Vampire's Forbidden Territory (Sídhí Summer Camp Series #2) (17 page)

She sensed his concern so she tried smiling at him, but her upturned lips turned into a grimace.

He closed his arms around her.
“Mia Cara, a smile won’t work when I can feel the defeat behind it. Mint was a good idea.”

Katie nodded. She agreed with him, but his sympathy didn’t help improve her black mood. “How are we going to reach the pool? There’s no way we can sneak past them.”

“Then we’ll just have to go around them,” Beth said as she walked up.

A New Direction

Katie glared at the screaming crabs that continued destroying tree after tree.

She felt Jared’s acceptance. If they wanted to help Sarah and Nick, they didn’t have a choice but find another way into the cave. She also felt his frustration. She completely agreed. She didn’t like the idea of hiking through an unknown forest. Who knew what they might stumble upon next time?

Collecting the two semi-invalids from the small clearing, the five teens slowly made their way around the edge of the valley. They stayed a safe distance away from the tree line, but it didn’t deter the crabs from following them.

The big, red creatures raced back and forth along the tree line, keeping pace with the teens.

As they neared the farthest end of the valley, which lay immediately across from the waterfalls, Katie’s frustration grew. They wouldn’t be entering the caves through the hidden tunnel. Even if they could have made it around the crabs, the entire area swarmed with mites.

“How are we going to get past those things?” Emily asked. Her voice shook, but her eyes glinted with determination as she continued. “We’ve got to get Nick and Sarah out of there.”

Mitch grunted. “Throw the mutt in the meadow. It’ll distract them.”

“Not funny,” Katie snapped at him, glancing at Beth in time to see a flicker of pain cross her face.

Beth turned away from the group, motioning to the right of the waterfalls. “I’m going to take a look around.”

“I’ll go with you,” Katie said, trotting after the hurting girl.

“Katie, be careful,”
Jared called softly.

Following glimpses of the granite faced wall, they tromped past shrubs and through mint until they found a narrow path near the wall’s base.

Katie couldn’t see anything except tall trees and the looming cliff. She motioned toward the trail. “I wonder where it goes.”

Beth shrugged her shoulders and knelt, sniffing several of the bushes crowding along either side. She stiffened and growled. “Trolls.”

Katie and Beth quickly rejoined the others, telling them what they found.

“I think we should follow it,” Katie said, motioning toward the hidden path.

“Trolls are really dangerous,” Emily said, looking white as a sheet.

Katie understood her fear. Emily had nearly been killed by a group of trolls during one of her family’s many camping expeditions.

“Maybe we should split-up,” Beth said, glancing at Mitch’s scowling face, “send someone for help.”

 “Sounds good,” Mitch said disdainfully. “You run away, I mean, run for help like a good little mutt.”

Beth exhaled sharply, hissing outrage between her teeth. “I meant I could search for a way into the caverns, while all of you hiked-out of here. In my khatt form, I’m a lot faster and can cover more ground. And if I do run into the trolls, I can outrun them.”

“Got a lot of experience in running away from things, do you?” Mitch said, grinning.

“I prefer chasing things,” Beth said in a sharp tone, “with halflings at the top of my list.” Leaning toward Mitch, her eyes flashed in warning.

Katie promptly slapped her hand across Mitch’s open mouth. “Geez, give it a rest. You aren’t helping things.”

Beneath her hand, he growled, stiffly nodding his agreement.

After a few more minutes of discussion, they agreed to follow the little path.

Beth led the way, and they quickly reached the tall trees hugging the wall of rock. The path grew wider and the sound of crashing water disappeared. Eventually the animal-made pathway drifted away from the rock wall, taking them farther from their hunting grounds. They would never find an entrance to the caves in the forest. That was for certain.

But what they wanted and what they got were two different things, because the area near the base of the cliff was overgrown with thorny bushes. They had no choice but to continue down the curving trail.

The group trudged along the winding trail. The path grew narrow, taking them through the thick undergrowth. They moved farther away from the cliff, deeper into the surrounding forest. Dense patches of markles appeared to their right. The bamboo-like shoots gently swayed in the slight breeze. Tiny, finger-like cilia wiggled at the top of each shoot. Occasionally, a green, forest sprite or small bird would take the bait, ending up covered in a spray of sticky, red goo.

The darkening sky indicated how fast nighttime approached

The tightly knit forest slowly grew thinner; the space between the big furbles spread wider with each tree they approached. The bushes and markles gave way to grass, giving the group several options in which way they wanted to go.

Hints of stars appeared through the high branches.

Katie watched Beth pause. Hands on her hips, she stopped, giving the others time to catch up with her. The shifter looked around the forest. She seemed uneasy, constantly searching the area for danger.

Between the twisting hike and the darkened sky, Katie was really glad Beth seemed to know where they were heading. The shifter’s next words blew that bubble apart.

“We are way off course,” Beth said in a grumble.

Katie wished she could sink to the ground like Emily did.

Mitch snorted. “Gee, what a surprise. You screwed-up.”

Jared, a step behind Katie, sighed disgustedly.

Katie grumbled her agreement. She was just as tired of Mitch’s constant attitude. He’d gone from not-funny to downright rude.

Beth glared at him, sweeping down his tall frame. Her eyes narrowed a fraction and she frowned. “Let’s take a short break,” she said, sitting with her back against the soft bark of a furble tree.

Katie glanced to see what she had been looking at.

Mitch was leaning against a pine tree. He tried to hide it, but his hands shook as he lowered himself to the ground.

They sat in a loose circle, resting for a few minutes.

Glitter moss grew in various places. Running up tree trunks, patches of the glittery moss, a close cousin to glow moss, sparkled softly in the night. Dim enough that it didn’t interfere with her night vision.

She glanced around, trying to reassure herself the forest was safe and troll free. Mitch and Emily would be useless in a fight. The area, for a good forty feet around them seemed calm.

She was worried about Mitch. He was steadier on his feet than Emily, but not by much.

They discussed making camp, but no one wanted to stop for the night. Every moment counted. One night might mean the difference between finding the others alive or eaten.

With scattered sighs and a few groans, everyone got to their feet.

Emily stumbled on a tree root.

Mitch caught her around her waist, holding the sexy little vampire until she found her footing.

Katie watched Beth tense up, clenching her fist against her thigh. No doubt, Beth wanted to rip Emily in half.

As much as Katie cared for Emily, she couldn’t blame Beth. Watching her destined mate wrap his arms around another girl had to be difficult.

She was beginning to believe Mitch had the worst luck of anyone she knew. Not hearing the mate song when Beth did was rotten. Then again, Beth had it harder than he did.

The Song of the Sídhí was a mystery that even the oldest of Sídhí didn’t completely understand. She didn’t think anyone would ever understand why the song sounded for one mate and not the other.

“You stop for a reason, mutt?” Mitch asked jeeringly.

Katie watched Beth bite her lip, keeping her mouth firmly shut. Normally, Beth would’ve said something snarky. His actions had to hurt her, but the shifter kept her mouth shut. Her voice remained locked in her chest. Maybe she was learning that talking to Mitch only made his sarcastic remarks sharper, his comments more hurtful.

Beth shuddered, quickly blinking away tears. From the helpless look in her eyes, Beth wanted to become his friend, but she didn’t have a clue where to start.

“Mitch, give it a rest already,” Katie snapped, punching her brother in the arm. The hit she gave him wasn’t a light love tap, but Mitch didn’t say anything. He just shrugged and started forward… in the wrong direction.

Beth stepped toward him, opening her mouth, no doubt to stop him.

Katie knew that would go over like a ton of bricks. She stopped Beth with a quick touch to the shifter’s tense shoulder. Winking at her, she called to her brother, “I thought we were searching for a way inside the cliffs, not going back to the waterfalls.”

Mitch jerked to a halt, bending his head he spoke quietly to Emily. The girl waved a limp arm in the opposite direction. The same place Beth had been leading them toward.

“He’s got the worst sense of direction I’ve ever seen,” Jared said, wincing as his little sister stumbled again.

“It’s easy to get turned around in the trees,” Beth said absently. Her eyes never wavered from her mate as he protectively curled an arm around Emily. A growl vibrated from her chest, matching the fire in her eyes.

At her words, both Jared and Katie looked at her like she’d grown an extra nose.

“I agree,” Katie said finally. Humor filled her voice.

Beth looked toward them and groaned, rubbing her hands across her face.

Somehow, Katie knew the shifter would never have made such an excuse for anyone else. Mitch had the girl so twisted up inside she was ready to pull her hair out.

“You know for someone so tiny, you sure have a really big roar,” Katie teased her, hoping to pull Beth’s long face into a smile.

Beth chuckled weakly. “You should hear my older brother, Derek. He’s the loudest of all my sibs. His yowling can wake the dead.”

Hours later, the trees began growing closer together, and they had changed directions several times. Any sort of trail had all but disappeared. They were hiking across the unknown, aiming, for what they hoped, was the backside of the cliffs.

Clarisse’s shrill voice stopped Katie in her tracks.

Katie felt Jared’s shared disgust flow through her. Threading his fingers with hers, he squeezed gently.

Beth glanced toward Clarisse’s voice and back to Katie. “Do you know her?” she asked in a hushed voice.

Mitch growled, but he was the first to answer her question. “That’s Clarisse.” He pulled a branch down, gaining a better view. “She’s with some blond haired guy.”

“You mean, she’s screaming at the poor guy,” Emily said, giggling in her hand. “Did she just threaten to rip off his wings?”

Jared snorted. “He must be another dragon.”

“At least he’ll be able to call for help so we can get Brianna and the other two out of the cavern,” Beth said. A harsh growl rumbled from her chest. “Exactly how did Clarisse get out of the caves?”

“Good question,” Katie said. Her lips puckered into a distasteful look. She would be glad when Guardian Alexander showed back up, but until he did, maybe they could find out what Jared’s ex-girlfriend had been up to. “Come on.”

Katie shoved her way through the branches, eager to confront the girl. The red haired vampire was a constant thorn in Katie’s side.

A sliver of humor – not her own – slid through her body. The emotion made her lips curl into a grin. She glanced back and smiled at her mate.

“You’re way too eager to drop the hammer on poor Clarisse,”
Jared said, baring partially lengthened fangs in approval.

From the black emotions flowing from him, Katie knew how much he detested Clarisse. She certainly didn’t blame him. The girl nearly destroyed his cousin’s chance at bonding with her lifeMate.

“Clarisse should’ve lost her head for interfering between two lifeMates. The only reason the council ignored her sick practical joke on Katrina and Eric was because her father’s a High Council member. MuskLeke holds way too much political power for one person,”
Jared said. His voice sounded as repulsed as the emotions she felt flowing from him.

The blond guy stopped shouting at Clarisse and looked up. His jaw dropped and his eyes grew huge. “What are you kids doing here?” he bellowed.

“I believe the true question is what are you doing here, Harry?” Guardian Alexander asked, stepping through a thick screen of trees.

“Trolls attacked me!” Clarisse shrieked, pointing at the tall guardian in accusation. “You dragons are supposed to keep me safe! I’m telling my father! And I’m…”

“Silence,” Alexander said, snarling down at her. “I was not speaking to you. Your turn, young lady, will be next.” His words vibrated with the promise of justice.

Clarisse hissed, baring her fangs. “I won’t be treated with such disrespect! I’m the daughter of Clan Valley’s High Councilman MuskLeke and you…”

Clarisse stopped mid-sentence. Slender fingers, tipped with sharp claws curled around the girl’s neck. The redhead’s eyes bulged outward like a frog caught in a trap.

“I believe Guardian Alexander said be quiet,” Sarah said in a menacingly soft voice.

Brianna and Nick stepped through the bushes, standing immediately behind Sarah.

Katie grinned in relief. She didn’t know how the three of them managed to get out of the cave without Sarah revealing who she was, but Katie was supremely glad they appeared to be in one piece.

Clarisse turned sheet white. No doubt, she remembered the first time she crossed words with Sarah.

Sarah growled.

The low sound surprised Katie. The ice-cold exile rarely voiced her emotions, unless she was arguing with Nick.

Nick glared a hole through Sarah’s back, curling his lip in anger at Sarah’s short growl.

Sarah’s nose wrinkled. Revulsion flickered across her aristocratic features. “Ugh, you smell worse than a skrivett pond.”