area. There was so much she wanted to do to make them a better set up. She wasn't sure what wildlife was around, and neither had eaten much at all that day. She should get up and at least try to fish. Or gather firewood. She was simply too spent to do either. In the end, she unrolled her own bedroll on top of them and nestled against Tenet's side.
Sometime in the night, Tenet cried out and Scarab bolted up, her hand on her gun ready for whatever was about to attack. In the faint light of the moon she couldn't see anything, and after the rush of adrenaline-fueled blood calmed, she couldn't hear anything, either. The fire had gone nearly out, and she cursed herself for letting that happen. She stumbled around looking for the pile of branches she had quickly gathered earlier and heaped them on top of the coals. Crossing her fingers and puffing with all her might, she soon had the fire back to a decent level.
Tenet cried out again. Scarab hurried to check his bandages. There was no sign of bleeding. She gave a mental cheer for herself and grabbed the cup of tea. "Come on, Tenet. Let's have some of this."
He mumbled, his head tossing to the side.
"Tenet. Come on." She pulled his head back towards her and was relieved to find it covered with sweat and cool to the touch. She couldn't help the grin. "You tough little bastard," she said with a laugh. A heavy weight was lifted from her. She knew right then that he would make it through. She eventually got him to drink a few sips of the cold, nasty smelling concoction, then she slipped back under the covers beside him and fell into a much deeper sleep.
Tenet was the first to wake in the morning, coming out of his haze slowly. He felt as if he was floating at first, his head swimming and his eyes blurry. He closed his eyes tightly as the throb in his leg cut through the fog and brought him to full consciousness. He took a deep breath, then another, trying to concentrate on anything besides the pain. His last memory was of watching Scarab walk away from him. He was proud that he held it together that long before it all went blank. He could hear the river, so they somehow made it. And the brightness on the other side of his closed eyelids meant it was still day. Or the next day? Where was Scarab?
Tenet opened his eyes and blinked over and over until the waving leaves and bright sky overhead came into focus. He turned his head to the side and saw a cup sitting nearby and suddenly realized just how thirsty he was. He tried to move his arm, but was so weak he found the task nearly impossible. His mind instantly flashed back to that day a couple months ago when he lay helpless in his own back yard, thinking he was crippled and bent and broken when he had no more than a case of dehydration and an arm that fell asleep. As embarrassing as it was to be found in that pathetic condition, he wished his problems this time were as mild as then.
He took a deep breath and willed his body to move. Again, nothing happened. It was as if something was holding him in place. He turned his head and found out exactly what that was. Scarab was sleeping, her arm and leg over his, holding him and snoring softly. He wasn't sure if he was still sleeping or not, and blinked several times. She was still there. It was real. Suddenly he didn't want to move at all.
Scarab came awake with a start and lifted her head up. The motion made Tenet think of the prairie dogs they had on the farm and he couldn't help but laugh.
"You're awake." She blinked at him, trying to get her bearings. It was full light. She'd slept far too long. And he was already awake and probably miserable with pain and... Before she could chide herself further she jumped up and away from him, and Tenet instantly felt the loss of her beside him. She rubbed her eyes and squatted down on the other side of him. "You should have woken me," she snapped.
Tenet knew she was embarrassed and the thought intrigued him. He tried to speak, but couldn't get any words past his dry lips. She took the cup to the pot next to the fire and refilled it, then came back.
"Can you sit?" she asked.
He honestly didn't know, but planned on giving it his best shot. He pushed up on his elbows, wincing at the movement. She was there, helping, her arm under his neck guiding him up. He felt the hard support of his pack being shoved behind him and heard her order to lean back. She was so close, leaning over him, holding him...
"Tenet," she snapped again. "Focus."
He felt the cold rim of the cup against his lip and opened and began taking big gulps of the horrid elixir. He'd never had to drink it himself and always thought the people who did were being babies when they complained of the foul burn. He'd never think badly of them again. He drank as much as he could tolerate, then shook his head when his stomach clenched. "Enough," he said.
Scarab frowned down at him. "How much are you supposed to drink for this crap to work?"
"I'd say about that much," he lied. He cleared his throat and pushed up higher, feeling a little stronger and definitely more focused.
&nbs
p; Scarab was studying him silently, still squatting on her heels. She was assessing him and he suddenly felt naked. She saw him start to squirm and gave his shoulder a pat before rising. "I'll be right back, then we'll see about your leg."
Tenet heard her make her way to the bushes, glad to have her penetrating look off him. He must look as bad as he felt and wished he could clean up. The thought made him laugh in its absurdity.
"What's so funny?" she asked, tucking her shirt back into her pants. He watched her walk to the river and wash her hands, then cup the water and take a big drink before splashing another handful over her face. She wiped the water off with her sleeve then stood and turned back to him. "Okay. Let's see what the night did."
As soon as she moved the blanket, Tenet realized he was all but naked. He felt the heat creep into his face.
"I did the best I could," she said, slowly unwinding the bandage, pausing when he winced.
"Do it," he urged through clenched teeth.
Scarab hesitated only a second before ripping the bandage off all at once. She shouldn't have paused at all and she knew it. She never would have for anyone else, and the thought was disturbing. Keeping her head down so he couldn't see the immediate flush in her face, she began to examine the wound. There was some seeping out of the tiny, un-stitched sliver, but the rest looked better than it had the night before.
Tenet leaned forward enough to see her handiwork, ignoring the sudden burn and throb the action produced. Not bad, he admitted to himself. Even stitches. Perhaps a few more than was strictly necessary, but it would make less of a scar. And silver compound over the top...brilliant! He didn't know that he would have thought to use the burn cream in that application, but it made sense. He glanced up to find Scarab staring at him intently.
"Well?" she asked quietly.
Scarab needed his reassurance. The thought hit him hard. For the first time, he truly felt like she valued his opinion. He cleared his throat and nodded. "It looks great."
The relief on Scarab's face was unmistakable and she couldn't hide her smile. She turned and busied herself with preparing a clean bandage. "Should I put some of this over it?" she asked, holding up the tincture.
"No. We better save that in case we need it again. There's not much left."
She frowned. "Sorry. I didn't know how much to use."
"Not your fault," he said quickly. "I should have bought more."
She smeared more silver compound over the wound. "It's not as red as yesterday," she commented. "Or as hot."
She was insecure and needed more from him. The revelation stunned Tenet. She actually needed something from him for a change. "You did a great job. I don't know if I could have done such a field dressing."
Scarab shot him a wry smile. "Yeah, sure. I've seen your work for myself."
"In a stead with equipment and proper medicine," he insisted. He took her hand and gave it a small squeeze. "Trust me. You did great."
Scarab realized that he picked up on her vulnerability and felt a fresh wave of humiliation burn. She pulled her hand away and stood, quickly putting distance between them. She struggled for something to say that would put them on more familiar and comfortable territory. "You...you need to eat something," she blurted, then turned to the packs.
Tenet wanted to press the issue, wanted to talk her back into that intimate moment they just shared, but he knew she wouldn't allow that. Besides, it would take more energy than he had. His fever may have broken and the worst passed, but he felt weaker than he ever had in his life. He found he didn't even have the energy to tell her he didn't think he could handle any food. He slid a bit lower into a more comfortable position and simply watched her. He never just watched her work before, and it was clear with her concise and exact movements that she was in her element.
Scarab knew he was watching her and still felt the embarrassment of vulnerability, but decided that work would get things back on track. She built the fire up quickly, large enough to boil more water. The disgusting medicinal tea was poured into Tenet's cup to drink later, and the pot was once again scrubbed with sand and rinsed in the river. When it was clean, she dipped it in and filled it halfway with fresh water, then put it on the fire to heat. With that accomplished, she rummaged in her pack to pull out the bag of protein cubes. Three of them went into the water, then she tossed one more in when her stomach rumbled. They both needed as much nutrition as they could get, and she did plan on foraging and fishing later. Within moments, the cubes began to dissolve in the quickly heating water. Once it got to a full boil, she pulled the pot off and dipped her own cup in. She poured a bit of cold water from her canteen in to cool it off, then knelt by Tenet and helped him sit forward.
Tenet didn't know which tasted worse, the tincture tea or the protein broth. He took several sips, glad for the heat of it even if it tasted horrible. The warm liquid unclenched his cramped stomach and filled him with a comfortable sleepiness. "That's all I can do," he whispered as his eyelids grew heavy again. He felt her lower his head and then faded back out of consciousness.
Scarab was very pleased he'd stayed awake so long. And she was equally pleased that he passed back out. She needed some time alone to get her own thoughts back in order and get this journey back on track. She drank down her own broth slowly, not minding the taste at all. She was used to it. How many times had a warm cup of protein cube broth saved her life in the winters? The liquid revitalized her, and by the time she was rinsing her cup and pot in the river, she felt better than she had in days. The sun was warming the area quickly, and while the fire wouldn't be necessary for heat, it was doing a great job of keeping away mosquitoes. First order of business was to gather more wood.
"No," she thought, catching a whiff of herself. The very first order of business was a bath. A glance at Tenet told her he was still fully out, and she was sure he would be for awhile. She got clean clothes ready and placed them next to the bank as she peeled off the sweaty, filthy clothes she'd been in for three long, hot days. The cold water caught her breath as she waded in, but she pushed forward until she was waist deep. One bracing deep breath, then she dove under. She came up almost giggling with the rush of cold abandon, a sudden memory taking her back to one of the happy days of childhood. Her little sister loved to swim. Their mother called her "the little angel fish". She'd stay in the river next to their stead as long as possible, from dawn to dusk in the summers if their mother allowed. "Swim with me, Emma," she'd say as she splashed around. It was so real, she had to squeeze her eyes closed against the haunting words from so long ago. She pushed herself up and back out to the bank, the ache in her chest that she managed to ignore for years suddenly threatening to swamp her if she stayed and let it hurt.
Out of the water, Scarab sat on a rock to let the air dry her, hugging her knees to her chest and watching Tenet for any signs he was waking. He began to snore and for some reason, it took some of the heaviness away. She idly stroked the thin red scar on her chest. She wasn't being modest when she told him his skills at healing were superior to hers. Equipment and medicine could only speed the healing, but it took someone who really knew what they were doing to take the jagged flesh she knew she had after the wraith attack and put it back together almost as if it never happened. His own scarring would be far worse, even though the wound wasn't nearly as large. She felt the guilt of it again. She'd have to apologize to him for driving him so hard when she was angry. Perhaps the infection was inevitable, she admitted to herself. But it was still her own need for distance and revenge that brought it about so horribly.
Tenet let out a loud snore and shifted in his sleep. Scarab watched from her perch and thought back to the first time she met him. He lay pathetically useless in the ashy sands of his father's corn ranch, babbling about broken bones or some shit. Scarab gave a little laugh. How quickly things changed. She wondered if the Tenet she first met, that whiny, pampered, spoiled kid could have lasted five minutes with a wound like he had now. She couldn't imagine the bellya
ching she would have had to endure. So much had changed in such a short time, and Scarab couldn't help but feel bad for that. She meant what she had told him earlier. She never wanted him to get hard like her. If he did, then he wouldn't be Tenet. She was sorry she had to be the one to toughen him up. But facts were facts and life didn't usually leave room for choice. He had to toughen up, and he was. She knew he had to be in incredible pain with his stitches ripped open from the muscle-deep wound. And did he stop? Did he lay in the ashes and whine again? No, he didn't. For some reason, that just made her guilt so much worse. She would have to make it up to him. She would have to apologize, she just had no idea how.
Sighing heavily, Scarab got off the rock and quickly dressed, then gathered all the dirty clothes and set about scrubbing them against the rocks. She didn't have soap, but the worst of the dirt and sweat would come out anyway. She swapped out the shirt under his head for one of his pair of clean pants and added all three shirts to the wash. He could stay under the blanket for the day if he was cold, and by night the shirts would be dry. When the clothes were as clean as they were going to get, she wrung them out and laid them over the scrub bushes near the river bank to dry in the hot summer sun.
That task done, Scarab looked around and considered what to do next. They needed a better shelter and they needed food. She hadn't actually fished since she was a child and thought hard about the experience. It seemed that they always fished in the morning or the evening, so she decided to work on the shelter first and hope her memory was correct. Taking a large knife off her belt, she went into the forest and began hacking down evergreen branches. The work was slow and hot, and several times after she dragged a load back to the bank, she stopped to dunk her head into the river and take a long drink. By early afternoon, though, she had enough large branches to construct the frame of a makeshift shelter, and enough small branches to work together to create a roof. The sun worked itself around to shine directly down on the camp, and she was very pleased to note that the shelter shielded Tenet from the burning rays.
Food was next. It was hot afternoon, and she didn't think she'd have much luck fishing yet, so she started walking up the river bank, looking for any edible vegetation. Though she wasn't an expert in edible plants in this particular region, she did recognize blackberries. She returned to the camp to get the pot, then backtracked and filled it with the tart fruit. She didn't care for them very much, but they were full of vitamins. Besides, Tenet loved all that fresh crap. She rinsed them in the river, then set them to the side of the fire, planning on cooking them to a soft fruit soup he'd have an easier time eating.
That done, Scarab determined that it was cool enough in the late afternoon to try fishing. She cut down a long stick from the edge of the forest and tied some of the first aid thread around the end, tugging hard to make sure it wouldn't wiggle off. Satisfied that it would stay put, she tapped her fingers on her lap wondering what to use for a hook. She remembered the empty morphine syringe. She took it to the river and pulled the plunger, then pushed it out over and over to clean any remaining medicine from the needle. It was thin and not very strong, but with a little heat from the fire, she was able to bend it into a nasty, sharp hook. She took her knife and cut the syringe just above the needle, leaving a circle of plastic to tie the string to. For bait, she dug around under the rocks until she found a grub, then held her breath and threw her line into the water.
Fishing was a trial of patience. Scarab remembered that about half an hour later when she was sitting on the rock, dangling her feet in the water, and about to give up in frustration. All that work to make a pole and hook for nothing. She sighed heavily and pulled the line in for the umpteenth time. One more, she told herself, and then she'd give up for the night. It was starting to get darker and she'd need to wake Tenet to feed him. He hadn't woken for more than five minutes the rest of the day, and only then to croak for some water. She swatted a mosquito off her leg. That did it. Time to get closer to the fire and...
There was a quick, sharp tug on her line. Thinking it had snagged on yet another rock, she pulled it harder. When she felt a wiggling tug in response, she jumped up and flicked her wrist, launching her line and the fish on the end up the banking between two rocks behind her. It wasn't graceful, but she didn't care. It worked! With a hoot of excitement, she scrambled over the brush and pinned the flopping fish with her foot. She unclipped her knife and made a cut right behind the head, causing the fish to jitter for only a second more before going still. She grabbed the slippery trophy and held it above her head. "Ha! Gotcha you mother..."
Tenet's bark of laughter cut her off. Instead of being embarrassed at being caught so excited over something so small, she held her fish in his direction. "I got us dinner!" She looked at the fish. Though she hadn't eaten a fresh fish in ages and couldn't begin to tell what kind it was, the plumpness and overall length promised a good dinner. Her stomach rumbled. After a day of work, she needed it. It took a few minutes and a few hacking attempts as she tried to remember how to clean her prey, but soon the head and guts were tossed into the river for Nature to eat and she was running a stick through the spine to dangle their meal over the fire.
Tenet was sitting almost completely up. His eyes were clear and shiny in the fire light, no signs of fever remaining. He had the top blanket draped around his shoulders, and his bare legs were stretched towards the fire. "I've never had fish," he said. When Scarab grinned up at him, he frowned. "Not intentionally, anyway."
She didn't have to say that some of the protein bars they ate contained fish. Her look said it all. "How long have you been awake?"
"Long enough to admire our posh new house." He waved a hand at the shelter above them.
"Like it?"
Tenet shrugged. "It could use a throw pillow. Maybe some paint."
Scarab's gaze instantly met his, and he gave a wink and a laugh. "I see you're feeling better," she said with a wry smile.
"Much," Tenet confirmed.
"Good." She moved the stick over to make room for the pot of berries on the fire. "I found some blackberries down the way. Thought you might appreciate a little fresh food."
"Thanks." They sat in silence for a few minutes before he shifted and caught a flash of his bare leg in the firelight. "Uh, could I have some clothes?"
"Shit!" she said, jumping up. "I forgot the clothes!" She raced into the darkening night and he heard rustling, swearing, and a splash...followed by more swearing. When she came back in the firelight, she was frowning and carrying a wad of clothes under one arm while holding a dripping pair of pants out away from her with the other. "Well, most of them are dry." She tossed him a shirt and pants, then flung the wet pants off to the side. She'd worry about them tomorrow. "We should look at your wound before you get dressed."
"Already did. It's looking good."
"How long were you awake?"
Long enough to watch her in the setting sun, the light in her hair as she set her jaw in determination to get them a fish. He wouldn't tell her that, though. He wouldn't tell her how much he'd watched. "I woke up thirsty and then had to find a bush."
"I didn't even hear you."
He shrugged off her discomfort. He knew she'd chastise herself for not being more alert. "You were next to the river. Drowned out the noise." Her frown deepened. "Let it go, Scarab. I was obviously fine, right? And I would have called if I needed help." He pushed himself up, only wincing slightly, and she turned back to the fire, suddenly intent on cooking.
Tenet smiled to himself as he pulled on his pants, then the shirt. In truth, he was feeling worlds better. The tea did its job and he knew the infection was already receding, and her stitches were holding nicely. He knew he couldn't do any serious traveling for a few days yet, but he could, and should, start moving around. "That scarlet pinnacle is potent stuff. I should have gotten more of it. Do you think they'll have it in the Borderlands?" He sat back down carefully, finding a comfortable position for his leg.
"I have n
o idea," she said, poking at the fish. "I don't know anything about plants."
He gave a nod. "I'm sure they'll have something like it. Do they have healers up there?"
"Of course," she said, wiping her hands on her pants. "People get sick up there probably far more than they do in your neck of the woods." She poured some water into their cups and handed him one. "You need any more of that leafy crap?"
He grinned. "No. I don't need more leafy crap." He took a long sip of the cold water. "If they have healers," he said, continuing his thought. "Then they must have medicines."
"Of course."
"What about equipment?"
Scarab felt a comforting relief inside. He truly was feeling better if he was peppering her with questions again. "Why the sudden interest in the medical capabilities of the Borderlands?"
He gave a little shrug and leaned back. "Just thinking about what I can do up there. I highly doubt I'll make it as a tomato farmer," he finished drolly.
Scarab laughed outright at that. "Why? You farmed corn. How different can it be?"
He spat out his water, completely flabbergasted. "How different can it be? How different can it be!?"
"Growing's growing, right?"
Was she even serious? "That is the most ignorant thing I have ever heard you say."
Scarab rolled her eyes. "Oh, here we go with professor time..."
Tenet crossed his arms over his chest. "You're damn right it is. I'd think as the wife of a tomato farmer, you'd want to know just a little about the basics of growing plants." He tsk-ed and shook his head. "How different can it be," he muttered in disgust.
Scarab sighed. "Fine. Lesson time. But eat your dinner while you talk." She handed him over a cup of the mashed berries and a portion of fish on a leaf. They spent the remainder of their waking evening hours deep in conversation about the differences in growing plants.
They spent the next day deep in conversation about the different types of tomatoes and the environmental requirements.
They spent the day after with Tenet following her around explaining soils, and drainage, and water, and fertilizer, and Scarab trying desperately to concentrate on absolutely anything else.
By the third day, Scarab had enough of plants, seeds, and soil to last a lifetime. When Tenet asked her to once again recite for him the specific requirements for the optimal production of roma tomatoes, she'd had it.
"Stick the seeds in a pile of shit and let it rain on them forever!" She bellowed, snatching the clothes off a bush and cramming them into her pack. "That's how you grow them. Just like you grow corn. And wheat. And alfalfa sprouts and every other stupid plant!"
Tenet blinked in surprise. "I...uh...suppose you've probably had your fill on..uh...growing."
She turned and put her hand on her hip, her eyes burning into him. "Ya think?"
They just stared at each other for a few tense seconds before she burst out laughing. Tenet wasn't sure if she went off the deep end, and his wary look fueled her laughter.
After a few minutes she wiped her eyes. "Oh shit, Tenet. Your face. It was like I told you I kicked your puppy."
Tenet sighed heavily. "Make a joke of it. Go ahead. It was only my life's work. Not important or anything like that."
The close isolation of the camp had got the better of her. The laughter at his expense took the tension out of it and she no longer wanted to strangle him. "Sorry, Tenet. I wasn't making fun of your life's work, as you put it. I know agro's important to you."
"And it should be important to you, too. If we're going to pass for tomato farmers..."
"Failed tomato farmers," Scarab corrected.
"Even failed tomato farmers know the basics," Tenet pointed out. "If you go in there completely ignorant of..."
"Alright!" she said, putting her hands up. "I give. You're correct. Now, I think three straight days of talking about seeds, dirt, and shit has given me the basics, okay? I've got it."
Tenet's anger faded and he gave her a small smile. "I guess it is kind of overkill to talk about it for three straight days."
Her cocked eyebrow was her only answer. "Come on. Help me tear down the shelter before we head out."
"Why tear it down?"
"Why erase your tracks through the ash?"
"Ah," said Tenet, seeing what she was getting at. "So no one can find us. Right." He grabbed the branches from the roof and started pulling them apart like Scarab. He watched her fling them randomly away, and he did the same. "I didn't think we were still hiding tracks."
"Circumstances made it so that wasn't a top priority." Scarab walked to the river and tossed a larger support branch as far as she could into the water. She picked off a chunk of pine pitch off her palm, then rinsed her hands in the water while she considered keeping it to herself just how sloppy they had been. She had been, her mind corrected. She was the one who had been sloppy, not Tenet, and she wouldn't place any of that blame on him. She watched him for a second, kicking the ashes from the fire into the sands around it, still stiff in one leg but clearly determined. "It's not going to fool anyone who's been trained."
Tenet looked around, trying with a critical eye to see signs of human camp. "I don't know. I think it kind of looks like a storm hit or something."
Scarab smiled to herself. Okay, agro boy. Payback time. This equality thing could be fun. "Have you ever seen a storm that hit fifty feet of sheltered riverbank and nowhere else?"
"We threw those sticks pretty far."
"I'm not talking about just the sticks." She walked to where the campfire had been. "There's ash."
"It's blended. By the time that sun hits, it'll dry it out and..."
"And anyone can still smell it a mile away. The only reason you can't is because we've been around it for days. We've gotten used to the smell."
"Should I bury it deeper?"
"You could."
Tenet used the side of his foot to push fresh sand up and over where the fire had been. "There."
"Fine. Now step back and take a look at the shore line."
Tenet did, then frowned. Everything was flat and smooth and tapered down to the water except the hill of fresh sand. It stuck out like a sore thumb. "Okay," he said with a smile. "You got me. How do we cover that?"
"We don't. We can't. There is absolutely nothing you could do right now to cover up the fact that we had fires here. Feel how humid it is? The smell has seeped into the damp wood around us. Even if you could successfully hide that ash pile, even if you spent hours carting it to the river then smoothed it over with bucket of water, the smell is still hanging around in the moss, in the grass, in the wood..."
Tenet scoffed. "Then what do we do?"
"Don't have fires. If we want to hide from a hunter, that's what we do." She glanced up at the sky. "Also, we get moving. We've been here far too long."
"I'm all for that." Tenet picked up his pack and hoisted it onto his back, giving a small grunt. While the days of rest were both needed and appreciated, the month of constant activity had worked itself into his psyche and he was itching to move.
"You let me know if the pace is too much."
It wasn't a question. "I will," Tenet promised.
She hoped he would, but doubted it. There was a stubborn streak in this man she was learning contradicted her initial impressions of him. Over and over he proved to her that he was just as determined as she was, even if the reasons behind his layer of steel were different. "I mean it, Tenet. It'll do far more harm if you push it too hard and backslide..."
Tenet let out a long suffering sigh. "Anything else, Mom?"
Scarab clamped her lips shut and turned around, starting their march along the river.
"Why are we following the river?"
"Because it's got a nice scrubby bank for hundreds of yards," she said over her shoulder. "It'll hide track better."
"Won't it take us out of our way?"
Scarab had to laugh at that. "Consider it a back street instead of the paved golden road
we were following."
Tenet kept his eyes lowered, a trick she taught him early to keep from getting a headache from the constantly moving scenery, and bit back a smile at her sarcasm. His leg was slowly shaking off the stiffness of immobility, and even though he was limping slightly, he was sure the wound wasn't going to be a problem again. He stumbled over a loose rock and decided to keep his mind on the task at hand.
They walked along the bank in silence, picking their way over increasingly slippery rocks. The river narrowed and sped up, causing the rocks to be wet from the spray and roiling splash of the faster water. Tenet didn't know how many miles they'd traveled. It was hard to tell when the pace was so different than that of plowing through the flat fields of ash, a nice well-traveled road, or even a path through a thick forest.
"We can't keep this up," Scarab said loudly to be heard over the rushing water. She turned and made her way through the scrub and up a small hill to a thin stand of white barked trees.
Tenet had never seen anything like them and stopped to have a look. He ran his hand over the smooth, pretty bark. "What are these?"
"Trees," she said before taking a long swig from her canteen.
Tenet rolled his eyes. "Thanks. I never would have guessed."
She shrugged. "Anytime. Take a drink. How's your leg?"
"It's fine."
"Need a rest?"
Tenet shook his head. "No."
"Good, because we're only about a few miles from the camp. The river turned nasty faster than I thought it would. Hungry?"
He shook his head, took a drink of water, then snapped the canteen back on his belt. "So where do we go now?"
"North following the river. The trees are thinning, so we'll have to cut East by the looks before too long."
"Why?"
"There's no cover in the thin trees. I'd prefer to stick to something a little more substantial."
To Tenet, that made no sense. "We had no covering at all up on the mountain."
"Yes, but the mountain peak gave us an excellent vantage point. It was a strategic trade-off."
Tenet hadn't thought about that. "I guess that makes sense."
"Yes. Now, if the tracking lesson is over, let's see if we can eat up a few more miles before we're done for the day."
"We can talk and walk," he suggested.
"Or we can just walk and walk."
Tenet sighed. "I can't help it if I like a little conversation with my boredom."
Scarab let out a bark of laughter. "No shit. I didn't notice."
She had begun to walk, and Tenet scrambled to catch up. "What's wrong with talking?"
"I just prefer to keep business business, that's all."
"I'm not business anymore," he said, sounding hurt.
She stopped and turned to him. "That's not what I meant. This, this is my business." She waved a hand around them. "Moving. Running. Having somewhere to be as quickly and efficiently as possible, and keeping two things in mind the entire time: get there safe, get there unseen. That's what bounty hunting is. It's what I know."
"And you can't do that while talking?"
"Not to the best of my ability, no."
Tenet crossed his arms over his chest. "You've been talking the last three days," he pointed out.
She had to laugh at that. "No, I'm pretty sure it was you doing the talking, Captain Agro. I was trying my hardest to tune you out."
He wasn't offended. He knew it the whole time.
"Besides, we weren't running then." She looked so annoyed that Tenet felt he had to apologize. "Why?" she asked quickly. "It's not your fault. It's mine. I dropped the ball and had to make up for it." At Tenet's frown, she turned abruptly and began walking. "The point is," she said quickly. "We are running now. And we need to remember the goal. Get there safe, get there unseen."
"That was when we were facing bots. And govers."
His words stopped Scarab cold. "Tenet," she said when she could get her mouth to move through the shock. "What in the hell makes you think we're not?"
"Well I..." He blinked. "I...thought that..." His heart began to race at the idea. "I thought we were safe."
"We're still in no man's land. Just because citizens aren't allowed here doesn't mean the govers will keep out." She poked his chest. "They still want you dead."
"Weevil said that my transmitter would prove my death."
"No. It'll prove your signal stopped transmitting. Where's the body? That's what they're going to demand of Weevil. And when he can't produce..."
Tenet's face paled. "We have to go back."
"What?"
"We have to go back. We can't let them kill Weevil."
Scarab felt like strangling him. "Weevil can handle himself. There's no way in hell we're turning back."
Tenet ran a shaking hand through his hair. While it was true that Weevil was an odd creature and creepy as hell, he did help the pair. He didn't deserve to die. "What if he can't? What if he can't get himself out of this one?"
"Then it'll be karma for all the times he should have gotten his ass handed to him."
Tenet was floored. "How can you say that about your friend?"
She couldn't explain it to him. She knew he simply did not have it in him to believe the harsher side of humanity. Did Weevil deserve death? No, not for this one. But she wasn't kidding. There were dozens of horrible things he should have been called to task for in his past, and if Fate saw this as her opportunity to even the score, so be it. Weevil himself would say the same damn thing. It was simply how life really worked. She was both driven to the peak of frustration and oddly touched at the same time that Tenet still couldn't understand that. "We're not going back, Tenet," she said with as much kindness as she could.
"We could save him."
Time for the truth, even if it made her feel like shit to say it. "First off, if they had plans on killing Weevil, then he's already dead. As soon as your tracking chip stopped at his location, you can bet your ass they scrambled to hand out the bounties and get a team together." Tenet looked as if he was going to be sick. She grabbed his arms. "Listen to me, Tenet. Weevil's the best at talking himself out of situations. There's no one better to wriggle out of the noose of the govers, okay? I am choosing to think he conned his way on out of it."
"We'll never know, will we?" His voice was quiet and heavy.
"No. We won't. What we do know is that he easily could have refused Hark access. He could have turned his back. He could have turned us in. And he did none of those things, of his own choice. He picked the path."
Tenet scoffed. "Some choice he had! If I hadn't..."
She could not let him wallow. "Don't you even start on that bullshit. Everyone involved so far has been a willing participant, everyone knew the stakes." He went to turn away but she squeezed his arms tighter and gave a little shake. "Listen to me, Tenet! Forget Weevil. Forget Hark and Enna. Tell yourself that they handled themselves the same way they've done for twenty years and are already off on the next adventure."
His face twisted in disgust. "Just forget them? Just like that? These people put their lives on the line for me and I..." he swallowed hard. "And I was too selfish and stupid to realize that. And now after I most likely get them killed, I'm just supposed to forget them." He tugged his arms free from her grasp. "I'm sorry, but I don't work like that."
Tenet didn't have to say what he really meant, that he didn't work like "her". It hung there between them and Scarab wondered why it hurt. She clenched her jaw, pushing the pain aside. There wasn't time for emotion. It was time to be the hunter. "Fine," she said firmly. "Brood and mope all you want. I'll be happy to get things back to the way they should be. You can stomp and sulk and I'll get us to the Borderlands safe and unseen. Because that's where we are going. We will not turn around. We will not throw everything they've done for us out the window. We won't dare dishonor their trust and courage like that." By the time she was finished speaking, she was seething. Her words worked up her into the anger they b
oth needed her to feel. "Now shut up and move out," she said coldly, turning and stomping off.
Tenet set his jaw. He wasn't moping, he was just feeling guilty. Hadn't Scarab ever felt guilt clutch at her gut before? Felt sorry for what she'd done? During the past week with her, he saw so many glints of humanity. At Weevil's, there was something that truly called him to her. That night on the mountain, she kept him warm. He felt something then. And the past days at the camp, he knew she was worried about him. He knew she wasn't just "doing what she had to" like she insisted. He knew there was a caring side because as he grew to know her, she couldn't hide it, not always.
Now she spoke of friends as if they were nothing, less than nothing. Was there truth to her words? Some, and he couldn't ignore that. The two of them did need to push forward, if for no other reason than getting her to safety and settling his debt. He did have a conscience. Even if he couldn't offer anything to Weevil, Hark, and Enna beyond the credits he'd already given, he could fully settle the score with Scarab. Get to Borderlands, get there safe, get there unseen. That, he could do. Follow the cold, hard hunter in silence? Gladly.
They rested three times through the day, each a bone of contention for Tenet, whose arguments against the unnecessary breaks were summarily ignored. Scarab simply sat down and waited for him to do the same. Twice she offered food, and he took it. He became determined to follow her lead and do what he was supposed to. He refused to add yet another layer of guilt.
Scarab knew what he was doing. In fact, she could even tell what he was thinking. He had the most expressive face of any bounty she'd ever had, and reading him was easy. He was feeling guilty. This whole mess really was his own fault, and that's what his mind latched on to because that was the kind of person Tenet was. However, she saw the other side: he'd be dead by now if he hadn't run. She was sure of that. His father wanted him dead and this was simply the excuse. She had an interesting discussion with Hark about it while Tenet was getting burned and prodded by Weevil. They both agreed that in all likelihood, Tenet's father probably set up his son's off season adventure. He probably planted the seeds in Tenet's mind, made supplies abundantly easy to get, passed a few credits around for people to gossip about the wonderment of an off season Summer. The more she got to know Tenet, the less she could see this escape as anything of his own thinking. There was a catalyst. He didn't simply wake up one day and think of this plan himself. Something pushed him, someone planted the thought.
Tenet shouldn't feel guilty for doing what he had to survive, he just didn't know that yet. He was learning, she had to concede. He was doing what he had to when he learned what that should be. He ate meat and listened to her commands and shot the wraith...she had no doubt if they encountered another ex-Con member, he wouldn't hesitate to use his gun on that particular brand of human, either. When he learned what needed doing, he did it. In this case, moving on and not looking back was simply a matter of learning what needed doing. If it was her job to get him to see the harsh world for what it was, so be it. She didn't like it. It didn't feel good. And half of her wanted to offer comfort. But, she couldn't. She had offered far too much of that already and it hadn't done them any favors. A long time ago she learned how crippling it was to think of the "what ifs". They couldn't afford to play that game. It would keep them stuck, locked in the past when they desperately needed to just keep moving forward. Enna once told her that there was a time and place for everything, a calm she'd find where she could sit and remember it all. There would be a time for thinking and feeling and healing. They weren't there yet, though. Sometimes she doubted she ever would be.
"One more push. We'll camp on the top of that hill with the trees."
Tenet only nodded and stood. He wordlessly put his pack on and waited for her to lead. Scarab sighed heavily. It was a long day, and she knew it would be a longer night. She used to love the silence. Now she knew it would just haunt her. They'd continue walking in silence. They'd eat dinner in silence. They'd set up camp and silence and spend a long, cold night in the dark, oppressive silence. It didn't matter if that was how it had to be. For the first time, it wasn't at all what she wanted.
