Putting my arm around her, I helped her upright. She looked in a daze. She stared at me with wide eyes, her lips parted, her breathing still uneven.
“Thank you,” she whispered.
Chapter 24: River
When we approached the tanks, four men leapt out to see us. I explained to them that we had just escaped The Oasis, and they seemed to understand what I was talking about. They said they’d help us back to the police. But after they took Lalia, Hassan, and Morgan into one of the tanks, when it was my turn to get in, three hunters whipped out guns and aimed them toward me.
I didn’t know what to think. I was just bewildered. Why were they trying to kill me? What had I done to deserve this? It was one of the most bizarre experiences of my life. To be treated like an animal, worse than a criminal—having committed no crime. Even after all the wrong my father had done, he had not been treated like this.
If it hadn’t been for my new-found speed and lightning reflexes, I would have been shot the moment they pulled out their guns. I darted away from the tanks, away from my sister. I ran about the dunes, trying to dodge the bullets, until one caught me in my side.
When I fell to the sand, I was sure that that would be the end of me. The hunters would close in on me and lodge a final bullet in my head.
But then arms grabbed me, lifted me up from the ground and whisked me away.
Joseph. I still couldn’t believe that he’d come back for me. I didn’t understand why he bothered doing it, risking his life by coming right into the midst of the hunters just to save me—a girl he barely even knew.
After he brought me to a cave and healed me, although I was devastated at being ripped from my family once again, I was overwhelmed with gratitude for this young man.
“I’m so sorry,” he said.
“It’s not your fault,” I replied.
“I should have given it more thought.”
“There was no way you could have known.”
“It seems they’ve adopted an absolutely zero tolerance policy for anything supernatural, harmless or not…” He paused, then asked, “How are you feeling?”
I looked down at my thigh. “Better.”
“Did they take your sister and the others?” Joseph asked.
“Yes,” I said, pain building in my chest at the reminder of my sister.
Poor Lalia. I didn’t know that her nerves could take being separated from me once again. My only comfort was that at least this time, she wouldn’t be surrounded by bloodsucking vampires and would hopefully be returned to our grandfather.
“There’s nothing supernatural about them,” I murmured, “so I just hope the hunters take them straight to the police.”
I looked around the cave. There was a rattle coming from the far corner, near the jagged entrance. A rattlesnake, by the looks of it. I shivered, another wave of coldness intensifying in my bones.
“What now?” I asked, my voice unsteady.
“We need to leave this cave and reach the nearest town by daybreak.”
I looked toward the sky outside. It didn’t look like it would be long now before the sun rose.
“And then what?”
“Let’s just get there first,” he muttered. “With these hunters on patrol, we can’t afford to get stuck in the desert. If we get caught out in the daytime, when I can’t go in the sun without being blinded, they could have us trapped.”
Joseph stood up, and, reaching down a hand for me to take, helped me up too. I replaced the backpack over my shoulders.
I was wearing nothing but Ben’s shirt and my underwear, but my shorts were too torn to put back on, so I had no choice but to travel as I was.
“Climb onto my back,” he said. “It’ll be faster.”
I was glad he suggested it. Although my thigh had healed, I was still feeling shaken and weak. I’d lost a lot of blood and my mouth was parched for water.
I climbed onto his back, feeling the taut muscles beneath his bare skin. Joseph’s hands closed around my calves and secured me in place. Then, without warning, he shot out of the cave and began racing along the dunes again.
I kept my eyes peeled for any sign of the hunters. After ten minutes and God knew how many miles, the coast still seemed to be clear. Joseph had managed to shake them off, and I guessed that they were now searching for us in another part of the desert entirely.
Although I had so many things that I wanted to ask him, and seek reassurance about, I didn’t speak to him as he ran. We both needed to concentrate.
He was the one who broke the silence. He stopped running and raised a finger.
“You see that?”
I strained to see where he was pointing.
Yes. I could see.
In the distance was the outline of buildings, the outskirts of the city. And closer still was what looked like an early-morning market. There were poles sticking up, and wooden stalls being erected. I wasn’t sure what day it was today, but the market seemed mainly for the locals. I couldn’t imagine many tourists being up at this hour.
Joseph tensed.
I already knew what was going on with him. Human blood. I really wasn’t in the mood for him to dig his fangs into me again, so instead I raised both wrists closer to his face.
“Do you think my scent is enough to block out the temptation?” I asked.
“If you keep close to me the whole time… I should be okay. I was while half-turning that woman…”
As we approached the market, I could make out the types of wares that were being sold. Mostly garments and shoes, with the occasional stall of dates and other dried fruit.