Path Of Shadows: The Awakening

Chapter 40

I close my eyes and think about the place I want to go, the person the place is tied to. When I open my eyes I'm in a different place, one I recognize though. I know he moved around a lot but I didn't think he'd be here in California.

I have the feeling like something is off. I'm not sure why or what it is but I don't see any people at all. Usually at camp there are always people walking around, working, but I see no one.

"Hello?" I shout.

I walk around for a while trying to find someone. I have a very bad feeling as if something is wrong but I don't see any danger. There is a massive fire still burning in a large pit and the air smells strange, as if something was just cooked, or burnt, but I can't place the smell. It's not a scent I've ever smelled before. Nothing seems out of place but it's odd there aren't any people. Where is everyone? I see Rigorek's tent and slowly walk up to it.

"Rek?" I say as I walk up to it. I hear nothing but silence.

"Rek? Are you in here?" I ask as I push open the curtain where the opening for the door is.

It's dark and I can't see anything. I turn the light on my phone and scan the room. I don't see anything out of the ordinary. My phone beeps then shuts off, which I find strange because my phone was almost fully charged. As I turn around to exit the tent it's pitch black and I can't see anything I walk blindly for a few seconds before I see the light slightly peering through the opening of the tent.

As I try to find my way over to the opening, hands out in front of me so I don't run into anything, I trip over something heavy. As I try to find my footing to get back up I'm curious what I tripped over. I feel the ground with my hands until I find the object. I touch it and I feel this cold dampness then I notice my clothes and hands feel wet where I fell. I wipe my hand off on my pants then quickly pull my hands back and grasp for my phone. I hit the power button repeatedly almost dropping my phone a few times because it's slippery. I'm hoping maybe there is enough battery to light the screen up. My phone suddenly turns back on, full battery as I thought. I shakily turn my flashlight on and turn it to the object on the ground slowly.

When I see the object I fell over was my friend, Rigorek, I immediately feel panic set in. I kick myself backwards quickly, sending my phone flying, just trying to get away from him. I back up into a cold, wet, sticky puddle that is now all over my back side. It's all over my hands, soaking through the back of my pants the same way it soaked the front of me. I look at my hands and even in the darkness, I can see the fluid is dark. It's blood. Confirming what I already knew, Rek is dead. I begin to sob but I get up and run for the opening. Once outside I throw up.

"Thought you had a stronger stomach than that." I hear Harvey chuckle.

"Why?" I ask, choked up.

"Why not?" Harvey asks.

"How did you even know about Rigorek?" I ask angrily as I stifle a sob.

"I have my sources." Harvey says.

"All this for what? To get back at me?" I ask.

"You thought you'd kill me and I'd come back and be like 'you killed me but I forgive you' no, you're gonna pay for what you did." Harvey says.

"Oh grow up! You killed me, I killed you! We are even! Why take it out on people who had nothing to do with it?!" I shout at him.

"Cause that's how I'm going to break you." Harvey says.

"You won't break me, Harvey. You'll just piss me off and I'll kill you again." I say.

"No you won't. I'm all you'll have left." Harvey says.