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“How is he?” Bret asked, gesturing towards Jarred as he approached the group. Jarred was very shaken up, nearly going into total shock. It had been so bad that Bret had barely been able to get the story of where Sean was out of him. He now lay sleeping at Claudia’s feet.
“He’s tired, hungry, upset, blaming himself for what happened, and refusing to believe otherwise.” Claudia replied, eyes moving from her husband to the exhausted man standing next to her.
“Will Jarred be all right?” Bret said, meeting Claudia’s almond eyes.
“I wasn’t taking about Jarred,” She turned towards her husban, breaking away from Bret’s gaze. “You really should get some rest, those bags under your eyes do nothing for your complexion.”
“Because you know how much that means to me. My looks are everything when three people are dead.” Bret shot back.
Claudia gave him a look that would have wilted a flower. “Do you mind? Amanda’s right over there, you want to rub this in her face?”
“Excuse me if I’m insulting anyone. She’s gonna have to face up to facts sooner or later. Kristen’s dead, Zach’s dead.......” Bret trailed off as he stared shocked at the two figures approaching him.
“Hol’ up, since when have I been dead? I don’t remember dying. Hey Kristen, do you remember dying? ‘Cause I sure as hell don’t.” Zach said, eyes dancing merrily.
“Nope,” Kristen looked herself over. “I don’t seem to be dead.”
“But, but, you’re, I saw you....” Bret replied, in total shock.
“A ghost? Yep, we’re here to haunt you till you’re dying days. Or ours. Whatever comes first.” Zach brought up his hands and made them resemble claws, clawing weakly in Bret’s general direction. “Boo.”
Bret jumped about three feet straight in the air, his face deathly pale. “But, but, how did you survive?”
To Bret’s surprise, Kristen gave a wide grin and started to say something. She was cut off quite rudely by a shove from Zach and a gruff “Long story.”.
By now, the rest of their little camp had realized that Kristen and Zach were back. Some a little earlier than others.
“Zach!!” Jordan shouted as he smothered Zach in a giant hug. The force of it knocked both men to the ground.
“Yeah...nice to see you too....get off me ya big lug.......I can’t breath.” Zach gasped from somewhere beneath Jordan’s wide shoulders.
“Oops, sorry.” Jordan apologized, rolling off of Zach.
“Yeah, whatever.” he muttered as he pushed himself off of the hard-packed ground. Zach walked somewhat stiffly towards the rest of the group, brushing himself off as he went. He grinned when he saw Amanda, jogging up to her. "Hey baby," he muttered as he swept her up. Tears streamed down her face, but she was grinning from ear to ear. "Zach..."
“So where’s Sean? I don’t see him.” Kristen asked eagerly. Everyone went dead silent. Bret and Jorden exchanged nervous glances.
“Yeah, where is the old man? What? The whole thrown-into-another-world thing was too trying on his ol’ knees?” Zach commented jokingly. His carefree-smile was wiped off his face by the grim looks surrounding him.
“Kristen, we tried to find you. When we couldn’t, Sean tried to take it into his own hands. He, he...” Jordan broke off, overcome with emotion. Bret laid a hand on his friend’s shoulder and continued quietly.
“Sean ran into a cabin that is, well, was, right over there. It was on fire. The cabin collapsed on top of him just moments after he ran inside. There, there was nothing we could do........” Bret trailed off, knowing that excuses would do nothing to ease her pain.
“No!” Kristen screamed, running towards what was left of the cabin. She knelt before the dying embers, throwing half-burned planks aside, not knowing what she was searching for. “No, no, no, no. This can’t be happening. He’s gotta be around here somewhere. He’s just got to!”
Jordan ran up to her, knelt down to Kristen, and picked her up. She was sobbing uncontrollably by now, fighting his grip with all her strength. He gave her shoulders a gentle shake, and she relaxed into his arms. Jordan stroked her hair, letting her cry into his shoulder. After a bit, he lifted her up and forced her to look him in the eyes.
“Listen to me. Sean’s a big boy, he can take care of himself. Besides, if you got out, it should be a piece of cake for a guy like Sean to get out.” Jordan’s words were total bull shit, and everyone knew it. He just prayed that his minor little insult would get her mind off of the truth. Better for her to be clinging to stubbornness and a die-hard girl-power attitude than total and utter hopelessness.
Kristen looked up at him as if he had just informed her that men now ruled the world and woman were nothing more than slaves. “Excuse me? I’m the one who saved Zach’s ‘we’re all gonna die’ ass. And if you think for one second that just because Sean’s a guy that he would have no problem getting out, I’ll give you a reason to respect woman. Got it, blondie?”
Jordan, unsure whether to smile or salute, simply stood there with his jaw hanging open. His plan had worked, of course, he just hadn’t expected such a reprimanding.
“Let’s get going. The sooner we leave the better.” Zach said, tearing himself away from his dark-haired wife and walking away from the little gathering. Everyone save Kristen exchanged confused looks. Jarred trotted up to Zach, grabbing his arm.
“Hol’ up. What are you talking about? Why do we have to go anywhere?” Jarred’s brown eyes moved from Zach to Kristen and back to Zach. “Does anyone even know where we are?”
Zach glanced at Kristen for help, but she only shook her head. He sighed, and started. “We, Kristen and I, saw some riders after we escaped, um, that. Somebody’s trying to find us. And, well, get rid of us. There seems to be some sort of price on our head. Our bounty hunter friends are quite insistent, anyone who doesn’t find and, most importantly, chop our heads off, has the same fate.”
Everyone was dead silent after he had finished. Jordan shifted his feet uneasily; at one point, Jarred had moved protectively in front of Claudia, shielding her from this unseen threat. Amanda and LeighAnne both moved closer to their men, eyes staring in disbelief at what Zach had said. Mandee was shaking slightly, and for Kristen, the reality of his words was finally settling in. She shivered, though not from cold, wishing that Sean was here. Only Bret remained emotionless, stepping forward to take command.
“Well then we best move out, shouldn’t we?” Bret scanned their surroundings: the remains of the cabin was behind them, open plains on the right, woods to the left and in front of them. Several paths were cut into the mesh of trees. Choosing at random, he started down a path somewhere near the middle. It was small, but looked clear of brush. He stopped only to make sure the rest of the group was following. Accepting Bret’s leadership, they followed him, somewhat hesitantly, down the chosen path.