Half Lost by Sally Green Read Free Book Online

hood on me and gagged meand then it was like they forgot I was there. And . . . they talked about things. They talked about how they were setting a trap for this witch called Nathan. He’s famous. He’s the son of Marcus. Half Black Witch and half White Witch. They said he’d killed lots of Hunters. But famous or not, they said, he wouldn’t stand a chance against them. Apparently two of them were some special elite. The trap was that they’d make it look like there were only four Hunters, so he’d think he had a good chance against them. But they could all go invisible and one of them had this weird Gift that makes you double up in pain and another one could blind you. So they were going to catch him and then take us both back to the Council and have us executed.” She glances at me and then looks away. “Anyway, that Nathan guy sounds really nasty but he’s working for the Alliance so I’m glad he didn’t fall for the trap and I’m really grateful that it’s you who found me and rescued me, Freddie.”
    I have to rub my face to cover my smile. “Yeah.”
    â€œAnyway, I know that you don’t trust me, and that’s fine. It’s understandable. But that doesn’t mean I’m not grateful.”
    â€œDid they say if any other Hunters were nearby?”
    â€œNo. Well, I mean they didn’t say there were or there weren’t. They talked about ‘base’ and getting information to base and things like that but I’m not sure how close it was.”
    â€œWe need to go. Wherever it is, it’s too close.”
    We set off again. It’s early afternoon but very gloomy.The rain starts and quickly turns to sleet. The trees are protecting us from the worst of the weather but it’s muddy and wet and cold. If I didn’t have Donna with me I’d be back with Gabriel by now, but we’ll be lucky to make it by tomorrow night. And it’s impossible not to leave tracks in this mud.
    When it gets dark, I find a place to camp. The rain has petered out but everywhere is wet. The least wet and muddy place is under a large tree. We sit there and shelter for a while, but Donna starts to shiver.
    â€œWe need wood for a fire. Come on.” I pull her to her feet.
    â€œI’m too tired. Can’t I wait here?”
    â€œNo. You need to help and you need to keep moving until we get the fire going.”
    We wander off together and Donna does help, soon getting an armful. But I tell her, “Most of that’s too wet.”
    â€œIt’s better than nothing,” she replies, looking at my empty arms. “I’ll take it back.”
    I let her go and carry on searching. The rain starts again, heavier than ever, and I realize it’s impossible. There’s no dry wood.
    I go back to the shelter of the big tree. Donna is bent over the rucksack, her arm inside it. Some of the contents are tipped out. There’s a gun by Donna’s side. I run at her, sending a flash of lightning to hit the ground close to her. She cowers down.
    â€œWhat are you doing?” I shout.
    â€œI was looking for food! I’m starving.”
    I’m breathing hard. She looks up at me. “I’m just hungry. This is all dehydrated stuff. I thought there might be some energy bars or chocolate or something.”
    I swear at her and grab her wrists, zip-tying them behind her back. “Don’t ever go in my stuff again.”
    I pack the rucksack back up, cleaning the mud off things as best I can. The ammo is all packed at the bottom. None of the guns are loaded. Was Donna going through looking for a loaded gun? Looking for ammo? Or was she really looking for food?
    I get the least damp wood I can find and light the fire with flames from my mouth. Donna cowers further from me. The fire is poor. I make up the dehydrated meals with lukewarm water. They’re disgusting but I eat one and feed Donna another.
    She