Again, I ignored him. Instead, I clasped Eric’s arm and tried pulling him to his feet. He pushed me away. The Viking with the axe came at us. I told Eric to shoot him, but he just sat there and let the Viking lop his head clean off.
Travis fought two Vikings at once. My vision was hazy, but it appeared as if he used his rifle to block the blades. I took a step toward them, aiming to help, but the Viking with the axe came at me again. He swung and somehow I avoided getting sliced.
I didn’t have any weapons but I had my fists, and I used them to punch him in the face. I think his nose cracked. I kneed him in the crotch for good measure—anything to keep him from swinging that lumberjack weapon.
With my attacker doubled over, I had time to race to Travis’s assistance. I didn’t go alone. Khenan came out of nowhere and together we ran toward him. One Viking managed to stab Travis in the back as he was distracted by the other.
“No!” I heard myself scream seconds before I leapt onto the back of the Viking who’d stabbed him. I punched the Viking viciously in the head, trying to render him unconscious. I had no idea how I could fight like this. It had to come from pure adrenaline.
The second Viking charged Khenan when he stopped to take aim. He was close enough not to miss. A shot rang out but I didn’t see what happened afterward. The man I was on threw me off, tossing me on top of the tent. I clambered to my feet, stumbled, fell, and scrambled to get up again as another Viking came.
“Run!” Gavin screamed.
This time I listened. Another gunshot blasted behind me as I ran toward Point-Blank. I tried taking one of his knives, but he swung and sliced me on the forearm. He didn’t attack but I wasn’t going to get a knife from him. That distraction gave the Viking with the axe enough time to catch up to me. He swung his weapon and I leapt back. I lost my balance and went tumbling down the incline. That was when I blacked out.
Gavin spoke to me. His voice said my name seconds before I opened my eyes. “Don’t move an inch.”
I didn’t understand but I listened. Above me, tree branches and leaves pressed against the gray sky.
“Don’t move,” Gavin repeated. “And don’t get spooked when you can see again.”
“See what?” I asked, sliding my eyes down my body. When I’d rolled down the hill, I’d struck a wide tree. Right beside me was the Viking. I wanted to get up immediately.
“If you move him, he’ll haunt your dumb ass,” Gavin warned.
I had a horrid, bitter taste in my mouth that made my words stick when I spoke. “He’s dead?”
“Yep. You fell and rolled till you hit the tree. This moron went after you, but slipped and broke his neck.”
The body was right up beside me but wasn’t pressing.
“Did he fall against me?”
“No. He stopped before he touched you.”
I took a long breath of relief.
“Just ease on outta there,” Gavin instructed.
“Where are you?”
“Hiding outta sight. You’re seeing things. I didn’t want you freaking out seeing someone as fucked up as me in the state you’re in.”
“How do you know what’s happening to me?”
“You told me.”
“When?”
“When you came out of the tent. I asked what was wrong and you told me you were feeling strange. Then you started talking to someone who wasn’t there, right before that crazy ghost man showed up.”
“What crazy ghost man?”
“Never mind that right now. Let’s work on getting you out of this mess.”
“Jesus, Gavin, you saved my life back there.”
“Don’t mention it. But next time I tell you to run, do it.”
I returned my attention to the dead Viking. He stank worse than any human I’d ever smelled before. I suppose the years living with insanity kept the thought of cleanliness at bay. He was on his back, his head twisted toward me, and I could see the swollen section of his neck where the bone had broken. His long, matted hair draped part of his face. I wished it covered him entirely. His pale wide eyes were locked directly on me like scud missiles. He had a long beard with twigs and dirt in it, which made him appear old, yet his eyes weren’t that ancient. He couldn’t have been any older than twenty when he’d landed on the island.
It was some messed-up luck we’d fallen so close to each other, but things could have been worse. Neither his arms nor legs lay on me, just a human skull and some smaller bones hanging from a surprisingly modern-looking leather belt. He must have gotten the belt from one of his victims.
The bones on my leg didn’t worry me. They weren’t part of him, so moving them shouldn’t curse me with his soul. I cringed at the thought of having a crazed Viking following me around forever.
I slowly shifted myself onto my side, creating space between us. I was so close to him that my pounding heart could’ve rocked him.
“Shit,” Gavin cursed suddenly. “Watch yourself.”
“I am!” I snapped. “Shut up and let me do this.”
I feared if I touched him it would be enough to draw another spirit like Gavin’s to me. I stayed still for a long time, feeling my heart bang against my chest. I moved my shoe ever so slowly, gritting my teeth the entire time. Once my foot was safely away, I used my arms to lift me up. Then I stood.
“That’s it, dude, now side-step out.”
I moved like I was on the ledge of a high building. With my back against the tree, I tip-toed beside the Viking, then leapt away.
“Dude, my heart would be pumping if it could still beat,” Gavin remarked. “D’you think you’re in the clear?”
“Not sure,” I said nervously. “Would you have to deal with him if he showed up?”
“Dunno. I’m new here too. You should’ve seen how many ghosts he had with him.”
“What ghosts?”
“The ones following him. Jeez, he must’ve killed a bunch of people.”
I almost forgot that ghosts could see each other. “Did they say anything to you?”
“No, didn’t give me the time of day. I think they were in a hurry to leave.”
“You mean they’re not here now?”
“No. When this asshole died, they just wandered off into the fog. It was like they were free.”
Just like Darwin. I wondered if the dead were able to leave the island if they had no living person to latch onto.
A sharp pain erupted from my arm. Looking down, I remembered the slash from Point-Blank’s knife. The cut was pretty deep and I needed to get it wrapped.
“You better get back to camp,” Gavin said. “Your friend needs you.”
I didn’t understand what he meant by that but I headed up to the campsite anyway. Things still shifted and jumped about, but my hands felt oddly numb. I was ready to get off this trip.
Point-Blank was the first to catch my eye when I made it back up the hill. He remained in place, holding a knife in each hand.
“PB?” I said, slowly approaching him. Ever mindful of his knives, I crept around him. I let him know I was there as a friend. “It’s me, Heath. Are you all right? Talk to me.”
As I came around to face him, it was like looking at an entirely different person. He appeared old. No, not old, more like he’d been drained of all his bodily fluids. His face was completely sunken and his lips were chapped and bleeding from constantly licking and biting. He rocked slightly from side to side, his eyes darting around as if he could see something I couldn’t. My blood stained his knife’s blade.
“Point-Blank, talk to me,” I urged.
“I wasn’t talking about him,” Gavin said somberly.
I turned in the direction of his voice but saw no one. “Who do you mean? Damn it, show yourself, Gavin. I’m not going to freak.”
Gavin suddenly stood beside Point-Blank and I jumped with a girlish yelp.
“You said you wouldn’t freak!” he snapped.
“You popped out of nowhere,” I said.
“Heath?
” came a weak voice near the tents. “Is that you, mate?”
“Travis?” I said, rushing over. When I reached the campsite, several creatures scampered away. They’d been eating the corpses. Travis was on his side near a soot pile that used to be our fire. He looked pale.
“I thought you’d gone round the bend, lad,” he said with a feeble grin.
“Let me help you up,” I offered, kneeling beside him.
“No, leave me. I’m dying.”
I didn’t want to believe it, but there was a bone handle sticking out of his lower back.
“I’ve been bleeding for hours now. It hurts so much. And worse, I’ve got two Viking bastards taunting me.”
I spotted the body of a Viking behind the tent. He was face-down with a bullet wound to the back of his head. The other Viking lay near Eric’s decapitated body.
“Khenan is a lousy marksman,” Travis said. “I had to finish the bugger off.”
“Travis,” I whispered pitifully.
“He needs your help,” Gavin said.
“How?”
“Pull this bloody blade outta me. Let me die faster.”
I shook my head. “No, I can get you out of here. You can live.”
“I’ve been bleeding for too long, mate. Carrying me down the mountain won’t do me any good. Just put me out of me misery.”
“Do it, Heath,” Gavin said. “Give the man his peace.”
“If I do this, you’ll be stuck with me for eternity,” I said.
“No, lad, you didn’t kill me, the Viking did. We killed each other. Only that bastard beat me to the punch.”
He shook horribly and was as pale as ash. He was going to die sooner or later and it was up to me to decide which.
“All right,” I said. I reached around and took a firm grip on the handle.
“Don’t give up hope, lad,” Travis said just above a whisper. “Keep searching and set us all free.”
“I will,” I promised.
He smiled. “Good man.”
I ripped the knife out. The blade had stopped most of the blood in the liver, and when I yanked it out, it was like pulling a cork from a drain. Black blood poured from him. I stayed by his side until he passed away.
Chapter Twenty-six
I knelt beside Travis’s body for a long time, until my foot fell asleep. When I came to terms with what had happened, I sat on the embankment overlooking our disastrous campsite. I found a first aid kit in Eric’s bag and cleaned and bandaged the gash on my arm. I checked the old wound on my hand, still fresh underneath the smear of salve. At least that kept it from hurting so much, just like Travis had said it would. I briefly wondered how people had discovered that. Then again, how did ancient Europeans come up with the idea of making musical strings from animal intestines? It’s just one of those discoveries, I suppose.
“Gavin,” I said weakly.
“Yeah.”
“I think I’m gonna lose it, man. Tell me something about yourself. You know, normal stuff. I need normal right now.”
“Um, all right. I was born in Nassau, Florida thirty-two years ago. I like fishing and sports, and um . . . I dress up in women’s clothes sometimes.”
I glared at him, perplexed.
“Kidding, dude. I mean, I did dress once in drag for Halloween.”
“Why did you want to take up flying?”
“It was something new and exciting, I guess. Thought I could fly back to my little town in Baker County and brag about my new skill before soaring off into the unknown. Just a stupid fantasy, y’know?”
“I don’t think it’s stupid,” I said quietly.
A soothing silence settled like dust on a recently disturbed road. Finally, he said, “He was right, y’know? Travis, I mean.”
“About what?” I said, rolling the gauze around my arm.
“You shouldn’t give up searching.”
“I need to get Point-Blank back to South Village.”
“He ain’t gonna let you touch him. Have you forgotten who gave you that little love mark on your arm?”
“I’ve caused the death of so many people already. It’s time to call it quits.”
“You ain’t caused no one to die. If it makes you feel any better, you’re all alone now. Ain’t no one in danger of dying around you.”
“Touching,” I said mildly.
I cut and tied the bandage off, securing it snugly around my arm. A rustle in the woods drew my attention.
I slid my hand over the pistol sitting beside me when a Neanderthal woman emerged from the thicket. She wore ripped, well-worn denim shorts and a T-shirt. Whatever image was imprinted on the shirt had long since faded beyond recognition. She was extremely dirty, with bright red leaves stuck in her long tangled hair. She was a powerful looking thing, with almost the same amount of muscle as me. I bet she’d be awesome in a bar fight.
The animal skin wrapped around her feet had muffled her footsteps, concealing her approach. She was armed with a bow, an arrow fixed in the string, ready to fire at me Robin Hood-style. Her posture was hunched and her sharp eyes never left me. I didn’t move, hardly breathed. I think I held my weapon just as tightly as she held hers, both our knuckles stretched over the bones.
She was one of the Ancient Ones. I’d seen her on the beach when I’d first come to the island.
“Jeez, I know I got no room to talk, but she’s got a face not even a mother could love,” Gavin put in.
She halted and her fuzzy unibrow rose.
“Holy crap, did she just hear me?” He cupped his hand around his mouth. “Hey! You hear me?”
It wasn’t his shouting that had caught her attention, it was my gun. Whether she knew what it was and what it could do, she clearly recognized it as a weapon. I didn’t want a confrontation just because she felt threatened.
I took a chance and let the gun go, placing my hand on my knee. She already had me pegged with the arrow anyway. I’d have to raise the gun, take aim, and pull the trigger to hit her. All she needed to do was let go of the string. Even if I could fire, I didn’t want to kill her. I hoped she understood the consequences of taking a life.
She had several arrows in a skin quiver strapped to her back, and some knives as well. I guess she was a hunter.
She moved on, looking at the bodies on the ground, careful not to disturb any of them. She seemed wise to the otherworldly rule, but it wouldn’t matter if she moved them, since they’d killed each other.
Her expression went wide at the sight of the dead Vikings. She craned her head to Travis, then back to the Vikings. She made a fist and hit her chest a few times, then glided her hand over Travis’s body in a smooth motion. I imagine it was a salute of gratitude. She must have figured out that Travis had been the one who’d shot them. Her delight in their death didn’t surprise me. I’m sure her tribe must’ve had many unpleasant encounters with them throughout the years.
She went over to Point-Blank next. She came around him, took one look at his body, and nodded with a grunt.
Gavin approached me. “She knows what happened to him.”
“How do you know that?”
“Simply observing, my dear Watson. I’ve gotten good at it since I can’t do a whole lot of anything else. Like while you were fighting for your life last night, I was observing. I had the chance to catch details. That’s how I knew Travis was in trouble.”
I said nothing. Not because I was ignoring him, but because I didn’t want to startle the girl. I watched as she glanced down the embankment where the other dead Viking lay. My heart sped up as she approached me. She no longer held her bow defensively. That eased my anxiety slightly, but not enough to dismiss the gun from my mind. I sat frozen as she leaped over Eric’s headless body and a Viking to reach me. When she came close, I noticed the scars on her body. Her pale eyes had dark circles around them. She must’ve been tracking the sound of gunshots all night.
She offered me the same salute and grinned. At least I think she grinned. Her thick upper lip cu
rled upward, showing the worst set of teeth I’d ever seen. No dentist alive could repair that grill. Travis would have been happy to see teeth worse than his.
She waved for me to follow.
“Let’s go with her,” Gavin suggested excitedly.
“I told you, I have to get Point-Blank home.”
My response caused her to take a step back. She cocked her head sideways with a puzzled expression.
“And I told you, you can’t do anything for him. He ain’t going anywhere,” Gavin said. “Focus on the agenda. Follow the ugly chick.”
I looked at my wounded arm. The only way I’d get Point-Blank to South Village was if I knocked him out, tied him up, and dragged him down the island. Considering his fragile state of mind, if he took a hard enough hit on the head, it could cause him more damage. I remembered the last thing Travis had said to me. Keep searching and set us all free.
“Jeez, you can come back and get the psycho statue later,” Gavin groaned.
I shifted my eyes to him. The girl grunted, drawing my attention back to her. She spoke in what sounded like a deep husky baby speech. Again, she signaled me to come with her. Reluctantly, I stood, grabbed my bag, and left.
We walked for what seemed like a lifetime. The higher we climbed, the worse the humidity got. The dense forest made the hike atrocious. I used Eric’s machete to hack away the mess. The girl kept swiveling her head back to me with a look of envy. She’d been climbing through the shit with nothing but a dinky knife she might have made herself. Finally, I lent the machete to her. After all, she was leading the way.
After a while, we stopped for a break. I took a drink from my canteen and handed it to her. I felt a little bad for drinking first, but I only did so to show there was nothing harmful in it. I didn’t want to risk losing the rest of my water if she turned the canteen upside down or slit my throat, thinking I was trying to poison her.
She seemed savvy enough, easily catching on. Perhaps it was millions of years’ experience or she was naturally smart, but she gulped it down. Then she plucked some red leaves from a nearby brush, the same kind that were in her hair. I’d seen those scattered about. The bright red color made it look like the biblical burning bush. She rubbed a couple of them on her hairy arms, neck, legs, and face. I thought it was a weird grooming ritual. She yanked more off and tried handing them to me.
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