Beneath This Lonely Ground [ ONC2020 ]

viii. what she encountered

She spent the next few days searching, prepared to cover the entire island until she found what she was looking for. The days became a rhythm. She'd wake up, pack food and water, stop by the dig site for a quick visit, and then spend the rest of the day hiking around the island. She was usually so exhausted when she returned to camp that she'd skip dinner and go straight to bed.

"We'll be finishing up by the end of the week," Sierra told her at the end of the fourth full day of the search. "Will you be done too?"

"I'm not going back until I find them," Taylor said, face buried in her pillow.

Sierra sat on the edge of the bed and sighed. "You're wearing yourself thin, dear cousin. This... This needs to stop."

Taylor bit back a sharp reply, annoyance flaring. "I just need a little rest, that's all."

"And you'll get it if you'd just slow down. This quest isn't the cure for your pain, Taylor. Let's think a little. It's dangerous, going about the island alone. And the chances of finding what you're looking for are very slim, considering you haven't found them yet."

"They're here somewhere." Taylor swallowed the bitter taste in her mouth. Her entire body ached, and there was a constant pressure in her head from overuse of her secret ability. Well, not so secret now, considering she'd finally agreed to reveal it to the college students. Sierra had sworn them to secrecy—they probably thought Taylor was nuts now.

"Find anything good lately?" Taylor asked, trying to change the subject.

Sierra crossed her arms. "No, unfortunately. The flint knife was the major find."

Just as Taylor had predicted.

"How's Elias doing?"

Sierra's gaze sharpened. "He can't do too much due to rules and regulations, but he is helping where he can. He knows more than my students, I think."

Taylor smiled tiredly into the pillow. It smelled like campfire smoke and wind. "I thought so."

"Why don't you ask him how he's doing yourself? I'm sure he'd like to spend some time with you, seeing as that was one of your reasons for coming on this trip."

Taylor noted the pointed remark and felt a prick of guilt. She'd barely had time for Elias lately; but if he was feeling neglected he wasn't vocal about it. But that was Elias, now. Bottle it up and stuff it in the closet.

"He's probably missing you," Sierra continued, and Taylor gave an unidentifiable grunt. "Come on, Taylor. I know he's like your own kid. A good mother makes time for her children."

"He's not my child," Taylor said half-heartedly. But he would have been, had she married Riyad. Elias was, in fact, like her own family. She just couldn't get too attached, because he was leaving soon. "Besides, he's almost eighteen. He'll go off and leave me. There's nothing to connect us anymore."

All she received was a knowing look, which she ignored.

It still nagged at her, though. The fact that Elias might think she'd forgotten him. Or was it the fact that she worried he might forget her? That he didn't seem to need her like he used to? He was growing up, after all. Riyad wasn't here to hold them together.