Rune Wielders

Chapter Twenty Three

Somehow, Colbie had landed in the middle of a cornfield. She peered over the stalks, seeing a road. Thank goodness that it didn't put her somewhere in the middle of a farm.

"Colbie?"

Colbie sighed, pushing away the cornstalks to see Reed in front of her. Pulling him out of the corn stalks onto the side of the road, she felt herself get a little less nervous. At least she had someone here with her.

Reed stumbled, leaning back as a car sped past the two teens at breakneck speed. "Geez! They need to slow down, yeah?" he muttered. He turned to see Colbie already walking away from him, heading toward a cul-de-sac nearby. "W-wait!"

"What?" Colbie said, looking over her shoulder at Reed. "Come on, Reed. We need to find Ruby and then Alden before Lila ends up finding us. We're dead if she does."

"I'm coming, hold on," Reed called out, scurrying to catch up with her long legs.

Colbie glanced down to her side and saw that Reed was struggling to keep up. Slowing her pace, she looked up at the sign nearing the cul-de-sac. It read 'The Willows'.

Colbie wrinkled her nose in disgust at the sudden assault on her ears. Children running across the street, playing in their yards with friends, parents lounging out on lawn chairs and talking amongst themselves.

What a life to be living, Colbie thought as she grabbed Reed by the shoulder. She started to push him into the cul-de-sac with her, glancing up and down at the houses.

A lot of them looked the same to her. The same, multiple floors with balconies and porches and three plus cars. The same gardens against the porch and the stones leading up to the front porch. A paved driveway with an intricate design in it, like a diamond or a circle. The only thing that differed was the carvings of the last names on rocks up front, the house colors, and the cars that they all owned.

Colbie hummed to herself. She couldn't remember Ruby's last name. "What's Ruby's last name, again?"

"Ruby Lennox," Reed said, watching children throw inflatable balls around the yards, smacking them down into the ground and onto cars. He ducked underneath one and waved as a parent apologized to them halfheartedly.

"Did you say Ruby?"

Colbie looked down to see a young girl staring up at them, her blonde hair bright against the dim light. "Who're you?"

"I'm Juniper, Ruby's sister! Are you that girl that she used to be friends with?" Juniper frowned, crossing her arms.

Reed and Colbie looked at each other and then at the girl who was crossing her arms at them. "Maybe?" Colbie answered.

Juniper huffed, pouting. "You made my big sister cry! You big meanie!" Juniper said, kicking at Colbie's shins. "Meanie!"

"Whoa there, kiddo," Colbie said, pushing Juniper away with a gentle tap of her foot. Juniper started to punch at her leg, still angry. "I don't even know if I'm the girl."

Ceasing her punching, she looked up at Colbie. "Are you Colbie?"

Colbie sucked in a breath. "Yeah. I'm the girl then," Colbie said, picking Juniper up. "Come on, girl. Hit me. Right on the cheek."

Reed looked from Juniper to Colbie. "Colbie, I don't think that's a good idea--"

"She's literally five. How bad can it hurt--" Colbie winced when she was backhanded with the power that didn't match a young child. It took all her power not to drop the little kid and punt her across the street. This kid, no matter how badly raised, was their ticket to finding Ruby.