The Grove (Ravens #1)

xvi. gail

Lily lived up to her promise. Within thirty minutes of leaving her cabin, she arrived outside the Ravens' camp. Although she had connections to a few of their members, she had never actually been to their camp before. Her special hut was strangely the most modern spot in the forest, and she had her boyfriend to thank in part for that. He was known to carry out an assortment of odd jobs for unknown sponsors. He hated talking about who his employers were, and Lily figured it was better not to ask. He generally never came over bloody, which meant he wasn't hired as a hitman.

"Who's there?" One of the guards called as she approached the gates. It was Yasmin on duty that day, her dark hair french-braided into two tight plaits reaching her upper back. "State your name and purpose."

"I have a message for your leaders, then I'll leave," Lily smiled. Like everyone else in this forest, giving away her name scared her.

Yasmin nodded, "Hand over your weapon." The Rogue nodded and handed her her dagger. Lily had barely armed herself for this mission; this was the part of the forest where she lived, and so she was well-known among the Rogues. She was more worried about the Ravens than the lone rangers. Yasmin opened up the gate, and Lily entered the camp for the first time.

"Lily!" Mai screamed, running across the camp. As Lily had protected her for months before she returned to the Ravens' camp, the two girls had an inseparable bond. They had known each other since long before the plague, however. They had gone to school together since second grade, when Lily moved to their small town. They had not travelled to the Grove together, but they were beyond pleased to find each other again in the woods. "What are you doing here?"

"I have a message, leaders only," Lily explained. She then leaned in and whispered, "So do I finally get to meet Sebastian?" Over the time spent hiding in Lily's cabin, Mai had told her plenty of stories of the boy whom she was so close with in the camp. She had built him up to be a hero of some sorts. She had always admired his tranquility and heart, but after being separated from her friends for months, her stories of him quickly became glorified.

Mai hesitated, however, after this request, "Some stuff has happened lately, I'm sure you've heard about Emma, right?" Lily nodded, as suspected. It made her feel strange keeping the secret of the other girl's survival. She could see how this saddened Mai's eyes, and she hated hurting her that way. "Well Sebastian stepped down from his position. He's a wreck, understandably."

Lily's eyes widened, "I'm so sorry. I can't imagine how hard this has all been on your camp." Again, that guilt of keeping Emma's status hidden felt awful. "So who's in charge now?"

"Hayden and Dylan," Mai said, and at the same time the two leaders came over. Hayden was still getting used to wearing Sebastian's jacket. It didn't fit him right. He was tall and lean, while his predecessor had a far more athletic build. He thought that the uncomfortable size of the garment was a metaphor for how this position was too big for him. By no means did Hayden consider himself qualified to protect this many people.

"Hey, what's going on? You have a message?" Hayden asked, trying to maintain the image that he was in charge and had any idea what he was doing.

"Yeah, leaders only. Sorry, Mai. Those were my instructions," Lily explained, handing them the paper.

"Who's it from?" Dylan interjected, as Hayden unfolded that sheet.

"How'd you get paper?" Hayden asked, confused by where the resource had come from. Nobody heard this question though, or if they did, they didn't acknowledge him in the slightest.

"All I can tell you is what's on that sheet. They said you'll understand it though," Lily smiled. With that, she hugged Mai goodbye and left the camp to return home. At this time, Mai walked away as well, respecting that, despite her curiosity, this note was not meant for her. It bothered her, however, that Lily was one of her closest friends, yet Dylan got this piece of information instead of her. The two of them had no relationship, and though Mai realized that the other girl was their leader, and that Lily did not decide who would receive this message, she couldn't help but feel a tang of jealousy.