Immortally Embraced by angie fox Read Free Book Online Page B

nothing away.
    Rodger watched me as if he was trying to put the pieces together.
    Nothing to see here .
    I let out a breath when he let it drop. “If it does have something to do with the prophecies, you have to do it,” he said. Avoiding fate could spell disaster. “My pack leader always used to say things happen for a reason.” Rodger shook his head. “I mean, here I am.”
    It was eerily unsettling how Rodger had arrived home early. That even before I’d seen Marc, events had been set in motion that would allow me to get out of camp and confront the murdered Dr. Keller. If I actually had the guts to do it.
    “It’s the little things, remember?” he said, repeating my words back to me. The last prophecies came true because of seemly inconsequential decisions.
    Thank heaven for that. But, “This decision is hardly free of consequences.”
    “If you don’t go, what if you miss changing that one thing that could make the difference?” Rodger cocked his head. “What it boils down to is that I don’t think you have a choice.”
    The truth of his words settled low in my stomach. “That’s what I was afraid of.”

 
    chapter five
    “Take this,” Rodger said, tossing his army field jacket my way. It missed my cot by three feet and smacked against the canvas floor of the tent.
    “It’s at least five sizes too big,” I said, turning back to my canvas duffel. I’d stowed a flashlight, extra batteries, and six of the energy bars Rodger had brought from home. Plus the cookies.
    I swallowed, my mouth too dry to even contemplate eating one.
    “What?” he asked, leaning up against the tent pole. “Did you actually replace your uniform coat?”
    “Of course not.” My field jacket was toast from the last time I was crazy enough to try to leave camp. But I didn’t want to swim around in my buddy’s. “Marc said he’d leave me a uniform.”
    Rodger’s eyes widened. “That’s the easiest way to be shot as a traitor.”
    “Thanks for the pep talk.” I said, turning back to my duffel. “If you can tell me another way to sneak into an enemy camp, I’m all ears.” Fingers trembling, I searched the nightstand next to my cot for a notebook. I tore out some pages, folded them down, and stuffed them into my boot, along with a pen. There they rested, a comforting weight against my ankle. “I won’t change until I’m past the Great Divide.”
    Rodger harrumphed. “Speaking of which, do you have a plan for that?”
    “Marc gave me a map of the armies,” I said, feeling for it in my back pocket. That was treason right there. I shoved it into my other boot. It wasn’t like I’d be changing my shoes.
    I glanced behind me. Rodger was in the same spot, eyeing me like a disapproving father. Tell me about it. I tried to give him a smile and failed.
    “He’s leaving transportation,” I said, “most likely a jeep, outside camp.”
    “Did he say a jeep?”
    “No,” I groused, the realization prickling at me. Yeah, okay, this really was insane.
    I rubbed at my temples and wondered if James Bond ever got a stress headache before a mission.
    Whatever Marc left for me, it had better be fast. I had to outrun imps before I could even think about crossing the Great Divide or sneaking into the enemy camp.
    No telling what else was out there, either.
    “Remember what I said about this being a good idea?” Rodger asked.
    I searched under my cot for a weapon of some kind. All I had were shower supplies and my dress uniform, still in the box.
    He stood next to me. “I changed my mind.”
    Yeah, well, it was too late for that. Besides, I didn’t have to be a conventional soldier to pull this off. Lots of people made do. “My cousin Regis used to hunt alligators in the swamp with just a hook and a bangstick.”
    “What? You think self-defense is genetic?”
    Sitting back on my haunches, I made a quick search of my pockets. Maybe I could stab an attacker with my penlight.
    I gave a shuddering sigh. “I can’t back