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CHAPTER 5

It was after dark when Mia woke from a void-like dream. Someone had called her. She raised her head and looked at the silhouettes that shared the hut with her.

“Mia?” Becky had whispered. One of the lumps across from her shifted.

“Yeah?” Mia croaked.

“I overheard one of the men talking into that tool they carry that gives off blue light. Communicating with someone. We aren't the first women they've taken...I don't think we have much chance at getting home.”

Mia frowned. “We can only wait, and hope. The more we learn about our situation, the better chance we have at surviving it.”

There was a long silence.

“What do you think they're going to do with us?”

Mia frowned again. She wasn't certain but given that it was only women that were abducted, she could take some guesses…none that she was happy with.

Becky started snuffling, and Mia wished she could comfort the other woman, tell her everything would be okay, but she couldn't even convince herself. The only bright side was that, as of yet, none of the men had taken advantage or even behaved rudely toward any of the women.

Becky sniffled again.

“Hey, are you going to be ok?”

“I don't know. It feels like a nightmare, but I haven't woken up yet.”

One of the other women, the blond, huffed. “Oh, I know I'm not dreaming. I hurt too much,” she hissed, “my feet are bleeding.”

Mia's body ached, as well. She was reasonably fit but trekking through what amounted to a jungle for the better part of a day was not what her body had been prepared for.

“It's really too crazy to be real, but it is, isn't it?” Becky asked.

“I think so.”

Her voice wobbled, “I'm so scared. What are they going to do? Where are we going?”

“I'm scared, too,” Mia admitted. “But so far, they have done nothing to hurt us.”

“My feet beg to differ,” the blond retorted. “I miss home. I don't want to do this, whatever it is. You know it can't be good, either. When have you ever heard of women being kidnapped for good reasons? They're probably going to rape us or kill us.”

Mia bit back the response that came to her tongue. It was as if the woman wanted to spike Becky's fear. “That's an awful lot of trouble to go through just to kill us. And as for the other,” she shrugged, though neither woman would be able to see it, “there's been plenty of opportunities for that. If they were going to rape us, then why wait?”

That seemed to silence her for a bit.

“Are you from Rockford, too?” Mia asked. She realized she didn't know where any of the women were from. She didn't know anything about them except that they were all stuck together in such a crazy situation.

“No, I was in Boston. My car broke down on the way home from work. I was just off of Baker street. There's a dead spot there and my phone had no service. When I climbed the hill to call a tow truck he was there.”

“The same thing happened for me. I work at a tree nursery in Fairhope. I had taken the delivery van out to...do some things…and it quit on this back section of road. When the...when he came at me, I thought I was going to die,” Becky replied.

“I'm sorry that happened. I'm sorry all of this happened.”

“You're here, too,” Becky reminded.

“Yes, well, I'm sorry about that, too.”

The blond snorted. “Do you think anyone misses us?”

“Oh, I know someone is missing me. Or, at least, he's very aware that I'm gone.”

“Was it abuse, Becky?”

She was quiet for a long time.

“I didn't used to think so. I thought he cared, that he was just really attentive. He's never hit me before.” In the dim light, Mia could see the woman touching her lip. “I made so many excuses. I'm such a coward.”

Mia shook her head. She had gone through the same thing over and over again with her mother.

“No. I don't think so at all. That's not what I see.”

“I don't think so, either,” the blond turned over and looked toward them. “I'm sorry that happened to you, Beck.”

“It's my own fault. There were so many red flags, now that I look back. I should have listened to my friends, but he was so sweet at first. I was leaving him, that's what I was doing the afternoon they took me. I had contacted a social worker where I lived and got a bed in the women's shelter. He's going to be so mad. I can't imagine facing him again. Just thinking about it has me shaking.” She raised her hand to prove her point.

“You'll never heal if you keep blaming yourself,” Mia told her. “It takes a lot of strength to get out. If you can do that, you can handle this, too, you'll see.”

“Yeah,” Becky didn't sound convinced. “Thanks for listening, though, it feels a little better.”

The clouds that had threatened the night before were nowhere in sight and the bright morning sun promised a great heat again. Mia groaned at the thought of another long hike through the forest. This morning, she was the first to rise and she was careful not to disturb the other girls as she slipped out of the hut.

The men gathered a distance away, a fire crackling between them as they sipped something out of strange looking cups. They looked up at her. Kenahi caught her eye and waved her over.

“Here, drink this,” he handed her one of the cups that had been set beside the fire. She accepted the vessel. It was odd feeling, like rubber, flexible and, she suspected, collapsible. It held something steaming, but the cup didn't burn her, it seemed to have some insulating properties, as well. She pulled the cup toward her and sniffed.

Kenahi snorted. “It is tea. The plant it is made from has mild painkilling properties. You'll appreciate it when we begin.”

She decided they probably hadn't brought her all the way into the forest just to poison her. And the food they had offered hadn't had any adverse effects, so she took a sip.

Ugh. It was bitter and had a slightly earthy flavor to it, like dirt. But a few sips in had her head cleared and it seemed as though her muscles ached a little less.

“You did well with Becky yesterday. We appreciate your efforts to calm her and draw her out.”

She looked at him. He watched her with serious eyes, he seemed sincere. “It is best that she faces life head on. Hiding from it will only increase her fear.”

“It seems as though she has learned fear well. Kidnapping probably didn't help her with that.”

His head turned to the fire, a muscle twitching in his jaw. “Becky has dealt with things no woman should have been exposed to. She will fare better here, where she is treated properly. But it will take effort on her part to heal. You began that process yesterday by convincing her to face her situation.”

Mia stared into her tea. He sounded certain of himself, as though he cared about Becky's mental well-being. An odd sort of thing for a kidnapper.

“How do you know so much about her?” And how much did they know about herself?

“We have been very careful with our selections. We cannot afford to make mistakes.” Kenahi rose and strode off into the forest signaling the end of the conversation. The two women Mia had pegged as sisters emerged from the hut. They solemnly joined the group by the fire, accepting cups similar to Mia's and sitting in silence. There were no tears today, however. Mia watched as the men tended to them, providing tea and then platters of fruits and nuts. While they were big men, fit and able to move with frightening efficiency, she noticed that their behavior around the sisters was gentle, careful not to startle or appear threatening. If she didn't know better, she would peg their actions as nearly reverent.

She snorted to herself. Careful girl, empathizing with your captives is the first step to Stockholm syndrome. The last thing she needed was to lose her mental clarity.

When Morkuth again approached with a plate of food, Mia accepted it. He smiled politely and watched as she took the first few bites, then nodded, pleased. As if he had intended to ensure she ate this morning.

Becky was the last to rise. Though she shuffled around with her head down, she found a spot next to Mia by the fire and accepted the tea offered to her.

“You ok?” Mia whispered. The woman looked exhausted, but she imagined that she looked no better. Becky nodded slightly, took a sip of her tea and grimaced.

“It does seem to help the aches and pains,” Mia offered. Becky said nothing, but she did drink the tea, and picked at the fruits and nuts on her plate. Satisfied, Mia emptied her cup and began to play with the structure. As she had supposed, the vessel could both flatten and then be folded. When Gorth came around to collect them, she watched, fascinated, as he placed them against his armor and they melted, fading into the material as if they'd never been separate.

The journey that day was just as arduous as the day before, worse maybe because some of the adrenaline had worn off and her muscles protested more vigorously. It wasn't until late afternoon that they got a break. Gorth's light tool had emitted a tone and he had called a halt just as they were crossing a meandering stream. The insects took advantage of their stilled movements to swarm in and take chunks out of their living flesh.

“Trouble?” Kenahi asked from the rear.

“Blood on the trail ahead. Shonus is missing.”

“Fuck,” Kenahi growled, pressing forward, forcing the women to the side next to one of the large tree trunks. He pushed his way toward Gorth and they conversed in soft tones. Several seconds later, one of the men emerged from the trail ahead where he had been sent to scout. His face was grim and the resulting tension in their forms was enough to bring fear to the forefront of Mia's mind. Becky had picked up on the tension, as well, her soft little whimper muffled behind a hand.

“If he was just injured, he would have returned to the group. Blood without a body likely means he is dead somewhere,” the blond spoke up.

Becky whimpered harder, and Mia sent the blond a warning glance. She shrugged and wiped a strand of sweaty hair off her forehead. “You said yourself it is better if we are aware of our surroundings. This doesn't look good for our survival.”

“Neither does causing a panic. We should try to stay calm.”

“I am calm, she's the one freaking out,” the blond nodded to Becky. “She's been freaking out since we got here. It's pissing me off.”

Mia drew a deep breath. The woman probably wasn't trying to be as much of an ass as she was making herself. She had been through the same trauma they all had and was probably just trying to hold it together. She wasn't even sure what part of herself was allowing such cool-headed thinking. She certainly had her share of anxiety about the situation. Perhaps she had gone into teaching mode, where one had to lead the class through their various emotions despite any personal fears or feelings.

“What's your name?” Mia asked.

“Ashley Korser.”

Mia nodded to Ashley. “I'm Mia, and this is Becky.” She looked to the sisters.

“I am Sora and this is Lee,” the taller of the girls announced. Mia noticed once more that they spoke another language. It sounded Korean, but she certainly didn't know enough to be certain. She did know that she shouldn't have been able to understand them and yet she did.

“You are sisters?”

The two shared a long look, as if afraid to give out any information.

“Yes,” Sora answered after a time.

“We continue on,” Kenahi announced. “The group will stay in tighter formation from here on. Never leave the sight of one another. Never lose sight of your guards. If you become fatigued, call out and one of the men will help you.”

Mia waited for the other women to take their usual order behind Gorth. They were crowded, but given the situation, she didn't mind. The scout had already moved forward, but even he did not travel as far as he had previously.

Mia waited a few breaths before falling in line.

“Is it very dangerous?” she whispered to Kenahi, “what kind of enemy are we watching for?”

Kenahi grunted, an unhappy sound. “It is for the men to worry about. Continue to maintain peace between the women, give them courage. That is all we ask.”

Right, well that wasn't chauvinistic at all.

“Wouldn't it be best if we all worked together? If you're losing men that puts all of us into danger. A smart man would use any advantage. We might be women, and your captives, but there are ten more eyes to watch, if you show us what to look for.”

“You are uncommonly stubborn for a woman.”

Yes, well, that wasn't something new, either. Brian had commented on it several times.

“Look, I'm just trying to survive. I'm in a new world with entirely new dangers. I don't like feeling so vulnerable. It would help if I knew what to watch out for.”

“Follow my orders and stay close to the others,” he nodded at the gap that was ever growing between them. “The next camp is less than two hours from here, less if we press faster.”

Fine, so he wasn't going to answer her. And he thought she was the stubborn one. What in the heck did he think it would hurt, letting them know what to look for? It wasn't as if the mere thought of the danger would bring it upon them.

She estimated about twenty minutes before the next break, when Gorth stopped them short. The forest had receded and then come to a sudden, undeniable stop, taken over instead by a vast plain of grass, the stalks of which reached high above their heads. The scouts at the front and back of the group gathered in and a rope was passed along from Gorth, and then between the women.

“Any sign of Shonus?” Mia heard Kenahi ask one of the scouts quietly. A shake of the head was his answer. Ashley took that moment to turn around and catch her eye meaningfully.

“We will get the women to camp and then return to search for him. We cannot do any good if we are so worried about their safety.”

“Yes sir,” the scout returned to his position and Kenahi turned, frowning when he noticed her staring.

“You want to help?” he half growled as he took his place behind her. “Watch the grass. The biggest predator on the plain has snake-like limbs. Don't get distracted and don't get pulled from our group.” He shook the rope for emphasis. Ahead of her, Becky looked back with wild eyes. All of the women would have heard his comment.

“Okay ladies, the faster we get across the grassland the better. Don't run, but don't dawdle either.”

Mia followed the others, the feeling of lead settling into the pit of her stomach. There was no way she would make this journey in reverse, not on her own, and especially not knowing the dangers. It would be suicide. The hope she had fostered for going home summarily fluttered out.

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