The Wild

-8- Illness Strikes

Copyright © 2014. All Rights Reserved.

I pulled my knees up to my chest; aware that Brad's legs took up most of the width of the truck bed. We settled into awkward silence, other than the country music Amaya turned on that was muted by the wind whipping past. I shook my hair out and tied it back to keep it out of my face, and wished I had a headband to push back my bangs.

It would be a reasonable assumption that I was slow catching onto the entire bizarre event. With Brad fearful of the hospital, Mary all mysterious about where the hell we were going, and the creature that disappeared upon Brad's arrival, I should have gotten the hint. All I needed now was someone to tell me it straight, and I wasn't sure who it was going to be to break me out of this fog.

Curled up in the back of Amaya's truck, I sighed against the wind and drew in a collective breath that hinted at the coolness in the air the fire had helped fend off. Eventually after a long, grueling half hour drive down the country road, we turned off onto a forest path that took us deeper into the wilderness. In the darkness I saw the sign mounted against the entrance of the road and knew where she was taking us.

It took a complete hour from my house to their cabin at the north lake. Amaya didn't say anything about it, since she was unusually quiet during her driving time, and Brad was clueless. When he caught on, though, it was like the world was crashing down.

Just when the cabin came into view, he tried to escape the back of the truck. I was too startled to try and stop him when he scrambled to his feet without using his hands. He rolled over the back gate of the truck bed, exposing his bloody back to us before he fell to his feet on the ground. His attempt at running was unsuccessful, though.

"John! John!" Mary wailed in a panic. She climbed out of the truck while it was still moving and took off sprinting after Brad, who was already staggering down the steep descent of the driveway. It was the most insane chase I'd ever seen until the front door of the cabin clattered against its frame and the giant that was John pumped his powerful legs and sprinted past Mary, who then slowed down and stared after her husband as he carried himself as though he was running on air.

I stood up, frantic to see the take down when John lunged for Brad and took the two of them down to the ground. There was some yelling, but all in all John had won and took Brad back with his hand on the knotted rope around Brad's wrist.

He limped up the drive with John and Mary in tow, head to the ground so Amaya and I couldn't see his eyes. I jumped out of the truck, still shaky on my legs, and joined her to watch then take Brad to the detached garage.

"Did we just help kidnap somebody?" Amaya asked in a low voice.

I shrugged because I honestly didn't know.

Around the same time Brad was taken into the garage, still yammering about something, the front door to the cabin opened up again. Bennet stepped out onto the concrete porch, arms crossed over his chest and sporting a pair of baggy plaid pajama bottoms and a black sweatshirt. He turned the porch light on.

"Lily? Amaya? What are you two doin' here?" he asked. I winced because he sounded awful. Still, despite whatever illness he had, Amaya ran for him and collided with him, her arms around him while he staggered down a step in bare feet.

"Oh my God I almost died and your mom saved us and this guy showed up at the house and we took him here and it was so scary!" she exclaimed in hysterics, causing him to raise his eyebrows. He still had yet to fold his arms around her, and it seemed he wasn't planning to. He was sick, after all.