Water in a Time of Thirst

Chapter Seventeen

Corbin had been going in and out of consciousness for several hours.

His mind was a haze of dust and his mouth was as dry as ash. One thing was for sure, the sky was a lot darker than when he agreed to go with the authorities and Everleigh wasn't with him. He sat in a chair with his hands and legs bound, the moonlight filtering through skylights, casting shadows across what looked like a warehouse. The sound of a match striking, caused him to twitch his head toward it.

From the darkness, a woman with a light umber skin tone stepped forward. She blew out puffs of smoke as she approached and then bent slightly to be eye level with him. Her breath was a mixture of old coffee and cigarettes, an acrid scent forcing him to reel back.

"Do you know who I am?" she asked.

"No," he croaked. "Was I drugged?"

"It's a little cocktail we use so our prisoners aren't aware of the travel route."

The mysterious woman snapped her fingers and then there was the quick shuffle of feet approaching with a chair for her to sit. She hiked a leg over and sat on it backward, with her wrists on the rim of the backrest, her hands dangling. Smoke curled upward from her fingers and she did a gentle flick, causing the ash to float to the floor.

"I'm Zia." She brushed her long curly tresses over one shoulder and the motion revealed a small tattoo by her ear of a snake eating its tail. "I'm in charge of the Water Division and I've learned you are a water witcher. They tell me you can feel it, is that true?"

"Yes."

"Show me..." She paused and motioned to somewhere beyond the darkness. "There's supposed to be an old well on this property that was covered up. I know where it is, but I want you to find it. Then I'll know if you're lying to save your little girlfriend or if you're telling the truth."

"If I was fibbing just to save her, that would make me an idiot. You think I don't know what you would do to me if I was lying?"

She blinked slowly, agitation creeping across her face as her lips tightened into a flat line. Then, she let out a breath. "You're not the first person to claim they can witch water. We've only had one who was able to prove herself, but even then, her attempts came up lacking."

"And what became of her?"

"She didn't get to go home and paid for her lies."

"By any chance was her name, Clara?"

"Yes." Zia narrowed her eyes. "You knew her?"

"Long ago."

A knot formed in Corbin's throat, and he tried swallowing it as memories of his old friend's smile flooded his thoughts. Clara, who was married to Gunner and Coyote's sister, was a water witcher like him, but her skills were not as sharp. While Corbin was away in Mexico, he learned Clara had volunteered to assist in the Water Division with an irrigation project but was killed. He just didn't know by who.

Now, it was clear Zia was involved, which meant she was likely to harm Everleigh killed too. Glancing around at the barren ground and darkness, there wasn't anything he could use as a weapon, let alone set himself free. So, he would have to improvise once outside.

"Where's Everleigh?"

"Nowhere near here, but she's in good hands for now," Zia replied as she toyed with a few curls draped over her shoulder.

"I want to see her."

Zia scoffed and got up from the chair. "You don't get to make demands but if you prove yourself to me, then maybe it can be arranged."