Vanish in the shadows

Chapter 2

As Kate sighed heavily, being kept in a small hut, tied to the wall, she leans her head back onto the wooden post walls. Abi keeps a firm grip on her knife, as she stands by the door. She walks over and bends down grabbing a damp cloth from a small table by the door. She walks over slowly and bends down to Kate's side. She then gently dabs at her bruised forehead. Kate winces and flinches pulling against her bounds.

" sorry..." she softly whispers dabbing more gently.
" t..that was my doing..." she admits with a sympathetic gaze. Kate sighs and stares at her deciding whether to take a grudge or just let it go. Abi then slides a small bowl over full of  cooked beans and a cup of water. She pulls the spoon up to Kate's lips but she doesn't open them. She turns her head unsure of the contents in the stew. Abi sighs and looks at her and takes a sip herself to prove that it wasn't harmful.
" i may be the one who knocked you out....but I'm no murderer alright" she confirms in a slightly friendly tone, well more friendly then when she was outside. Kate slowly opens her mouth and starts to sip at the stew. A few minutes pass until she's finished eating and Abi turns away to out the bowl on the table. Kate takes in her surroundings looking around the room, then looking at Abi as she turned back around. Kate nodded her head towards her neck that had a chain and a ancient looking pocket watch. Abi looks at it then covers it with her hand looking at Kate confused.
" do you miss your father?..." Kate asks making abis brows furrow
" I..I'm sorry...how did you.." Kate buts in respectfully
" your pocket watch is around your neck, and the clock hangs around your chest so who ever gave it to you, was some one close, judging by the age of the watch, it's extremely old, I know that because my grandfather had one just like it, I can see that the chain is almost brand new yet the watch is old, so you must have replaced the chain when it was given to you, but you never cleaned or changed the clock, so it's sentimental.." Kate takes a breath before continuing with abi staring in shock and disbelief.
" now obviously that pocket watch is the same as my grandfathers, so it was a male that previously owned it, but not a boyfriend because a watch of that value would have to be passed down through blood, and it wouldn't of been a husband either because you don't have any rings, so obviously it was given to you by your father..." Kate lowers her head
" am I right?.." she adds with confidence. Abi clutches the watch before looking at her with shock. She eventually nods and sits there with her lips parted slightly trying to understand how she just did that.
" I'm very observant, as you can see, so perhaps you could explain to me what's going on here?" Kate uses a calming tone. Abi pulls her knife out again and keeps it close to Kate's face. She stares into her eyes before hissing
" you'll find out soon enough, but right now you can't be trusted, so either sit and be silent or you'll be eating this dagger through your belly button!" Her lips curls. Kate leans back against the wall in surrender and shuts her mouth as she is told again. A loud scream interrupts they're intense stare. The shrieking turns both Kate and abis heads to the door before a woman rushes past. Abi stands up and runs to the door before gasping and covering her mouth in shock. Kate pulls against the restrains trying to see what had happened but it was no use. As abi moved out of the way the vision of a young woman being carried by two others walked past the door hurriedly, blood trickling down her shirt, sticking out of her side was a thin stick of bamboo. As they disappear into the distance Kate thrashes around trying to free herself. Abi tries to hold Kate down but she slips out of her grasp.
" what happened to her!?"
" she....I..."
" Abi! Tell me what happened to her now!?"
" she fell into one of our new traps, she landed on a bamboo stick....why.."
" okay...abi does anyone know any first aid or is there a doctor or nurse here!?"  Abi fidgets with her hands in distress knowing the one that was injured. She shakes her head quickly before Kate looks up at her sternly.
" abi, I can help her....untie me" she requests.
" what....no!"
" Abi! If you want your friend to live! Untie me right now!?" Abi who was unsure of whether to trust Kate walks down to her. She  stares into her eyes with hope that she's telling the truth, as they did not have any doctors so she was her only chance. Kate's rope is cut she gets to her feet weakly before rushing out of the small hut. Abi follows with hesitation that she might try and make a break for it, but Kate runs next door towards the sound of screaming, past a few small huts and some rooms that were built in the ground before coming to a larger hut bigger than all of them. She rushes inside to see a bed surrounded by women, on the bed a younger woman weakly lay, pale and sweaty, covered in blood and scared. The leader woman stands up pulling out her knife and standing in the way of Kate's path.
"What the hell are you doing here!?"
" I can help her...let me help!"
" you will do no such thing, I can't trust you with jade's life". Kate starts growling a little in frustration before she holds her arms up.
" listen to me! I have no weapons on me, I'm still weak so I can't run, you guys outnumber me over a dozen times and I'm surrounded, why would I risk everything just to come here and hurt your friend!?, if you care about your friend, if you have any plans of letting her live then LET ME HELP!" Kate pants heavily. The older woman looks at Jade then back at Kate. Her eye brows tilt a little before lowering her arm and letting her pass. Kate runs and drops to her knees, she then grabs a few medical tools that they had stolen from camp.
" I need everyone out now! Except abi! And...." Kate looks up at the older woman waiting for her name. She shoos everyone out before bending down to the bed
" Mabel..."
" okay...Mabel...help flip her onto her side gently" she instructs as she pours alcohol over her hands and sets up some bandages and equipment. As Jade groans and whimpers laying on her side, the bamboo stick stuck out by Kate's arms. She holds some old cloth to her stick and her skin before looking to abi.
" hold her still" she commands before quickly snapping the bamboo off so it was just a small piece left. Jade whimpers and shakes from her constant loss of blood. Kate grips the final piece of bamboo and places her hand on her side.
" okay....Jade?..I'm gonna help you okay, your gonna be fine, * whispers to herself* I hope". Jade whimpers in pain and quickly nods.
"For me to help you I need to get this stick out of you, so..I'm afraid this won't be pretty, Mabel...hold her down" she slowly pulls at the stick. Blood squelches and Jade screams before the stick is fully removed and Jade shakes and whimpers weakly. Kate quickly applies cloth to stop the bleeding.
" okay....it didn't go all the way through...pass me the bandages Abi, and Mabel...grab me a new cloth" she again commands while dabbing what was left of the cloth she had and dabbing around the wound. She picks up a thin sowing needle and holds it between her teeth while she unravels some thin string, she quickly and hurriedly threads the needle then removes the blood stained cloth. Jade whimpers loudly before her eyes close and she goes limp. Kate sighs in relief before she starts stitching up the small hole in jades side. As she ties the knot and puts the needle down she grabs the new cloth from Mabel and holds it over the stitches to clear the rest of the light bleeding before wrapping it up in the bandages gently. She sits back with an exhausted sigh before turning to Mabel and Abi who were staring at her in surprise. Kate stands up and leans against the back door frame.
" does that prove to you that I'm not a threat?.." Kate's voice slightly rose in pitch before panting heavily. Mabel stands up and walks to her slowly. With a grateful soft smile
" no, your not a threat,.....thank you".
" your very welcome."

.