Forming coherent thoughts was impossible right now. Every single one banged against the inside of her skull like a frantic bird. She couldn’t catch them, and she couldn’t calm them. Not with Dani here.
“Lynn, I—”
“You’ll want to walk away now.” Lynn’s voice sounded detached and far too calm. Eerily calm.
Dani lingered just a little longer. Lynn could see in her eyes she contemplated saying something else, but she didn’t. She turned and walked.
When she passed the spot Skeever had been sniffing, he greeted her with enthusiasm.
Dani stroked his head, then walked on. She looked back after a few seconds.
Lynn turned her head away. After Dani put a few more feet of distance between them, she started to walk as well.
What was she going to do? Everyone who had ever mattered in her life had told her the same thing: a promise made was a promise to be kept. That Dani had suckered her into making that promise didn’t matter. She didn’t have a choice; Dani had played the game perfectly.
When had Dani started strategizing? That night at the Homestead? Or even earlier—the moment Kate had put her in charge of Lynn, after the group had found out about Richard? Had she ever really forgotten Lynn still had her knife, or had she let Lynn believe she was getting away with something and thus was in charge of the situation?
A hundred little examples of possible betrayals presented themselves to her, little acts of kindness or slowness on the part of Dani’s intelligence that had made Lynn believe that if push came to shove, she would be able to manipulate Dani and take her in a fight. But if Dani had been aware of her attempts at manipulation all along, then maybe Dani had also been playing Lynn from the very beginning.
The idea was crushing in its enormity.
Lynn stared at Dani’s back. She took in the calm movements of her head as she scanned her surroundings, the meticulous way she placed her feet for every step, and the ease with which Dani carried her spear.
Another thought struck her like lightning: had Dani faked the nightmare in the car that night? Had she been awake when she’d sought—what Lynn had perceived to be—comfort? A last-ditch attempt to get her to stay? A call to a softer, more emotional side of Lynn? The result had been delayed, but it had been achieved: Lynn was here. She’d let Dani get to her.
Lynn was still angry, but a sense of admiration began to well up from the part of her that recognized that the number one goal in life was survival. The level of skill and foresight required to befuddle Lynn so completely were beyond Lynn to such a degree, she doubted she would ever be able to match them. Dani had obviously been around people all her life, and she knew how they behaved when under threat. Or maybe Lynn was just very easy to manipulate.
Lynn took a deep breath. She needed to keep an eye on her surroundings, not just sink into her thoughts. She stopped for some water.
Dani stopped too, although she kept her back to Lynn.
Lynn hadn’t caught her glancing back even once, but Dani was keeping an eye on her, that much was certain. Did she worry about a tomahawk being thrown in her back? Did she worry if Lynn was all right? At this point, Lynn had nothing to base predictions about Dani’s thoughts or behavior on. She knew absolutely nothing about Dani. Was her father really dead? What about the story about her mom? Had she just said those things to make Lynn think they had something in common?
All these questions were driving Lynn insane! And the worst part was that if she asked Dani, she still couldn’t be sure she got a true answer. This wasn’t the Dani Lynn had thought she knew, and she didn’t think she liked the new version very much.
Lynn stared at Dani’s back. They had wordlessly kept a forty-foot gap between them while they traveled. When Dani stopped, Lynn stopped, and when Lynn stopped, Dani stopped.
Skeever divided his time between the two—or usually by running back and forth, never lingering long with either before seeking attention on the other side of the divide.
They’d eaten lunch separately, with whatever they’d had in their respective backpacks.
Lynn had stubbornly avoided looking over to Dani, but she’d felt Dani watching her.
Skeever had seemed confused by the lunch arrangements, but getting scraps from both had made everything right. For him, at least.
Lynn still couldn’t get over how easily Dani had fooled her. She gave herself credit for having doubted at least some of the story while it was being told to her, but not enough to realize the extent of the hustle. She didn’t pride herself on her people skills, but she’d always trusted her gut. This time, it’d been wrong.
Dani stopped.
The change in routine pulled Lynn from her thoughts. She quickly glanced around her to check but saw nothing out of the ordinary.
Skeever looked up at her. He’d been with her for a few minutes now, worn out from the hours of walking they’d put in.
Dani brought her spear up.
By instinct, Lynn raised her tomahawk as well.
The bushes on the left side of the road, way across the tarmac, rustled counter to the wind. Lynn would have missed it if Dani hadn’t been watching the spot. She took a few steps closer, then froze.
Three red-and-white monkeys broke through the underbrush. They darted over the remnants of the road, crossed in front of Dani, and disappeared on the other side.
Another monkey followed. Then a pack of about ten monkeys spilled onto the highway. They darted around the asphalt on the lanes leading into the opposite direction.
Dani readied her spear.
Seconds ticked by. Lynn waited. She observed her surroundings as Dani kept her eyes firmly locked on the underbrush.
Four of the monkeys braved the crossing. None of them stayed in place long enough to line up a shot. Then a small female darted within throwing distance.
Dani’s spear sailed through the air with absolute accuracy.
The second the monkey jumped the divider, it was knocked off by the impact of the metal rod. The shaft clanked to the ground out of sight.
The underbrush on both sides came to life with fleeing primates. Alarmed hoots went up.
Dani jumped the divider and disappeared.
Lynn stepped onto the concrete blocks between the lanes for a look.
On the other side, Dani made short work of a limp monkey.
I guess dinner is on you tonight. Lynn snorted. Great.
The first drops of rain caught Lynn by surprise. She’d been expecting rain since the morning, but most of the storm front was still behind her. Whatever cloud these few drops were falling out of must be a herald, sending travelers fair warning of impending, watery doom. “Shit.” With great reluctance, she lengthened her strides to catch up with Dani. Once she got close, she swerved to put a good five feet between them as she came up parallel to her.
Dani glanced at her.
“Rain’s here.” Lynn kept her voice meticulously flat.
Dani nodded. “I think we have just enough time to find shelter.”
Lynn hummed non-committedly. Dani was probably right, though; the drops came down irregularly and a few seconds apart. “I’ll lead.”
Dani didn’t object.
Lynn led her on in a forced march, toward a little green sign in the distance: Exit 19. Wordlessly, she guided them up the exit ramp and looked around the intersection. Left or right? Left seemed to lead to the opposing ramp onto the 95, so right it was.